The Road Not Taken


The roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.


I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.



A poem by
Robert Frost (1874-1963)

Poem Analysis

Introduction

        Robert Frost was born in San Francisco on March 26, 1874. He started interesting in reading and writing poetry when he was eleven years old and had to move to New England. He was enrolled at Dartmouth College in 1892, and later at Harvard, even though he never graduated from that university. His first professional poem, ’My Butterfly,’ was published on November 8, 1894 in the New York newspaper The Independent.  His wife, Elinor Miriam White, whom he married with was a major inspiration in his poetry until she died in 1938. His work is associated with the life and landscape of New England. He is a modern poet. His work is poured with ambiguity and irony. He lived and taught for years in Massachusetts and Vermont. He died in Boston on January 29, 1963.

Discussion

        The theme of the poem is about how human beings are determined by both the choices they face and the choices they make in life. The Road Not Taken is a poem about how to live life meaningfully by making the right decisions and if necessary by doing things differently that most other people do. The poem starts with ‘two roads’ as a metaphor for choices. He can choose either one. The poet also uses ‘to where it bent in the undergrowth’ that shows the obstacle each road faces.  Then, he chooses the path that seemed to be ‘wanting wear’. Yet he doubts himself and weighs whether he should return to a life that most lead or not. In the end he is grateful to have taken that path because it has made the biggest impact. The meaning of this poem really lays in the sentence ‘took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference’ this shows that he is looking back at what he could have done and what would have happened if he had. At the end, the poem tells readers that they can take the easy way out, but it is always better to take the harder choice, the path that is not particularly joyful, because the benefits will come later.

        The poem intends to remind readers about life and its decisions and choices they have to make. It means to say that readers will all have a point in life where they must choose. Thus, readers shouldn’t regret anything and be pressured to make decisions they are unwilling to just because others make those decisions. It also tells that the best way is not always the easiest which means readers have to fight the complications to reach either success or happiness. The poem ends by giving readers a choice between the possibilities that will make all the differences in a good way or bad way.

        The connotations of the poem can be seen as follow: ‘roads diverged’ (l.1) connotes choices to make or paths to take, ‘wood’ (l.1) connotes life, ‘travel’ (l.2) connotes choose or decide or make, ‘traveler’ (l.3) connotes a human being, ‘one’ (l.3) connotes a decision or a choice or a path, ‘it bent in the undergrowth’ (l.5) connotes the obstacle each road or path faces, ‘the other’ (l.6) connotes one of the two paths or choices, ‘grassy and wanted wear’ (l.8) connote less traveled or chosen by, ‘passing’ (l.9) connotes choice, ‘worn’ (l.10) connotes chosen, ‘both’ (l.11) connotes the choices or the paths, and ‘trodden’ (l.12) connotes taken or chosen.

       The denotations are the following: ‘sorry’ (l.2) denotes felt regretful, ‘long I stood’ (l.3) denote spent some time trying to make up his mind, ‘as just as fair’ (l.6) denote likely, ‘perhaps’ (l.7) denotes possibly, ‘though as for that’ (l.9) denote in spite of the fact that, ‘really about the same’ (l.10) denote has almost no difference, and ‘both… equally’ (l.11) denote the two…impartially. 

      Some lines in this poem contain some image: ‘two roads diverged in a yellow wood’ (l.1), ‘because it was grassy and wanted wear’ (l.8), ‘and both that morning equally lay’ (l.11), and ‘in leaves no step had trodden black’ (l.12), they all appeal to our sense of sight. ‘And sorry I could not travel both’ (l.2) appeals to our sense of movement/motion.

       Figurative language can be seen in some lines in this poem like ‘two roads diverged in a yellow wood’ (l.1) that shows a metaphor. ‘And looked down one as far as I could’ (l.4) is a simile. ‘To where it bent in the under growth’ (l.5) is a metaphor. ‘Then took the other, as just as fair’ (l.6) is a simile. ‘Because it was grassy and wanted wear’ (l.8) is a personification. ‘In leaves no step had trodden black’ (l.12) is a metaphor. And ‘two roads diverged in a wood’ (l.18) is a metonymy (it means two choices in life).

rambutan fruit

Reading Report of a Novel

The Rape of Sukreni
a novel by
Anak  Agung Pandji Tisna

        The Rape of Sukreni is a dramatic novel that shows about greed, lust and violence. The novel tells about a terrible crime created by Men Negara (a food stall -later on a coffee shop- proprietor in the village of Bingin Banjah in Bali) and I Gusti

Made Tusan ( a district constable from Temukus). He actually had a wife in Temukus but he still wanted Ni Negari (Men Negara’s daughter from her second husband). He changed his mind when he saw Ni Luh Sukreni. He offered Men Negara some money to cooperate with him to take the beautiful young Sukreni by force. With the help of Men Negara, he raped Sukreni. After that cursed night, Men Negara found out that Sukreni was actually her own daughter from her first husband I Nyoman Raka. She had totally ruined Sukreni’s life. Sukreni’s relationship with I Gde Swamba ( a young attractive coconut plantation owner) was suddenly over. Because of the rape, she had a son named I Gustam who turned out to be a rebellious young man. With his gang, he went to Bingin Banjah village and robbed Men Negara’s coffee shop and house. Then, they burnt her coffee shop, house, rice barn and livestock. I Gusti Made Tusan was on patrol in that area that night. The police and The thieves were locked in savage combat. I Gusti Made Tusan swung his sword and struck I Gustam, his own son, in the neck.

       In this novel, Anak Agung Pandji Tisna tells readers that Men Negara and I Gusti Made Tusan who committed a terrible crime like animals actually only discovered that  it was a crime against themselves. Instead of lecturing readers, this novel successfully deliberates a story about fate. Through the characters, readers realize that fate is inescapable and  determined by one’s karma. 

       Another thing that makes this novel interesting is the way the 

author communicates about Balinese culture and develops the traits of the main characters. Ni Luh Sukreni was characterized beautiful, had fair skin and soft eyes. Her voice was soft and gentle. I Gusti Made Tusan was like a man in a dream, amazed by the sudden arrival and departure of the beautiful girl in Men Negara‘s coffee shop. Similarly, I Gde Swamba was described as an attractive, educated and hardworking young man. Ni Negari was desperately in love with him. Ni Negari was also beautiful but she liked to get attention from men who came to the coffee shop and I Gde Swamba knew the game she played. On the other hand, I Gusti Made Tusan was characterized as depraved and Men Negara was greedy, strong minded and graceless. She would do anything for money. I Gustam was more depraved. He was like a wild animal.

        The way the author presents the drama is also interesting. Especially in the part when Men Negara agreed to cooperate with I Gusti Made Tusan who possessed lust for Sukreni. At that night, she still didn’t realize that Sukreni was actually her own daughter. After that cursed night, she was told by her son, I Negara, who got the information from I Sudiana, Sukreni’s traveling companion, that Ni Luh Sukreni was actually her own flesh and blood from her first husband, I Nyoman Raka. Everything was just too late by then, Sukreni had gone.  It is releasing though to know that Men Negara must feel terrible about it. On the other hand, it is also a pity for Sukreni who became a victim of her mother‘s greed. It was told that years before, Men Negara ran away from her first husband, I Nyoman Raka ( a rice field inspector in Manggis district), to marry I Kompiang who was her first husband’s cousin. From him she had a son named I Negara and a beautiful daughter named Ni Negari.

       The story was ended favorably.  Men Negara and Ni Negari knew what had happened was no accident. No human power could stop the will of the Almighty from taking its course. Men Negara who brought ruin to her own flesh and blood finally lost her mind. I Gusti Made Tusan who murdered his own son swayed for an instant and fell beside I Gustam’s body.  

        In my opinion, the title is simple and right to the point. It entices readers to read the novel. Through this novel, the author also tells about God’s justice. It tells that God’s law is totally different from man’s law.

        Even though The Rape of Sukreni is a dramatic novel that promotes knowledge of Indonesian literary and artistic tradition, its style is very popular. The diction is simple. Therefore, the novel is easy to read and understand.

 

The Story of an Hour  

Kate Chopin (1894)

Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death. It was her sister Josephine who told her, in broken sentences; veiled hints that revealed in half concealing. Her husband's friend Richards was there, too, near her. It was he who had been in the newspaper office when intelligence of the railroad disaster was received, with Brently Mallard's name leading the list of "killed." He had only taken the time to assure himself of its truth by a second telegram, and had hastened to forestall any less careful, less tender friend in bearing the sad message.
She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance. She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister's arms. When the storm of grief had spent itself she went away to her room alone. She would have no one follow her.
There stood, facing the open window, a comfortable, roomy armchair. Into this she sank, pressed down by a physical exhaustion that haunted her body and seemed to reach into her soul.
She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air. In the street below a peddler was crying his wares. The notes of a distant song which some one was singing reached her faintly, and countless sparrows were twittering in the eaves.
There were patches of blue sky showing here and there through the clouds that had met and piled one above the other in the west facing her window.
She sat with her head thrown back upon the cushion of the chair, quite motionless, except when a sob came up into her throat and shook her, as a child who has cried itself to sleep continues to sob in its dreams.
She was young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength. But now there was a dull stare in her eyes, whose gaze was fixed away off yonder on one of those patches of blue sky. It was not a glance of reflection, but rather indicated a suspension of intelligent thought.
There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully. What was it? She did not know; it was too subtle and elusive to name. But she felt it, creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her through the sounds, the scents, the color that filled the air.
Now her bosom rose and fell tumultuously. She was beginning to recognize this thing that was approaching to possess her, and she was striving to beat it back with her will--as powerless as her two white slender hands would have been.
When she abandoned herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath: "free, free, free!" The vacant stare and the look of terror that had followed it went from her eyes. They stayed keen and bright. Her pulses beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body.
She did not stop to ask if it were or were not a monstrous joy that held her. A clear and exalted perception enabled her to dismiss the suggestion as trivial.
She knew that she would weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead. But she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. And she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome.
There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature. A kind intention or a cruel intention made the act seem no less a crime as she looked upon it in that brief moment of illumination.
And yet she had loved him--sometimes. Often she had not. What did it matter! What could love, the unsolved mystery, count for in face of this possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being!
"Free! Body and soul free!" she kept whispering.
Josephine was kneeling before the closed door with her lips to the keyhole, imploring for admission. "Louise, open the door! I beg, open the door--you will make yourself ill. What are you doing Louise? For heaven's sake open the door."
"Go away. I am not making myself ill." No; she was drinking in a very elixir of life through that open window.
Her fancy was running riot along those days ahead of her. Spring days, and summer days, and all sorts of days that would be her own. She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long.
She arose at length and opened the door to her sister's importunities. There was a feverish triumph in her eyes, and she carried herself unwittingly like a goddess of Victory. She clasped her sister's waist, and together they descended the stairs. Richards stood waiting for them at the bottom.
Some one was opening the front door with a latchkey. It was Brently Mallard who entered, a little travel-stained, composedly carrying his grip-sack and umbrella. He had been far from the scene of accident, and did not even know there had been one. He stood amazed at Josephine's piercing cry; at Richards' quick motion to screen him from the view of his wife.
But Richards was too late.
When the doctors came they said she had died of heart disease-- of joy that kills

A Short Story Analysis

The Story of an Hour 

Introduction

        This paper aims to fulfill the mid-test assignment. The writer is interested in this short story because it is concerning women. It is also interesting to find out that there was an intelligent female author in 1870s to 1890s. She is Kate Chopin. She was an American author. A French scholar revealed that she was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 8, 1850 as Catherine O’Flaherty. She was the second child of Thomas O’Flaherty of County Galway, Ireland and Eliza Faris of St. Louis. She grew up speaking both French and English. That’s why the influence of French life and literature on her thinking is noticeable throughout her fiction. From 1867 to 1870, she kept a recorded diary entries and copied passages of essays, poems and other writings. In 1869, she wrote her first story, “Emancipation: A Life Fable.“ Her work are mostly about the lives of sensitive and intelligent women. She met Oscar Chopin of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana. They were married in 1870. Between 1871 and 1879, she gave birth to five sons and a daughter.  In 1890, her first novel, At Fault, was published privately. In 1897 when she was working on The Awakening, her grandmother died. She managed to finish the novel in 1898. In 1904, she had had a cerebral hemorrhage, was unconscious the next day and died on August 22.

Analysis

A. Synopsis
      The Story of an Hour is about Mrs. Mallard’s expressed emotions concerning the news of her husband’s death. Since she had a heart trouble, her sister Josephine told about the news of her husband’s death so gently. It was her husband’s friend Richard who got the news first. He had been in the newspaper office when he received the railroad disaster with Brently Mallard’s name was on the list of ’killed’. After she heard that bad news, she was in shock and in deep grief, but somehow she also felt the sense of freedom. She could see beyond that bitter moment, years to come that would belong to her. Those coming years when she would live for herself and feel body and soul free. She felt like a goddess of Victory until she saw Mr. Brently Mallard who presumed dead in the railroad disaster came back home immaculately. Mrs. Mallard was announced dead of heart disease. It was joy that killed her, the doctors said.

B. Characterization
       The Story of an Hour is a short story in which Kate Chopin reveals the characters by telling readers the emotions that Mrs. Mallard expresses when she heard the news of Mr. Brently Mallard’s death. She also tells how thoughtful Josephine and Richards are. Then, she describes how surprised her husband Brently Mallard is to see Josephine’s cry and Richards’ action to screen him from the view of Mrs. Mallard.  However, readers’ interpretation of the characters will be vary. It may be influenced by the values, assumptions and expectations that readers bring to this short story.
    There are four characters in this short story. They are Mrs. Mallard, Mr. Brently Mallard: her husband, Josephine: her sister and Richards: a friend of Brently Mallard.

1. Mrs. Mallard
       She is the central/major character. In my opinion the dynamic character is also Mrs. Mallard since she is changed because of the action of the plot. The protagonist character in this short story is her. I read her as a victim of her inability to control her own life in a repressive, male-dominated society. She has a dominated husband that’s why she discovered the sense of freedom right after hearing her husband’s presumed death as written in paragraph 13.
       ‘she knew that she would weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead. But she saw beyond that bitter  moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely‘
       She is the round character in this short story since she is difficult to summarize and there are possibilities of having different views depend on which details readers focus on.  

2. Mr. Brently Mallard
        The character that plays minor role is Mr. Brently Mallard. He is also the static character. From my point of view, he is the antagonist character as written in paragraph 14:
      ‘there would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature’ 

3. Josephine
       Is also a static character. She is a thoughtful woman as she tells about her sister’s presumed dead husband so gently. She is worried about Mrs. Mallard’s condition when she went away to her room alone and spent her grief there.

4. Richards
    Is a static character. He is a dear friend of the family. He willingly comes to Mallard’s house to tell about the bad news in person.       

C. Point of View
        It refers to who tells readers the story and how it is told. The Story of an Hour uses the third-person narrator since it uses he, she and they. It has limited omniscient narrator because the narrator who is not a character tells readers the story.
   
Conclusion   

       Based on the analysis, The Story of an Hour is a story about a woman, particularly, who feels loss of freedom once she is married. This type of woman is successfully described in Mrs. Mallard character. Even though, the author does not explain why Mrs. Mallard suffers a heart attack at the end of the story. The author does not explain whether she is dead because she is so glad to see her husband or because she feels guilty about feeling ’free’ after hearing her husband presumed death. My analysis of the characters and the interpretation of the story involves the perspective, values I bring to it and Kate Chopin’s comments about marriage in paragraph 14. I am sure that reading this short story can enrich and deepen readers’ knowledge.

Bibliography
Meyer, Michael. 1999. The Bedford Introduction to Literature: Reading, Thinking,
    Writing Fifth Edition. New York: Bedford/St. Martin.

References
http://www.katechopin.org/
http://www.katechopin.org/biography.shtml#morbidvulgar

flying tree :)

Pros of Indonesian Beauty Contests

          Beauty contests are popular around the world including in Indonesia. In this country, there are some famous beauty contests like Miss Tourism Indonesia, Miss Indonesia Earth, The Abang-None Jakarta pageant, Wajah Femina pageant, Miss Chinese Cosmos pageant Indonesia and ,the biggest, Miss Indonesia beauty pageant. The last one mentioned has been running annually since 1992. Miss Indonesia beauty pageant that is sponsored by a cosmetic company Mustika Ratu aims to find Indonesian representative in Miss Universe and Miss International beauty pageant. Thirty-eight contestants from 33 provinces in Indonesia take part in the pageant. These beauty contests focus on adult women’s beauty and high-profile version. Even though it is still debated whether beauty contests are a good thing or not, proposing a ban on beauty contests might not be effective to eliminate beauty contests from this beautiful country. We can witness there are great number of young women are still willing to participate in those beauty contests. Among the pros and cons of Indonesian beauty contests, some positivities are still attached to beauty contests, at least to the contestants themselves.

        First thing first, the process through to enter a pageant teaches the contestants a lot. They have to prepare not only their physical appearance but also brain and behavior. Regarding their physical appearance, the contestants have to become fit and worthy enough. They will have to do a lot of exercises to get perfect figure. They have to pay attention on foods they consume. They should be able to show the beauty of a fit, healthy and well-proportioned figure. After that, they will have to read a lot of books, magazines and newspaper to keep up with the latest information. They are enforced to broaden their mind, knowledge and horizon. In order that, they also need to expose themselves to art, museums and cultures. So they will be smart enough to answer the questions from the judges. Their answers can display their intelligence. Then, they should have good behavior and high self esteem. Through a beauty contest, the contestants have the opportunities to build self-esteem through training in etiquette. The whole process and experience they ought to go through can be life changing. 

        Second, by participating in a pageant, the contestants will learn how to achieve what they want. They will learn how to work for their image as well. Through a beauty pageant, the contestants have a chance to learn how to achieve their goals and success. They learn how to make their plans work out. The learning process of achieving teaches them how to work hard to reach their dream, goals and become successful. The whole learning process teaches them how to boosts their self-confidence too. Their confidence will surely be important for their further academics and careers. Moreover, they learn how to be brave and mentally strong not only to achieve their dream but also to bear the pain of losing it.  

  
        Last, in a beauty contest, the contestants are not only rewarded for them as persons, but those who win will also be rewarded materially. The winners can get not only the crown, trophy and ribbon but also cash prizes, scholarships and a chance to travel abroad and explore interesting places. Winning a beauty contest gives them a chance to get noticed and a route to success. Many of them have opportunities to become an actress right after winning a pageant. It shows that they have a convenient access to entertainment industry that will make them more well-known. In addition, the winners of high-profile beauty contests are able to involve in charities that give them a public platform, again, to be noticed. 

        In brief, through a beauty contest, the contestants can learn a lot of things regarding their brain, beauty and behavior, can learn how to reach their dream and can get plenty beneficial rewards. It shows that joining a beauty pageant can give positive changes in their lives. They have to consider the pros and cons though.  Thus, they must have a very strong reason and self determination to go trough the whole challenging process. They are enticed to show public that they are worth it. Beauty contests are actually just offering the contestants a chance, but they still have to learn keeping their feet on the ground. Beauty contests are just showing human nature. Therefore, they should naturally bring delight to every contestant. Contrary to the cons, the winners of beauty contests get cherished moments in their life. If a beauty contest brings out the best in the contestants and winners, those who are interested and qualified to take part in it should be allowed to do so.