Good Girl Gone Bad

The Crying Of Lot 49 is probably the weirdest and most random book I have ever read. I understand some of the satire, which makes it enjoyable sometimes but is very hard to read. Thomas Pynchon´s style is awkward and beyond description, like my mom would say special or different, the use of commas, instead of periods and the story itself is just random. I think this story is one where things just happen and I believe this is not the common cliché story a bit innovating I think.
Odepia so far is a woman that represents the stereotype of the wild persons in the 60´s. I say it because it reminds me allot of my grandmother, a revolutionary who left her kids and husband and went and discovered the world ending up in theater and modeling. Not that Odepia is wild but, she is probably a woman who has the looks judging on the five or six boyfriends she has: Mucho, Pierce, Metzger and Roseman. All of these men are satirical especially Metzger a lawyer who was an actor in his youth. How can careers like those possibly interfere, they are extremities arts and law, not that a job defines our personality because this Metzger guy is somebody outgoing and daring. “That cuts down the probability, he told her, smug. She squinted at him through her glass. Then give me the odds. Odds would give it away.” Is it me or does that look like flirting , he knows she is married she is on a dead boyfriend business and she still has the nerve to flirt with her lawyer mentioning that she ends up sleeping with him. As much as I hate to say it this women is messed up. She has some kind of problem no wonder she thinks she is being persecuted she is crazy, and messed up these are the people end up at an asylum. She is like one of those good girls gone bad, "she wondred when then if this were really happening in the same way as, say her first time in bed with Pierce, the dead man." (pg23) we know from the start that her first boyfriend is Pierce and after Pierce came Mucho, so i wonder if Odepia´s feeling is regret. Regret on missing out on things so my reasoning or her excuse of sleeping around allot is her not having the wild life most people have in college and i think she is taking advantege that some people consider her as attractive and living the moment. Perhaps odepia is not crazy but she is in lament and sorrow. But the girl is still messed up, persecution really? she should go see a shrink.
So far the book is not boring like others I have read I still want to read and find out how it ends… yet is not a book I would read for fun, but is acceptable for class. I still see no point whatsoever on the story and I guess the reason we are reading this is to see the different styles like Mr. Thomas Pynchon´s writing and his story of persecution. Although I must say this is way better than science… I have enough of it in class.

KLIM Or KCUF, MILK Or FUCK

The story begins with a letter, a will that names our character Oedipa executor of a lot that belonged to her ex-boyfriend. It amazed me how drama evolved from a single way of communication, at first it did not understand it was a letter but as soon as I re-read it I focused on it. I kept reading and I found several mentions of different communication methods, such as the “greenish dead eye of the TV tube.”(pg1), book reviews, and most importantly oedipal husbands work pace a radio station. I have minor dyslexia and as I read the name of the radio station KCUF, I read it backwards and it said FUCK, just like KlIM backwars is MIlK it had to be on purpose. So I Googled it, and to my surprise, it was no mistake that the radio station name was that. I tried reading the explanation to the name of the station, but it was too far on the book. As I read the Google information, I got more interested in the text and concluded that the story revolves around communication. Notice also that some telephone conversations happen. In addition, the story besides revolving around the letter, it is as well revolving around on past conversations Oedipa had with Pierce his ex-boyfriend. Something I might also guess is that when they mention Oedipa´s husband worked at a car-lot, which made me remember the title so I think that this story has to do with the car-lot, because the writer described to extension Mucho´s fear of cars and the place.

Lady MacBeth Show Dawkins That She Is All About Business

"Are there any reasons for supposing our own species to be unique?"(pg189). Macbeth in regards to the question would answer that our species is supreme, because of the right to choose as he did, on killing his best friend Banquo. As for Dawkins, explanation would have to do with the fact that we have a culture. "Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be what thou art promised. Yet do I fear thy nature; it is too full o' th' milk of human kindness to catch the nearest way. Thou wouldst be great, art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it. What thou wouldst highly, that wouldst thou holily; wouldst not play false and yet wouldst wrongly win." (act 1 sc5). As I write this, Microsoft word is trying to correct me, it does not understand that Shakespeare is not wrong, but what can I do? Languages evolve so says Dawkins, is a part of culture. Well I am glad that Macbeth's culture did not go to me, because I would not like to live in a world full of killers like MacBeth who betray their friends for his own good. But then again is just as Dawkins explains we are selfish, our genes are selfish, MacBeth wants survival of his genetic information by becoming king and maybe have little Macbeths running around.

If Dawkins were to have a conversation with Lady MacBeth or so as a lesson…

So Lady Macbeth how would you explain culture?

"Look like th' innocent flower, but be the serpent under't. He that's coming must be provided for; and you shall put this night great business into my dispatch, which shall to all our nights and days to come give solely sovereign sway and masterdom."(act1 scn6)

"These ideas are plausible as far as they go, but I find that they do not begin to square up the formidable challenge of explaining culture, cultural evolution, and the immense differences between human cultures around the world, of the Ik of Uganda, as described by Colin Turnbull, to the gentle altruism of Margaret Mead's Arapesh. I think we should start again and go right back to first principals." (pg191)

What are memes?

Just when, the witches predict to MacBeth he is going to be king, and we do so the idea is passed on such as, "ideas catch-phrases, clothes, fashions… propagate themselves in the meme the pool by leaping from brain to brain." (pg192) or when I said to MacBeth to kill Duncan "when in swinish sleep their drenched natures lies as in a death what cannot you and I perform upon th' unguarded Duncan?"(Act one scn7)

Yes very well.. You are getting the concept of selfish.. Now if I were to propose a game, Prisoner's dilemma that goes on like this: we are two people sitting backwards from each other a banker or judge on the middle we can either defect or cooperate. Such as this chart:

You are blue I am green…

Which of the strategies I taught you before today would you choose?

			Cooperate	Defect
	cooperate		We, both win.. but a small amount	I win you lose points
	Defect		you win I lose points	Nothing happens

 

Remorseful, you hurt me I will hurt you back have you forgotten that I want was best for me, I want to become queen! I defect and not cooperate for my own good… like I said before "business into my dispatch, which shall to all our nights and days to come give solely sovereign sway and masterdom."(act1 scn6)

Ok great! You are a proof for my human selfishness; however, I might say that you would behave altruistic if it were your husband, or someone you cared for.

I think MacBeth and Lady MacBeth act just as Dawkins would explain she wants what is best for her and cares for her. She is surviving among nobles to become queen. There is a relationship between the Selfish Gene and MacBeth, one is the example of the other.

Pakistanis View U.S. Aid Warily.. Selfish Gene

In chapter 10 shows a new form of selfishness, what is as altruism is really selfishness. “Of animals live together in groups their genes must get more benefit out of the association than they put in… emperor penguins conserve heat by huddling together. Each one gains by presenting a smaller surface area to the elements than he would on his own.” (pg166) working in-group benefits us all, like my MacBeth reading group, we all provide different points and discussions we all benefit our personal understanding of the book ergo learning more.
“The Obama administration weighs a shift in its military strategy in Afghanistan, it is also stepping up its efforts to increase aid to neighboring Pakistan.” (NYT) after years in the war at Afghanistan fighting against Pakistan all of a sudden the US cares for their welfare, the Pakistanis have a right to lack trust for the Americans. After all, “if any individual cheats them, they remember the incident and bear a grudge.”(pg185) the Pakistani president holds some criticism to those who are in favor of the US although he accepted the aid, he is yet not convinced. As a former Pakistan senator Mr. Baig explains, “he felt that America needed to change how it has treated Pakistan and its democratic governments. “We always loved the Americans, but they deserted us soon after the first Afghan war,” he said. “Since then, the trust is gone. It is time to rebuild that trust, but with the introduction of Kerry-Lugar bill, distance between America and Pakistan is increasing because of some severe conditions in the aid package.”” (NYT) this current situation is a perfect proof of what Dawkins has been saying all long. As well as the behavior on group work for self-benefit Mr. Baig also explains, “There is an impression that America wants to micro-manage everything in Pakistan,” (NYT). The US just wants self-benefit, and I believe that the Pakistan point of view towards the americans right now is completely appropriate and common according to our ‘genetics’ and Dawkins. As I read this article, I started to believe on the selfish gene, for real, not as a homework but as a learning opportunity.

READ MEEE!!!

I Wonder..

Vocab. Chap 8

Wean: verb
To detach from a source of dependence.
To accustom to take food otherwise than by nursing.
miriam webster dictionary

swallow: bird
The Swallow gets is name from catching the insects they eat in mid flight. Its feet are designed for perching instead of walking and its front toes are joined at the base. Both the adult female and male swallow are similar in color. They have metallic royal blue upperparts and breast, cream to buff colored under parts, reddish brown forehead, chin and throat. They also have white markings on the inside of their tails. Their bill and legs are black. The female swallows tail streamers are shorter than the male. The juvenile is a duller color that the adults and lack the color in its forehead, chin and throat and its tail is much shorter. (wikipidia)

optimum:
2. Biology The most favorable condition for growth and reproduction. (there is no picture of this)
miriam webster dictionary

My Poor Mom Had A Handfull!

Why is it that lying is sooo bad? I am not encouraging it I am asking why it hurts people when we lie. “A child will lose no opportunity of cheating. It will pretend to be hungrier than it is, more in danger it really is. It is too small and weak to bully its parents physically, but it uses every psychological weapon at its disposal: lying, cheating deceiving exploiting …” (pg 131). Lying is a device used for ones benefit. We all lie, is something unavoidable, small lie, big lie, good lie, they come in all shapes and sizes. I still do not get it, why it is your friend gets angry with you when you lie, does he have to know every aspect of your life. When we tell the truth, we are becoming vulnerable, foolish exposed to others. Lying is not so bad is protecting us from the outside, and making our lives better full of smiles. Truth hurts, so lie and spare some crying. If my friend asks me if she looks fat, you out of instinct say no, although she may look fat, we protect her from self-starvation and bulimia. In the end, she already knows the answer and she knows we are lying but wants a cheer up so we do it anyway. Did it hurt her? No, it made her feel better.
“Parents, on the other hand, must be alert to cheating and deceiving, and must try not to be fooled by it. This might seem an easy task. If the parent knows that its child is likely to lie about how hungry it is, it might employ the tactic of feeding it a fixed amount and no more, even though the child goes on screaming. One trouble with this is that the child may have not been lying…” (pg131) this brings me back to the 4th or 3rd grade. I hated school, I really did, kids bullying me I was ashamed of myself, so I would lie to my mother and tell her I was sick. I did this so many times that there was a point where she did not believe me and made me go to school anyway. One day I was very sick, and I told her (I used to place my thermometer under a light so it looked like I had fever) I showed her my thermometer and she did not believe me, and made me go to school. When I got to school I threw up and had a very high fever, so they sent me home, in Medellin my school was about 1 hour drive from my house she had to pick me up. When I lied I was protecting myself from a horrible day at school, but my mom could not risk keeping me at home every day while she was paying for my education. You never know if someone is lying or telling the truth. Sometimes lying is good but other times lying is very bad. There is no black or white with lying it is more of a grey, it depends on the situation.
You know when you are a child and you really really want a toy, so you hold on to your mom’s leg, you cry and cry make a scene and embarrass her until she buys it. “The child is ‘saying’ ‘Fox, fox, come and get me.’ The only way the parent can stop it screaming is to feed it. So the child gains more than its fair share of food…”(pg 131). We instead of calling the fox we call for attention and embarrass our mothers, that social pressure we put on our poor mother forces her to buy us a new toy we don’t really need. One time on vacations, I was at a toy store and I really wanted this stuffed animal, man I tried hard to get it I cried and cried and made a tantrum but I did not get it. My mom just dragged me out of there, I got so angry that I tried everything until I realized I was too old for this and she was not going to buy it, so I started crying more but now it was out of frustration, my childhood techniques did not work anymore what was I going to do? That was the time I realized that my mom was smart and was not going to buy any of my childhood spoiled actions so from that moment on I think I started doing things for myself instead of waiting for her to do it. It was at that moment I realized I was old and I detached from her feeding and grew. I became the older child looking for its own food.