Fuller: "Our City Charities"

         For this week's blog, I have chosen to analyze "Our City Charities" by Margaret Fuller, simply because I admire her poised writing style.  Fuller's writing reminded me of a modern day female activist.  Her descriptions and propositions for change really intrigued me and I also believe she is a true female role model; Fuller set a precedent for women activists and authors to come.  
        Even though there is a stigma held against people who are incarcerated, Fuller breaks that stigma and explains that those people have needs just like everyone else.  This was an abstract idea at the time because equal education was not yet a proposed idea.  Fuller states: 

Every establishment in aid of the poor should be planned with a view to their education.  There should be instruction, both practical and in the use of books, opening to a better intercourse than they can obtain from their miserable homes, correct notions as to cleanliness, diet, and fresh air(738).

Fuller had the idea to educate those who have not received education to better themselves.  If this idea was still present now, I strongly believe we would have less crimes.  By educating someone who is incarcerated or poor, we are giving them an opportunity to better themselves that they might have never received before.  By doing this, they can learn tasks and possibly enter themselves into the working world.  Fuller was very adamant about the living conditions at the Penitentiary: 

...we entered one of the gloomiest scenes that deforms this great metropolis.  Here are the twelve hundred, who receive the punishment due to the vices of so large a portion of the rest.  And under what circumstances! Never was punishment treated more simply as a social convenience, without regard to pure right, or a hope of reformation(740-741).

    As one can tell, Fuller is extremely passionate about her reports at the Bellevue Alms, the Farm School, and the Asylum for the Insane.  She reports on these places with a tone of hope for the future, as she recommends what she thinks is best for the places with her suggestions about education and cleanliness.  I not only find Fuller brave for her visiting these places, which were stigmatized, but also quite poised in her descriptions and suggestions of these places.

 

Satire: Sedgwick and Seinfeld

      Satire is defined in the dictionary as, “a literary composition, in verse or prose, in which humanfolly and vice are held up to scorn, derision, or ridicule.”   Satire is commonly seen today in media and books.  Satirical literature is unique because authors have to possess a certain humor and irony in their writing to make sure it comes across to the readers. 

          Sedgwick exemplifies satire in “Cacoethes Scribendi” with tradition and gender roles.  The irony is that she portrays Alice to hate writing, although Sedgwick is a female writer.  Sedgwick also makes Alice to be a stereotypical female during the time period who just wants to better herself by becoming the perfect domestic woman, instead of being educated. This reminded me of the traditional story, Pride and Prejudice, where the male figures are often idealized, like Ralph in Sedgwick’s story.  This is also using irony, because Ralph is an average man, but is superior because of gender roles.  Sedgwick also satirizes the topic of marriage in culture because at the end of the story, marriage is seen as a simple thing to do when you are attracted to someone.  In reality, we all know this isn’t the case, but in satire this is a topic that can be easily poked at.

       

      Seinfeld, a popular comedy in the nineties is a renowned source of satire. Seinfeld pokes fun at relationships and uses hyperbole and irony at different things in culture.  For example, in the episode “The Soup Nazi”, Seinfeld pokes fun at the chic hole in the wall restaurant where you have to know exactly how to order or your frowned upon.  The popular show often makes fun of talking points in society, and uses hyperbole to make fun of the point.   Another example, is when the character Elaine, gets tested positive for a drug test after eating a lemon poppy-seed muffin. The audience knows this is ludicrous, but it is seen as satire and humor because of the irony.    

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNwbjcuQUv8

Samson Occom: A Short Narrative of My Life

This week, I took a particular interest in Samson Occom’s narrative. There is an overall theme in this narrative of struggle in the Native American community. Occom tries to make a name for himself, but gets cheated by Mr. Wheelock. At the same time, Occom discovers his own religion and becomes a pertinent preacher in the Native American community. Because I also studied Occom in my Native American Literature class, I enjoyed studying him and analyzing the speech more in depth in this class.

Occom plays a very significant role because he set a precedent for Native American Literature in English. Occom was a Mohegan who wrote “A Short Narrative” to refute the claims that he was a showcase. This happened during the First Great Awakening, a religious revival that was focused on a burst of Christianity. The focus during the First Great Awakening was on the Bible rather than the church. This narrative resonated with other Native Americans because they were able to read it and interpret, and feel like they are connected to a bigger population.

The most famous and shocking part of Occom’s narrative is the anecdote he tells about a “Poor Indian boy”. “He said, he did not know, but he Supposed it was because hi could not drive any better; but says he, I drive as well as I know; and at other Times he Beats me, because he is of a mind to beat me; but says he believes he Beats me for the most of the Time “ because I am an Indian”(409).



I believe Occom tells the anecdote to convey a theme about inequality between the British and Native Americans. This anecdote is supposed to capture the Native American audience, and convey the theme of strife. As much as the “Poor Indian boy” tries, he gets defeated by his master because his master is known as the superior.