Wanna Cooperate or Defect?

On monday, the class decided to play the game called "The Prisoner's Dilemma Game", mentioned in chapter 12 of The Selfish Gene. It consists on two players owning two cards, each card is either cooperate defect. The point is to see how humans react in games that consist on both winning (staying loyal) l, both loosing (having the fight) or being cheated on. If a pair decides on choosing cooperate, both  will win the exact point, a win-win situation. Yet, temptation can get to one of players and lead them to choose defect while his partner chooses the cooperate. This means the one who went with D will win the round. This is a cheating situation. Obviously, the loyal situation is when both choose cooperate and win the same amount of points and lastly, the competition where both end up loosing. 


It's amazing how we are so vulnerable to succeeding, we are searching for beating everyone up. Our race is always looking for being better, yet forgetting about the values and morals. It's simply a game, but it can be seen in a bigger picture, in the real life. With business, jobs and even relationships. 


I think I really needed an example that could be used to relate into a real life situation, with my peers or friends. Biology is the way to explain why we are who we are and why we do what we do.

The STRANGE Gene

Biology is the study of life. The science that explores how and why organisms reproduce, evolve, grow, and are created. The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins is the book with the complete descriptions, definitions and theories of biology. How exiting, now my science and english class are filled with the worst topic I'm in.

The way of understanding the book is to understand the different words that are given, they are usually common biology terms used to describe the parts of a cell, of DNA, of replication and human bodies. 


I'm pretty sure why we, the Pre Ap English class is now reading about science. It's simply, to understand the different formats books are sometime written. It's obvious that we need to get used to read; not only romantic novels or mystery series, but to read 360 pages about chemistry or math. Is to open our minds to all the different ideas or proposals that are given to us. 


Since forever, there has been a huge conflict between science and religion. It has been 500 years of fights between, believe and proves, it is a battle to prove the logic and  the reason or  faith in God. I was raised in a catholic family, going to church every sunday, preparing for the first communion, praying before going to bed, but I was never a passionate believer. I do believe in a God, because it is necessary and healthy to believe in something or have faith, but I am open to all beliefs. 

"Ver para creer." 


During the Enlightenment Era, where many scientists contradicted the word of the church, new theories where created. The church filled the minds of all the catholic believers, they all believed them because they were scared to go against it. If they fought against the church, they would be sentenced to death because of the power it had. 


After all the wars, deaths and fights, humans have opened their minds to different races, religions and ever genders. It's necessary for us to learn to bonds and work together, just as cells do. 

Eusapia

"... the inhabitants have constructed an identical copy of their, underground. All corpses, dried in a such a way that the skeleton remains sheathed in yellow skins, are carried down there, to continue their former activities." 

"The latest pearl set in the Great Khan's crown"

Khan the owner of the Invisible Cities? He doesn't even care about the beauty or descriptions used in each section, of each chapter of the book. He is so ignorant and stubborn, the lack of experiences and knowledge gives him vulnerability to loose all the lands he "achieved". It's obvious the true leader and owner of the cities is Marco Polo, he knows them from head to toe and has memories unlike the Khan. In chapter 5 after Polo described new cities to Kahn, the emperor asked for a description of the city Polo had never dared to describe, Venice.

"There is still one of which you never speak."

Marco Polo bowed his head.

"Venice," the Khan said.

Marco smiled. "What else do you believe I have been talking to you about?"

The emperor did not turn a hair. "And yet I have never heard you mention the name"

And Polo said: "Every time I describe a city I am saying something about Venice."

"When I ask you about other cities, I want to hear about them. And about Venice, when I ask about Venice." (86)

                  

Even though Marco Polo is the helper of the emperor, the competition between the two is obvious. Yet I find it annoying that Polo doesn't do anything to change that, it's obvious of who should be the leader of the empire. After all, the correct leader would rise the land economically, socially and politically, still Marco Polo does nothing to gain power and stays being a "helper".

Do you believe Marco Polo feels fear? Does Khan have so type of power over him?

While I jolted the pomegranate tree, hypochondria raced my body. I was standing in the pinnacle of the largest rock i've ever seen, I really needed a balustrade to keep my balance. All I needed was sojourn.

Reading the book obligates me to keep a dictionary in my hand too, many words are really unknown and weird. Because the text is based in description, many adjectives are really unfamiliar, yet it's a way to enlarge my vocabulary. These where some examples of word I found out in chapter 4 and 5 of Invisible Cities. 

• Amethyst: Precious stone consisting of violet or purple variety of quartz. (Violet color)

• Hypochondria: Rare anxiety about one's health. Unwanted fear. 

• Gauge: Way to measure the magnitude, amount or contents of something. 

• Filigree: Gold or silver ornamental work. 

• Sojourn: A temporary stay.

• Jolts: To push or shake

• Oddity: Strange person.

• Balustrade: The ornamental placed in the on balconies or terrace for support. 

• Pomegranate: An orange sized sweet fruit.

• Hierarchies: Organization system to categories people according to their status or authority. 

• Pinnacles: High pointed piece of rock.

• Abyss: A deep or bottomless surface.

• Bantering: Playful and friendly acts. 

Filigree

Balustrade

Pomegranate

Surreal Cities and Real Cities?

Can all the cities described in the book be compared with cities in real life? The background information tells us that this cities explores by Polo are invented, we are not literally told. But the name of each location seems inexistent. Maybe  the surreal cities invented but Italo where locations he actually visited, and some descriptions can be consider as a point of view.



Zoe: The place of invisible existence. 
"The man who is traveling and does not yet know the city awaiting him along his route wonders what pa;ace will be like, the barracks, the mill, the theater, the bazaar."

Now with the small description of the city of Zoe, I'm to translated it into a New York City description using almost the same words.

"The tourist who is traveling and does not yet know the city awaiting him along

"In every point of this city you can, in turn, sleep, make tools, cook, accumulate gold, disrobe, reign, sell, question oracles..."
The fact that every corner, street or sidewalk is able to introduce you into different feelings and different adventures. Zoe reminded me of the New York City,
"The traveler roams all around and has nothing but doubts: he is unable to distinguish the features of the city," (34)

Invisible Cities?

     Italo Calvino an italian journalist, short story and novel writer created the book Invisible Cities in 1972. It's a book about the expeditions of Marco Polo, filled with a complete descriptions of the different cities he explored, or that's what I think the book will be filled with. Evading the descriptive cliché will be the format of this book, to make it unique and unforgettable. 

 
    Cliché is defined as an expression that has been overused by writers, readers, directors or just people in general. Due to the overuse, the word starts to loose its original meaning.
Invisible Cities' preface describes a little of how 

Kublai Khan, the Khagan of the Mongol Empire, will connect in the story with Marco Polo, the European merchant that economically created a bond with Central Asia and China. 

The cities description is shorter than a page, the words in each city are so accurate that with a few sentences the description is almost perfect and understandable yet they are surreal cities. The author gives us the opportunity to come up with a visual idea of each city and in the end just notice a pattern that relates each one of them.

Why make a book about cities? Reading the book personally gives me the sensation of a poem with a strange format, the description gives the words and exquisite and almost harmonic touch. Is Italo trying to describe the perfect place to live in? The good and bad is describe, yet essential things human need to maintain a good life are mention a lot, like spirituality, wilderness or nature. Trying to bring back the way we humans used to live before without technology.


   Each section of each chapter is written as a school text book, the descriptions, the format or the seriousness. Because the author is writing in first person, as if they where his own experiences, the text seems full of facts of the city but at the same time it has a touch of opinion and personal experience. 


  This first chapter of the book was a new type of reading for me, I though Prep Ap english books would be complicated and almost impossible to understand hens I was scared of reading a book about cities by an italian author. Yet I have grown a taste towards the book. 


  Because it's based around descriptions and adjective, I don't understand many words but I know it will be a way to expand my vocabulary ;).

Do woman have hope?

Candide, is the story of a man who is in search of his lost love Cunegonde. He travels around the world and does the impossible to have her back, that shows true love, huh? That's exactly what I though, what can be more romantic than the love of your life searching for you under the oceans and the mountains. It brings me flashback of Romeo and Juliet, how their impossible love catches the audience attention and ended up being a classic story or for me, a cliché story.

Yet I find myself reading how much Candide loves the Lady, "Cunegonde must be dead, and the only thing left for me is to die too." (93) Can this love be so powerful? What I think or believe is that love is caring for that someone more than caring about your self. To literally dedicate your life and know that person from head to toe, do you believe Candide and Cunegonde have successfully done that? I do believe in love, but love is not just a word or a feeling, it's the actions and thoughts that go through your head.

After reading almost 100 pages of the love and desire Candide has over Cunegonde I was expecting a happily ever after ending, with the huge wedding and then riding away in a really old car to their honey moon. But no,  when finally the Lady was free and into Candide's arms, after weeks of living like a prisoner, she became "ugly" and that led Candide not loving her any more. "At the bottom of his heart, Candide had no desire to marry Cunegonde. But the baron's extreme arrogance determined him to go through with the marriage..." (116)

All of that trouble for nothing?

Do woman have hope after this?

Every Awesome Book becomes a Musical!

In class we saw part of the Candide Musical, composed by Leonard Bernstein, also known for composing and creating the famous musical West Side Story. Even though we only saw 30 minutes or less of the show, it was very similar to the book. You usually expect the visual representation of a book to be worse because it skips important events of the book, the audience is not satisfied with the final result of most movies or musicals. 


Watching the movie and noticing the irony made me understand many thing that happen in the book that I hadn't understood yet. I love how they exaggerate everything to another level, like dressing Candide as a child and making him play with little boy's toys, repressing the innocence of this character. 

This musical was released in 2009, including in the cast some recognized actors and singers like Kristin Chenoweth (Cunégonde). 


It was easier to understand the events of what was going on, obviously because it's visual so it's more clear, but the music and the song or dances kept me interested and entertained. Besides the instruments and wardrobes was just as I had imagined the book.


Sophie Echeverry as Cunégonde in the 2012 version of Candide the Musical. Can you picture it? 

Is he Brainless?

Candide's stupidity can really get on my nerves sometimes, a 6 year old child can be more clever than him. I say this because in page 72 he is found in strange lands, filled with gifts from the "El Dorado" habitants; like gold and diamonds. He can be the richest man in Westphalia and even gain the acceptance of Lady Cunegonde's family and live happily ever after with her. But NO, it's impossible for him to be smart.

Candide drives Cacambo to rescue Lady Cunegonde in Buenos Aires while he travels to Venice, mean while he is in search of a ship that will take him there. Finally he finds Mynheer Vanderdendur a dutch master of large ships that was actually offering a really small amount of money for the trip. Mynheer is a business man, he knows how to read costumers, but Candide is such and easy prey. The master starts offering, ten thousand "piasters" and because Candide agreed without hesitating, the man started rising the price thining he was really rich. The stupid, ends up paying thirty thousand piasters (two little diamonds).

If Candide is not killed in his trip to Venice, i'm sure I will kill him myself.

In Such an Ugly Way, Something so Beautiful

Candide is described as an innocent and naive man, with lack of corruption. Seems like he hasn't open or experienced the world. " 'Men,'he said, 'must have somewhat altered the course of nature; for they were not born wolves, yet they have become wolves. " (pg 33) I compare this quote with what happens to all of us through time, experiences. 

The experiences that we live through everyday make us grow, good or bad. We achieve something because we learn that our societies are filled with people that want to harm us. We loose our innocence and our naivety from the people around us, that's why we turn into wolves. By turning into wolves we force other people to turn from naive to corrupt. 

Satire and cruelty?

Satire is a form of writing used to make fun of the societies weakness, it can be funny but is destined to create excitement to the audience, yet it's not searching for entertainment. In class we read this short story called "A Modest Proposal", written by Jonathan Swift, using satire to an extreme. Talking about his idea of using babies from poor families as food, treat the babies as cows or pigs. "The skin... will make admirable gloves for ladies and summer boots for the gentleman." (p860). Reading those pages made me realize how serious and cruel the text was, but at the same time its was impossible to hold a laugh. Reading the story became a joy, I don't considered my self cruel but I was so eager to see how the story ended I understood satire is a successful technique authors use. I decided to research about Jonathan Swift past text and he is consider a " the foremost prose satirist in the English language" with stories like Gulliver's Travels, The Battle of the Books and a Journal to Stella. 

In page 33 of the book I read a passage that remember me of Swift's story, "Thirty thousand men, woman ad children were crushed to death under the ruins. The sailor chuckled: "There'll be something worth picking up here..." Talking about disasters and laughing made me remember of what I read before in the Modest Proposal. Can satire and cruelty connect? If you want to achieve a correct satire text you need to be vicious? 


"Fools are my theme, let satire be my song." Byron, Lord

A Ladies Man

Voltaire Candide

Voltaire Candide, is it going to be like a typical boring book the school makes us read? About history? With really advance and old literature words? Reading every paragraph more than 5 times to be able to understand the text. That's the first thing that came to my mind when I saw the cover page and the tittle, but as they say "Don't judge a book by its cover." Being able to read the first chapters in class made me realize what a funny and ironic book it is, filled with dark humor and hidden jokes. I still keep asking myself, is this book written my Voltaire Candide, the french Enlightenment philosopher? Or is the story about Candide's life and adventures. 


Reading I get to feel how Candice is a ladies man, the way he describes him with woman. How he's excitement can only happen if a lady is included. The way he mixes his work as a scientist, philosopher, physics and use the talent he has to describe a scenery with a woman and yet make it sound as a completely different thing. The illusion the author or Candide himself gives the audience is what makes the story different and extraordinary.

Each page of the first two chapters gave me the slight touch of the four elements of satire: irony, hyperbole, target, and absurdity. You get to feel the writers jokes and yet keep a serious tone that help you understand the sarcasm. Sincerely I use a lot of sarcasm with my friends and family, and it's easy to identify it. Yet it seems impossible or very hard to put it into text, you need a really deep understanding on how to manipulate the readers mind and help them understand. You require a talent that we might gain reading this book or text that include irony.