Master and Margarita

Short Assignment #1:

Please write a short response (around 250 words; maximum one double-spaced page) to a text we have covered in the course so far. You may choose to respond to an essay, such as Nabokov’s “Good Readers and Good Writers,” or to focus on a literary text, such as Gogol’s “The Overcoat” or Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis.” For instance, you could address the author’s argument or agree/disagree with her/his claims, or, in the case of a fictional work, focus on a particular literary topic, such as the setting, plot, theme, style, etc. (For more ideas, see the list of focus topics below)

Do not worry too much about the structure of your response. The first assignment is an informal way to get you to engage with a text and practice close-reading skills.  The only requirement is that you providespecific textual evidence, either by quoting from the text or referring to specific passages and/or scenes.

Due Friday, 10/7/2016, by 5 p.m. via CANVAS. Please submit your file in Word or PDF format.

Preconcieved

Idea/ point of view

Questions

Discovery

Details

“I”

OVERCOAT:

Figure of the Tailor:

Has more of a personality, eyepatch, more rounded character, only has one eye

Pg. 401 One eyed devil, he is a devilish demonic character, tempts akakai into another world

Petrovich -> son of peter

How does Akakaki change when he got the overcoat: happier alive, seems like changed from a dead to alive person, sexuality, gets horny (starts paying attention to woman) notices a ad of a womens leg is exposed.

End of story: We are in the ghost world

Ending: what type of fur did he get?

List of things that you can make a coat with, get coats and goes to dinner, gets robbed in this square,  sent to super intendant, goes to the important person (shows the rank of identity)

Author constantly questiong whats going on,

Literature is colliding with actual narration, walking down the streets he could think of all his lines.

KAFKA:

• Has a lot of issues with his father
• Sense that he was isolated
• Born in prague, jewish, wrote in german
• Worked for the government, lawyer, but passion was literature
• BOOK:

• Trial: man gets arrested one morning for no reason, goes from lawyer to lawyer, trying to figure out what he did wrong, trying to get information

• Metamorphosis: published before WW2
• First impressions: Salesman transformed into a giant insect, reflects how sad his life was as a salesman
• Characterization, Hopes and dreams: All he thinks about his work, only his head can move, tiny legs.
• Provide for his family, paying off a debt.
• 3rd person, limited, flat, telling of events,
• GREGOR

• Work
• Preoccupied, fussy
• Not worried about his transformation
• Acceptance
• Job: travelling salesman
• No fun

• Setting

• Outside: rainy, gloomy
• Small room, seemed to be small, lived with his family
• Seems they don’t have a lot of money

• Family:

• He feels obligated to take care of everyone

• Eventhogh he is the son not the parent

• His father: kicks him out
• They don’t really respect him even though he is providing

• They expect him to go do work

• Mother is cautious, sister is gentle, father weak

• Insect

• Thinking he is a cockroach
• What kind?
• He says he has very sesistive lower parts
• Slowly realizing things about his body
• He realizes he runs hella fast
• When he is lying down he can’t really move

In The Metamorphosis, by Kafka, the story starts of with the protagonist, Gregor Samsa discovering that he has transformed into a giant insect. The beginning is set in Gregor’s room, and outside it is raining and gloomy. Gregor’s room is very small and he lives with his family because his family is not very wealthy and he is helping pay off his family’s debt. The overall atmosphere doesn’t seem to positive and very dull. Through out the part 1, Gregor talks about how dreary life is as a traveling salesman, and how he would quite if he didn’t need to support his family financially. One theme that is present in Part 1 of the book is the disconnect between the mind and body. The opening sentence of the book starts off with, “One morning, when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a horrible vermin,” then continues on with Gregory thinking about how he has woken up late and won’t be able to get to work on time. This shows the disconnect because despite the absurd transformation that has just occurred, Gregor is only focusing on his job and the more ordinary issues that surround him. Despite him physically not being able to go to work because of his transformation, he still thinks about how he is late and how he could possibly get to work.

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