Daniel Cuevas-
I light a cigarette and think about the tram driver. He could be a screenwriter. Or better yet an actor. I would bet on it, and his desperation to make it has probably been building for years. Maybe his wife or girlfriend recently left him. Maybe he's drinking too much and can't stop. Each day his disillusionment grows, each day he finds less reason to care. Eventually his frustration turns to anger, the anger to rage, and when he loses his job, a shitty job he never even liked, something inside finally snaps. I can understand that. I can even sympathize. (Brown, 52)
In this scene the author James Brown has some alone time with himself and thinks about the tram driver. Earlier in the day, while Brown was in a Hollywood skyscraper, the tram driver had began to shoot at windows of that very building. Furthermore, Brown makes his own assumptions as to why the tram driver would do what he did, and as you know or may not know, we as humans usually relate our lives to our thoughts and writing. Our thoughts and actions(writing) are influenced by our experiences. Moreover, our life corresponds to our thoughts and writing; this shows to us that Browns assumptions of the Trams drivers life are personal and relate to his own life. In addition, Brown even said that he can sympathize with the tram driver. This not normal for a healthy mentally stable human being. Therefore, Browns thoughts show to the reader that he is not in the right state of mind or was not in the right state of mind. Sympathizing with a person that does bad things is not normal. Thus, I predict that later on in Browns life/story, he will do something foolish, something harmful that will get him in big trouble.
Friday, September 20, 2019
#9
Daniel Cuevas-
I appreciate his gesture, this small kindness, but I pass on the coffee, decaf or regular, the bottled water and the diet Coke, and after he leaves I wonder how long it'll be before he's moved from the front desk into an office of his own, if he studied literature, art or film in college, or if it was business administration or law. Then I wonder if it matters, if I'm being narrow-minded, defensive for defensiveness's sake, or if I'm just making up excuses to justify my own shortcomings...
Don't prejudge, I tell myself. (Brown, 45)
And I think--there's my competition. That woman shaking hands with the man in the suit... Now shes only a phone call away from her agent who will nail down a deal for a million up front... Of course I'll be jealous but I certainly won't begrudge her victory. Until today she may have been waiting tables and worrying if she could make this month's rent, and suddenly, after ten years of writing, she's an overnight success. (Brown, 46)
In both of these quotes, James Brown is patiently waiting for his meeting with an executive in a Hollywood skyscraper. In his wait, Brown begins to judge people that he sees in the office. Moreover, we as humans tend to judge people mainly because we feel we are not enough or are jealous of other people. However, James Brown does realize that he is judging the woman and so he changes his viewpoint for a positive one. Further, he realizes that he is judging her without even knowing where she came from; what kind of hardships she had to experience to get to where she is right now. I strongly believe that we humans, should all stop judging each other and instead understand each other. Put yourself in other peoples shoes and show empathy so that more people would feel happier and less people would be bullied. This scene shows a little bit of change in the author, he noticed his negativity and corrected it by changing his thoughts to positive ones. In a past blog I predicted that Brown would be changing into a better person because of his realization that if he does not change he will die.
I appreciate his gesture, this small kindness, but I pass on the coffee, decaf or regular, the bottled water and the diet Coke, and after he leaves I wonder how long it'll be before he's moved from the front desk into an office of his own, if he studied literature, art or film in college, or if it was business administration or law. Then I wonder if it matters, if I'm being narrow-minded, defensive for defensiveness's sake, or if I'm just making up excuses to justify my own shortcomings...
Don't prejudge, I tell myself. (Brown, 45)
And I think--there's my competition. That woman shaking hands with the man in the suit... Now shes only a phone call away from her agent who will nail down a deal for a million up front... Of course I'll be jealous but I certainly won't begrudge her victory. Until today she may have been waiting tables and worrying if she could make this month's rent, and suddenly, after ten years of writing, she's an overnight success. (Brown, 46)
In both of these quotes, James Brown is patiently waiting for his meeting with an executive in a Hollywood skyscraper. In his wait, Brown begins to judge people that he sees in the office. Moreover, we as humans tend to judge people mainly because we feel we are not enough or are jealous of other people. However, James Brown does realize that he is judging the woman and so he changes his viewpoint for a positive one. Further, he realizes that he is judging her without even knowing where she came from; what kind of hardships she had to experience to get to where she is right now. I strongly believe that we humans, should all stop judging each other and instead understand each other. Put yourself in other peoples shoes and show empathy so that more people would feel happier and less people would be bullied. This scene shows a little bit of change in the author, he noticed his negativity and corrected it by changing his thoughts to positive ones. In a past blog I predicted that Brown would be changing into a better person because of his realization that if he does not change he will die.
#8
Daniel Cuevas-
Through a window in the waiting room on the tenth floor of the Black Tower I look out over the green rolling hills of Forest Lawn where my brother is buried. He was twenty-seven and alcoholic when he ended his life, and at this moment, in this place and time, I see myself in him, sitting here, waiting to meet with an executive. I imagine he once occupied this same space, if not this exact office then another in the building, and I imagine he felt as I do now. Anxious. In need of a drink. Maybe, like me, he questioned why he was here, if this was what he really wanted. If he belonged. Maybe, like me, he was attracted to a business that is at least in part responsible for his destruction. (Brown, 43)
In this scene, Brown shows the reader the harsh reality he had to go through. Losing a family member that is so close to you is tough, it sometimes can make you do irrational things because you then feel hopeless. Hopefully, Brown uses his brothers death as symbol. A symbol that shows Brown that if he goes down the same path as his brother, he will meet the same fate as him. Thus, Brown will realize that he has to change his ways because if he doesn't, he will ultimately be looking at death straight in its eyes. This is my prediction of what is going to happen later on in the story of James Brown. In addition, brown shows us that he has a lot in common with his brother, but the similarities are not good things. He states that he is questioning his being at the office and how he is attracted to business that is responsible for his brothers destruction. So basically, Brown is blaming the "business" for the death of his brother. Furthermore, I wonder how the "business" led to his brother Barry's death. Moreover, I predict that his brother was unhappy with that "business" and I question myself as to why and how he got into the "business" in the first place.
Through a window in the waiting room on the tenth floor of the Black Tower I look out over the green rolling hills of Forest Lawn where my brother is buried. He was twenty-seven and alcoholic when he ended his life, and at this moment, in this place and time, I see myself in him, sitting here, waiting to meet with an executive. I imagine he once occupied this same space, if not this exact office then another in the building, and I imagine he felt as I do now. Anxious. In need of a drink. Maybe, like me, he questioned why he was here, if this was what he really wanted. If he belonged. Maybe, like me, he was attracted to a business that is at least in part responsible for his destruction. (Brown, 43)
In this scene, Brown shows the reader the harsh reality he had to go through. Losing a family member that is so close to you is tough, it sometimes can make you do irrational things because you then feel hopeless. Hopefully, Brown uses his brothers death as symbol. A symbol that shows Brown that if he goes down the same path as his brother, he will meet the same fate as him. Thus, Brown will realize that he has to change his ways because if he doesn't, he will ultimately be looking at death straight in its eyes. This is my prediction of what is going to happen later on in the story of James Brown. In addition, brown shows us that he has a lot in common with his brother, but the similarities are not good things. He states that he is questioning his being at the office and how he is attracted to business that is responsible for his brothers destruction. So basically, Brown is blaming the "business" for the death of his brother. Furthermore, I wonder how the "business" led to his brother Barry's death. Moreover, I predict that his brother was unhappy with that "business" and I question myself as to why and how he got into the "business" in the first place.
#7
Daniel Cuevas-
On the six o'clock news you see the motorcade moving slowly along a wide sunlit street in downtown Dallas. We are watching this, Barry, Marilyn and I, while our mother and father rage in the kitchen about his affair. She has been home now for several days, and as we watch the scene unfold on TV we try to block them out. It is old news by a week or better but the broadcasters continue to play it nightly: President Kennedy and his wife, Jackie, are riding in the backseat of a black Lincoln convertible. They are waving to the crowds on the side walks when he leans toward his wife as if he wants to whisper something in her ear and the side of his face explodes. Then you see Jackie rise from her seat. At first it looks as if she's trying to climb out of the car, that she's afraid for her own life. But really all she's concerned about is gathering up the pieces of her husband that landed on the back of the trunk. Her impulse is to put him back together. Of course that's impossible but it doesn't mean that there isn't beauty in the moment, in her desperateness to salvage what can't be saved. (Brown, 37)
In this quote, Brown revisits the time when he saw President John F. Kennedy get assassinated. After John F. Kennedy's assassination came a wave of grief throughout the nation because one of the most loved presidents had just been shot to death. In addition, Brown also stated that while they watching the assassination on TV, in the background his parents were arguing. Thus, they used the broadcast to distract themselves from their parents. So Brown wanted to show to us what he had to experience daily throughout his childhood, just a constant battle between his parents. Moreover, since they had to go through a lot of fights between their parents, they had to come up with a variety of ways to block them out and ignore them, because having to experience constant fighting between your parents takes a toll on your life. For example, you can get traumatized by going through harsh events like these. These events are not normal events for children like Brown and his siblings, a child as old as he was should not have to experience the conflicts between his parents. This shows to the reader that Browns parents were not good parents because they would always fight and Browns dad had an affair with another woman.
On the six o'clock news you see the motorcade moving slowly along a wide sunlit street in downtown Dallas. We are watching this, Barry, Marilyn and I, while our mother and father rage in the kitchen about his affair. She has been home now for several days, and as we watch the scene unfold on TV we try to block them out. It is old news by a week or better but the broadcasters continue to play it nightly: President Kennedy and his wife, Jackie, are riding in the backseat of a black Lincoln convertible. They are waving to the crowds on the side walks when he leans toward his wife as if he wants to whisper something in her ear and the side of his face explodes. Then you see Jackie rise from her seat. At first it looks as if she's trying to climb out of the car, that she's afraid for her own life. But really all she's concerned about is gathering up the pieces of her husband that landed on the back of the trunk. Her impulse is to put him back together. Of course that's impossible but it doesn't mean that there isn't beauty in the moment, in her desperateness to salvage what can't be saved. (Brown, 37)
In this quote, Brown revisits the time when he saw President John F. Kennedy get assassinated. After John F. Kennedy's assassination came a wave of grief throughout the nation because one of the most loved presidents had just been shot to death. In addition, Brown also stated that while they watching the assassination on TV, in the background his parents were arguing. Thus, they used the broadcast to distract themselves from their parents. So Brown wanted to show to us what he had to experience daily throughout his childhood, just a constant battle between his parents. Moreover, since they had to go through a lot of fights between their parents, they had to come up with a variety of ways to block them out and ignore them, because having to experience constant fighting between your parents takes a toll on your life. For example, you can get traumatized by going through harsh events like these. These events are not normal events for children like Brown and his siblings, a child as old as he was should not have to experience the conflicts between his parents. This shows to the reader that Browns parents were not good parents because they would always fight and Browns dad had an affair with another woman.
#6
Daniel Cuevas-
I will dig for hours while our father sits alone at the kitchen table and drinks. Marilyn will lock herself in her room and cry. Barry will open another book. The hole will grow. If I dig long enough, if I dig deep enough, she will call me in for dinner. I will dig until the sky is dark. (Brown, 31)
Brown incorporated these quotes into his memoir because he wanted to show the reader how he and his family were coping with his mothers mistake and removal from the family. As you can see, they all have different ways of coping. I noticed that his father sits alone and drinks, and if you remember correctly, in one of my first blogs I predicted or asked if there had been any role model or bad influence in Browns life that caused him to begin his substance abuse. Furthermore, as you can see, his father could be the figure that influenced Brown the most in the drinking aspect of his substance abuse. On the other hand, Barry just opens another book. It could be that he just does not care about what happened to his mother or thats just his was of going through it. This reminds me of a friend of mine that uses his homework to take his mind away from problems that are occurring at his home. Thus, it may be more of a coping mechanism. Moreover, Brown just digs, I believe that his digging shows his love for his mother because he stated that if he digs "deep enough" and "long enough," his mother would call him for dinner. Therefore, digging shows that he misses his mother and loves her enough to dig "until the sky is dark."
#5
Daniel Cuevas-
What she does not tell him is that they are bankrupt. That over the last year she has been forging his name and selling and mortgaging the properties they own. She does this to cover the loss of some poor investments she made without our fathers knowledge. This includes the mortgaging of our own house, though it does nothing to explain why she would burn down an apartment complex they do not own. Those are two things that none of us, except maybe our mother, will ever understand. (Brown, 28)
These quotes further tell us Browns story, his experiences, his parents, his troubles. In this chapter, he starts it sort of cheerfully, he explores San Francisco with his mother, but what he didn't tell us until later in the book was why his mother took him to explore San Francisco. Turns out, that his father and mother got into an altercation with each other; his mother decided to distance herself from Browns father. In addition, I am puzzled on why Browns mother would set fire to an apartment complex that ended with the life of an elderly woman. We the readers will probably never find out ourselves because Brown states that "none of us, except maybe our mother, will ever understand." Maybe it was because she had something against someone living in those apartments. It is sad that Brown had to experience these series of unfortunate events that he had no control of whatsoever. His parents were bad parents for not being able to provide for a healthy uprising for their child. I predict that after these events, Browns life will start to spiral downwards. Well actually, it has already been confirmed that it does, because in chapter one, Brown is 9 years old when he starts drinking and in this chapter, chapter 2, he is 6 years old.
What she does not tell him is that they are bankrupt. That over the last year she has been forging his name and selling and mortgaging the properties they own. She does this to cover the loss of some poor investments she made without our fathers knowledge. This includes the mortgaging of our own house, though it does nothing to explain why she would burn down an apartment complex they do not own. Those are two things that none of us, except maybe our mother, will ever understand. (Brown, 28)
These quotes further tell us Browns story, his experiences, his parents, his troubles. In this chapter, he starts it sort of cheerfully, he explores San Francisco with his mother, but what he didn't tell us until later in the book was why his mother took him to explore San Francisco. Turns out, that his father and mother got into an altercation with each other; his mother decided to distance herself from Browns father. In addition, I am puzzled on why Browns mother would set fire to an apartment complex that ended with the life of an elderly woman. We the readers will probably never find out ourselves because Brown states that "none of us, except maybe our mother, will ever understand." Maybe it was because she had something against someone living in those apartments. It is sad that Brown had to experience these series of unfortunate events that he had no control of whatsoever. His parents were bad parents for not being able to provide for a healthy uprising for their child. I predict that after these events, Browns life will start to spiral downwards. Well actually, it has already been confirmed that it does, because in chapter one, Brown is 9 years old when he starts drinking and in this chapter, chapter 2, he is 6 years old.
#4
Daniel Cuevas-
He is the classic overachiever, ambitious, driven to please. As a child Barry is bone-thin, sickly and pale from lack of sun and exercise. Fun, or play as other children know it, is not an important part of his life. (Brown, 25)
Brown included this quote to provide the reader with a description of his bigger brother Barry(the overachiever). From this quote I can see that Brown likes to have fun and exercise unlike his brother. Because of these differences, I believe that Brown and Barry did not get along with each other very well because Brown did not paint a very positive picture of his brother through his descriptions of him. Thus, I predict that the rest of Browns memoir will include many arguments and possibly confrontations between Brown and Barry. In addition, Browns brother Barry, reminds me of one of my friends. This friend is an overachiever but is restricted by his parents. Although he does want to be active and exercise, he is not allowed by his parents to join any clubs or sports. Why? I do not know why. Probably because they are scared he can get hurt or they care to much about his grades and academics. His parents are actually doing him a disservice because when he applies for colleges they will look at his extracurricular activities and see that he has none, and may move on and choose the person that has some activities on their record.
He is the classic overachiever, ambitious, driven to please. As a child Barry is bone-thin, sickly and pale from lack of sun and exercise. Fun, or play as other children know it, is not an important part of his life. (Brown, 25)
Brown included this quote to provide the reader with a description of his bigger brother Barry(the overachiever). From this quote I can see that Brown likes to have fun and exercise unlike his brother. Because of these differences, I believe that Brown and Barry did not get along with each other very well because Brown did not paint a very positive picture of his brother through his descriptions of him. Thus, I predict that the rest of Browns memoir will include many arguments and possibly confrontations between Brown and Barry. In addition, Browns brother Barry, reminds me of one of my friends. This friend is an overachiever but is restricted by his parents. Although he does want to be active and exercise, he is not allowed by his parents to join any clubs or sports. Why? I do not know why. Probably because they are scared he can get hurt or they care to much about his grades and academics. His parents are actually doing him a disservice because when he applies for colleges they will look at his extracurricular activities and see that he has none, and may move on and choose the person that has some activities on their record.
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