Redemption

            The reason I chose the words redemption is manifold. First, the conception of coming back from a setback is an idea that I not only hold in high esteem, but also am trying to accomplish in terms of coming back to play sports while in high school. By researching and enveloping myself in the origins of this word, I hope to reinforce this desire. Secondly, there are highly religious connotations regarding the word. While only spiritual myself, the history of religions has fascinated me and seeing how specific words in religious texts (namely, the Christian Bible) affect the meaning and interpretations of the philosophy of the text will be especially interesting. Finally, modern popular culture has emphasized the value of redemption and how sweet the feeling can be. The Book of Eli, a post-apocalyptic film that tests the value of humanity after society has broken down and reverted to a more primitive form, shows that a man despite his past failings may redeem himself with later actions, and that redemption is a very ambiguous term that means entirely different things to different people. 

The Battle of Agincourt

The Battle of Agincourt

15th-century miniature of the Battle of Agincourt

This battle between the French and English occurred on the 25th of October (Saint Crispin's Day), 1415 during the Hundred Years' War. King Henry V had claimed that France rightfully belonged to him, and after negotiations between the two countries broke down, an English army invaded France. After a relatively unsuccessful campaign, the English army under Henry V was in the process of retreating to the port of Calais. However, the French army lay in his path, outnumbering his own men anywhere from 2-1 to 6-1. Henry V, knowing that his men would die unless they reached Calais to get fresh supplies, put his famous longbow archers in range. The French nobles, not expecting an offensive, disorderly lined up to charge the English. Thanks to the bottleneck effect of the valley and the mud from heavy rains earlier, by the time the French lines reached the English, the French knights were exhausted and decimated by archer fire, ending in a massive English victory. English casualties ranged in the hundreds, while the French lost anywhere from seven to ten thousand men. This battle showed the significance of the longbow in a battle, a theme that would continue throughout the war.

The Stalker of My People

There are not many of us left now. We used to be a strong people, one of the mightiest in the land, but now we have been reduced by this demon to destruction. Our Lord’s people are also diminished, and cannot send aid to our hall. Hrothgar sits in his Hall of Heart and does nothing to end our plight while this fiend simply continues to kill (and, we presume, eat) our bravest warriors. Rumors that this is the Great Destroyer’s vengeance for our sin have swirled around the mead hall’s fire. Others (travelers mostly) have claimed to have seen a dragon flying around the hills recently. This folly has whipped the remaining survivors into a frenzy, only making matters worse. Most wish to leave for Hrothgar’s hall, to put ourselves under his direct protection. I feared we might not have been welcome until the summons came. A new king was rising in the east, and Our Lord was determined to put him in his place. This King of Helmings would not last long against the combined might of all the halls beneath Hrothgar’s banner. Still, the thought of abandoning the hall we had called home for generations was unnerving to say the least. However, the alternative – to stay and be picked off by this monstrous creature one at a time – was even more terrifying. With heavy hearts, we made ready and departed from our lands, taking the remaining livestock, setting off across Hrothgar’s dominion. We encountered no resistance, save for at night, when systematically one of our numbers would be abducted by our stalker. Our numbers dwindled further and further until, when there remained but a few of my people left. Hrothgar’s Hall was alive with the High King’s men preparing for a march. Nevertheless, Hrothgar himself came to see my estranged people. When he asked of the other members of our tribe, we told him what had plagued us these many weeks. A grim expression took hold his face, and he seemed to age before our very eyes. When he spoke, however, his voice was just as commanding and powerful as ever, assuring my people that we would be safe inside his walls. He also offered our slim few warriors a respite from the coming fight against the King of Helmings – a mere formality, as any warrior who did not participate would be laughed out of mead halls for the rest of his days. We prepared ourselves for another long journey, but I could not shake that feeling that by the time we returned, the rest of my people would be gone, this ghastly foe claiming them until we had been entirely wiped out. I wondered what I had brought to Hrothgar’s Hall.

John, King of England

King John's funeral effigy,
Worcester Cathedral

King John, also known as John Lackland due to a joke made by his father in John's childhood, was the ruler of the kingdom of England for seventeen years, from his ascension to the throne in 1199 to his death in 1216. He was born the youngest of the five sons of King Henry II; yet with three of his older brothers dying young, John became a potential heir to his brother Richard's throne. Sensing this, John attempted a rebellion against his brother while Richard was fighting in the Third Crusade. This rebellion failed, but nevertheless when Richard died in 1199, John was proclaimed king and met with King Phillip II of France to establish his legitimacy. 

Soon after his recognition, John became famous for losing wars with France, resulting in the loss of all lands in Normandy and on the European mainland. An argument between King John and Pope Innocent III in 1209 led to John's excommunication from the Catholic Church. After settling the disagreements in 1213, John attempted to recapture the lands of Normandy just a year later, losing once again to Phillip II. At the same time, Innocent III declared that any person with a claim to seize the throne of England from John would be (at least in the view of the Church) legally entitled to do so. This was simply too much for the barons of England, who rebelled and forced John to sign the Magna Carta in 1215. This gave the people of England certain rights that the king could not renege on. However, John was used to a certain freedom of governance as he saw fit, and attempted to remove these restrictions by removing the barons that created them. Civil war broke out, and the fighting soon descended into a stalemate. In 1216, John contracted dysentery while on the march and soon died. His son, Henry III, succeeded him and would rule England for most of the thirteenth century.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John,_King_of_England
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/king_john.htm

Three Key Points from Marilyn Butler's Essay on Frankenstein

• The newsworthiness of Frankenstein resulted in the subjection of both author and text to outside pressures that had little to do with the aesthetics of the book, leading historians to believe that perhaps Shelley didn't wish to change the book.
• The novel ironically illustrates a very basic observation about parenting -- the medical mishaps to which the process of birth is subject to. Since Victor cannot accept his child, the monster turns on his own parent.
• For the later edition of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley adds a more remorseful and religious aspect to Victor Frankenstein, making it easier to sympathize with him. She also removed the interfamilial marriage aspect, in an attempt to silence the concerns of genetic problems.

Short Essay on Mary Shelley

Victor Frankenstein, a complex character to begin with, becomes evermore-complicated thanks to the style of narration that Mary Shelley uses in the novel. Whether Frankenstein’s intentions while creating the monster were noble or selfish, as a reader it is difficult to separate the emotions used by Frankenstein when narrating to William, the captain of the ship. Shelley uses the character’s dictation to her advantage in showing how confused Victor is about his own original intentions. He begins with a justification for his work, as he wishes to “pour a torrent of light into our dark world” (Shelley 33). This noble face quickly dissolves into a thirst for glory and recognition; Victor wishes to be not only exulted by his own species, but also by the new species that he intends to make. His pride shows most vigorously in the paternal sense, knowing that “no father could claim the gratitude of his child so completely as I should deserve their’s” (Shelley 33). The abundance of evidence stating reasons similar to these in Shelly’s first paragraph clearly shows that no matter how Frankenstein tried to spin his story, pride and arrogance in according to his station as a natural scientist won out in his muddled and volatile heart.

            Shelley uses the second paragraph to demonstrate Victor’s almost apologetic tone in describing the physical limits that he pushed himself to. He almost beseeches both the ship captain and the reader to understand the hardships he went through in order to make this monster, only to have it emerge hideous and ugly. Victor describes himself as going through the most extreme ardor, having his physical body shrivel and shrink away while his task essentially consumes his spiritual peace. Frankenstein’s plea to the reader for mercy is Shelley’s way of proving that, while Victor might seem noble and altruistic on the surface, beneath this layer of integrity is a desperate self-interested man begging forgiveness before he dies. 

Notable Moment in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

While reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, I became aware of the main character's sound judgement and overall knowledge to be astounding. Whether in science, humanities, or mathematics, Victor seemed all together the brightest character in the novel, with intuition abound. That is largely why I found his failure to comprehend his creation's threat to essentially kill Victor's bride-to-be, Elizabeth, so confounding. I assumed that Victor would have seen the creature's intentions immediately and have carried out a different set of actions instead of playing directly into his nemesis's hand, despite how painful it may have been for Elizabeth. After thinking it over, I came to the realization that his lapse of judgement could only have occurred due to the rapid decreasing stability of his mind and the guilt that weighed upon him for the deaths of the first three victims. I believe Shelley tried to prove the point that under extreme duress, even the most secure and brilliant minds can become unhinged.

Memorable Books

1. Green Eggs And Ham, Dr. Seuss. This epic novel was the first actual book I can remember reading on my own. It laid the foundations for all my reading yet to come. 
2. The Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis. I read this series between the ages of 10 and 11. These were the first fantasy books that I had really encountered, thus opening a large and fruitful venture into the genre. 
3. Dave Barry's History of the Millennium (So Far), Dave Barry.  I first read this book at the age of 12, and Barry's hilarious and ridiculous takes on today's news made me more interested in keeping up with current events, albeit in the form of the newscasts of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. 
4. The Killer Angels, Michael Shaara. This book was assigned reading for APUSH last year. I remember having doubts about reading it, having already snored through a biography on President Reagan, but ultimately enjoying it completely. Shaara's switching point of views made a really interesting read. 
5. The Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follett. I read this book for fun at the age of 13. It takes place in a medieval English town, and, being a fan of historical fiction, I enjoyed this books more than almost all others I've read.
6. Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card. This was by and large the first science fiction novel I had ever read. The space aspect, mixed with the drama of both essentially video games and war, pretty much blew my 11 year old mind. 
7. All Ray Bradbury Short Stories. I read both of my older brother's large books that contained scores of these sci-fi short stories. Even now I would be able to pick up those books and reread them over and over. 
8. The Series of Unfortunate Events, Lemony Snicket. This series of thirteen books took me many years to read, as the last few books were not release until after I had read most of them. The main characters, however, were easily and fun to relate to, and I had no problem rereading them all every time a new book was released.