Fiction with A Ridiculous Premise

Being 40

       Christmas, 2014, I was drunk at yesterday night.

I could not open my eye on every morning, but today, I can sleep nature to wake. However, the things surround me are strange that I have never seen them before. I realize that I am sleeping in a ramshackle room, which has an awful smell makes me feel sick.

“What’s going on?”

I really don’t know. I just remember I failed my professional exam yesterday. Now, the only idea in my mind is that I want to escape from there.

When I look at myself in the mirror, I discover that I am not the young girl anymore. I look like much older than before!

Picking up the newspaper near my hands. It’s 2024. 

 “Oh my god!” I stand in the front of the mirror quaking with fear. I tell to myself that I should calm down, but it still cannot stop my quaking.

I, 40 years old, dress in rags, look at myself in the mirror as if looking at a strange woman. The surroundings are mess and dirty.

“Why my situation is so bad?” I have lost myself in thought.

It is the most horrible horrible horrible thing I have met. And I feel regret that I was not hardworking at 20.  

The Discussion about “the School”

The trees, the snakes, the herb gardens, the gerbils, the mice, the salamander, the tropical fish, the puppy, the grandparents, the poppas and mommas, Matthew and Tony parents. From plants to animals, and then to human beings, the order of died things are going closer to students. The puppy part is the point that makes reader be shocked. I think it’s because the puppy’s death is the first close life’s death. And we realize that the death is coming closer and closer.

“We weren’t even supposed to have a puppy.” This sentence is repeated. I think the author is implying that the puppy is going to die. The relationship between Edgar and students are close and inmate. Actually, I think they are friends. Students do not go to their parents but instead ask him all kinds of deep questions and even ask him to make out with the TA to demonstrate sex.

The language of the School is very casual and informal. The audience feels like listening to the narrator telling the story face to face. It also has many words such as perhaps and possibly, which show uncertainty. It seems to Mr. Edgar is not confident and try to avoid many questions of deaths.

At the end of the story, Mr. Edgar hugs the TA. This action shows “love” to us, and it gives up a hope for future. It’s a good fiction, because it makes readers feel heart soars.

My Submission for Our Class Journal Name

Tuesday

2014/9/22

Dr. Jennifer Marquardt required us to choose a meaningful name that represents the values or aesthetics we want to see in our journal. After the brainstorm, I come up two ideas for our journal name. They are “Beyond” and “Black Magic.”

The first submission is “Beyond.” The word “Beyond” means transcend in my submission. This “Beyond” doesn’t mean that we should transcend others, but transcend ourselves. And it implies a mission that we should transcend ourselves in the process of creating our journal. Comparison is a universal phenomenon. But our purpose is not compare with others, but compare with the past us. I believe we will have improvement in this process.

The second submission is “Black Magic.” Black magic means witches’ evil magic, which can affect people’s soul. The reason why I choose this name is the part of “affecting people’s soul.” In my opinion, our journal should have the power to affect people’s soul. And I think the title “Black Magic” can give us the confident to accomplish this purpose.

Response to My Presentation

Monday 

2014/9/22

Today Tess and I have introduced the online journal VQR (Virginia Quarterly Review) in class. I think VQR is a fancy journal that we can gain enlightenment for our own journal. Its standard in selection of writers is “excellence”. For us, we can use this standard to select articles in our own journal. Between the two feelings heart sinks and heart soars, I would like to feel heart soars when I finish reading. Besides, I think it is important that good article can convey some magnificent implication to readers. And the articles we will choose in our journal should possess this benefit.

The favorite part I like for VQR is the design of the website. The homepage is laconic in contrasting color: red, white, and black. Audience can feel comfortable when we are looking at it. In addition to this, those artful visual arts are charming and interesting to anybody. Both of the design and visual art will attract to audience pay more attention to this website. Therefore, we can create a perfect design and we can select interesting visual arts for our own journal.