Dancing With the Daffodils

Lucy's hatred of the daffodils is ironic because of her relationship with her mother. Daffodils are known as a flower of cheer and happiness and are often given on mothers day or when a woman becomes a mother. The irony of choosing a cheerful flower to commemorate a mother figure is not lost on readers in this story. Because Lucy resents her mother so much her hatred of the flower makes perfect sense.
Daffodils also stand for new beginnings which may or may not be a situational coincidence in the story when Mariah shows Lucy her garden. Lucy is in an entirely new place, of which she had great expectations. The shock of the Upper New York class must have been a shock for a young girl coming from a tropical island filled with fresh ingredients, vibrant colors, and unimaginable poverty. Instead of having the expected reaction and loving the change, she resents the actual move in the first place. This could also explain her hatred of the simple flower.
The color and simplicity of the daffodil may have also been contributors to her aggrivation. The island she came from was most probably filled with every type of rich color, including yellow, the yellow may have triggered a memory of why she wanted to escape her previous life. On the other hand, the simplicity of the flower may relate to her expectations of what awaited her in America. Most immigrants have these fabulous, dream-like ideas about what America will be like when they get here and it could be inferred that she was expecting more out of her life once she arrived.

Here is a small poem by William Wordsworth that may help you understand Lucy's perspective on the daffodils a bit more...enjoy!

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-wandered-lonely-as-a-cloud/

The Big "O"

In the film adaptation of the Shakespearean play Othello, "O", there are many interesting interpretations of the text by the director, the writers and the actors themselves.

The school is one of the most obviously adapted to present day times. The kingdom-like qualities are translated into a community-like form where there is status, where money and power take their toll, where race is still a very controversial topic and where all of it is very relevant just like in Othello's time. The uniforms that the students have to wear very accurately imply the uniforms that soldiers would have to wear right down to the suit that Desi's father wears that gives him a sense of power, and the uniforms that the girls wear showing their status and separating them from the boys they are with. The kingdom that is the school is clearly run by popularity much like any other school, everything is handled by Odin. When Hugo (Iago) starts to try to change the status quo everything went to hell. The students all but went insane with the new developments and any viewer could tell that nothing would ever be the same .

Rodger's (Roderigo) character is depicted in more of an exaggerated form of a used character than he is in the play. His money and status are more blatantly used against him and there is an aspect of physical abuse that is painfully obvious within the first hour of the film. Hugo is the character that we all love to hate, however, in an interesting twist he is the character we all feel sorry for because he is so unloved.

The "marriage" between Odin and Desi is also very interesting. In Shakespear's play there is a large controversy over whether the marriage between Othello and Desdemona is consummated. However, in the film the director and the writers take it one step further. The film raises the idea of whether or not the marriage was actually valid by filming the scene where Odin puts a rubber band of Desi's finger and asks her to "pretend for a while". While Desi is shocked and awed by the proposition she gives into this child like mentality of prince charming without thinking about the consequences of her decision. Her "marriage" to Odin didn't make any sense and both in the film and the play both were too naive and young to devote themselves to that type of relationship and commitment.

Can we say "Desperate Housewives" everybody?

Just a little clip that I could not resist. Think of the small red car as Desdemona's and the larger black car as Othello's....and then just enjoy.

Every person is capable of love, trust, loyalty, and devotion. There are those who chose not to honor those qualities, we see them with basements full of Ramen Noodles and a rainbow array of cats pooling at their feet. There are those who disregard those rules for a night, and experience, or the thrill of the game. They are those that we see in their mid-forties sitting in bars by themselves. There is nothing in writing stating that a person can only survive a relationship with a military-type discipline. Live your life and love who stays along for the ride.

For Desdemona, the story was a little more tragic. We have all been in the position of not being able to convince others that we were in the right. We have all been back ed into dark corners even when we were originally the ones in the light. Whether a person chooses to accept that fait or not is their choice to make. Desdemona is normally viewed as a determined heroin. She fought for her marriage to Othello countless times and proved her independence as well as her loyalty. So why must we feel sorry for her in the end?

Desdemona was a pawn in Iago's game. She was the perfect piece to play not only because she was so close to all of the power that Othello held, but she was also was a woman and her reputation was easily damaged by the simplest of misunderstandings. No one will deny that Iago was smart, and those same people will not deny wanting to hit him over the head with a shovel.

The similarities between the story of Othello and Desdemona and the tale of Romeo and Juliet are also definite. Both tragic love stories, both young couples falling in love too quickly, both end in disaster with a misunderstanding to blame.