Breanna's Virtual Bookshelf

BREANNA'S VIRTUAL BOOKSHELF

A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor

This short story is quite a memorable one for me due to it's somewhat deceptive title and the valuable message sent by O'Connor. I love the fact that the story is not about romance as one might initially assume upon seeing the title, but rather about the true evil which many seemingly decent people may portray. The short story encapsulates this strong message in limited words, and offers the opportunity for the readers to introspect about their view of notorious outcasts, and thus eliminate self-righteousness. I personally agreed with this message as I too believe that many of the the so called "menaces" of society have motives for their actions and could otherwise be law-abiding citizens if their circumstances were more desirable. I also found the story a bit humorous and like the fact that it manipulates the idea of a seemingly ordinary story, thus displaying Modernist and Southern Gothic elements while incorporating techniques such as symbolism.




Anne Of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
This novel has been one of my favorites due to Anne's wild imagination, optimism, and creative use of words to transform ordinary language. Somehow, this text made me want to creatively express my thoughts similar to Anne. It also engendered an optimistic outlook for myself by thinking of how Anne was once an impoverished orphan child but was able to ultimately succeed in school, was generally content with the little things in life, and was imaginative. She reminds me of children I have met who are similarly less fortunate but so promising with their intelligence and genuine happiness. The novel also incorporates some humor and maintains a light-hearted tone while delivering a positive message of the endless possibilities in life.






Archie Comics
 This series of comics has been my all-time favorite since childhood. Since my use of technological devices was limited when I was younger, reading light-hearted texts such as this would be one main source of relaxation. The fact that the novels are graphic and have separate short stories made it even more simple and easier to read whenever I wanted to ease my mind. I love that various character traits are depicted, making it natural for me to imagine it as the real world, but a tad bit more interesting and comical. I would imagine life with the different characters, and aim to live an easy-going life as they often do by going to the beach often. It would also portray life lessons as malevolent plans would never be successful. These comics just generally made reading for me as a child easy and fun.





Twelfth Night, or What You Will by William Shakespeare

This is my favorite Shakespeare play because of its very light-hearted and humorous nature. It seems to criticize people who are too uptight and maintain a false sense of superiority. The play explores an unusual love triangle, making it both dramatic and humorous, while demonstrating the idea of "anything goes" and revelry as implied by the segment of the title-"Or What You Will". I love easy-going people so I found this play interesting and unlike the other more desolate or grave Shakespeare plays I know. Additionally, the fact that the play is archaic and thus uses old English somehow makes it seem more poetic to me.

This text is unlike my other favorites which are mostly light-hearted or have a likable resolution, but I like it because of the humor in the plot and unexpected resolution. The play addresses serious issues such as racial injustice and general powerless due to various factors. Many characters are made powerless and though many had great aspirations, they were inevitably impeded due to social class, race, or lack of wit. Even the perceived superior characters in terms of class are ultimately unsuccessful due to negative personality traits. The ending seems desolate to me and none of the characters seem to prosper, but the message being sent is perhaps that people may have varying limitations preventing their success, and that unfortunately, people with good intentions may not always flourish.