If it ain't about the money...

I think that the American Dream is having a family, job, house, and possessions that you can call your own. Society expects most Americans to live this dream and have these possessions. In some cases these possessions may be meaningless but they are still valued and represent an important part of who you are. America offers the hope and means by which to achieve this dream, which is why it is called the American Dream. America offers the education available to get a good job and meet the right spouse, form there you can create a family and build up wealth to accrue a house and possessions.

I would define wealth as the total value of the possessions and relationships that you have with others. The first part of this definition may be a bit shallow (sorry), but it is what society defines wealth as and that has made an impact on my definition. I think the second part of my definition of wealth is very important, the relationships that you have with people, as you can see with Daisy and Gatsby, are very important I throughout your live and can offer lifelong happiness. In The Great Gatsby you can also see the possessions side of this definition as Gatsby talks about his yacht while throwing a major party in his estate. This brings me to Americans’ definition of wealth, which I believe is just the possessions and material wealth that an individual has. In this book you see that money is valued by society and that changes individuals and forces them to become money crazed. Their attitude towards poverty is that it is when people did not work and expected to coast by. People see poverty as a shameful thing to be in and that those who are impoverished deserve to be because they did not work hard enough.

My personal view of wealth and poverty differ from that of the societal norms and values. I think that poverty results from individuals not receiving the innumerous opportunities that we have here in the United States. They are not able to get a high paying job because they didn’t have access to the education that we have here in the States. They are forced to work for minimum wage and be shamed by society for that. I view wealth on the surface as your self-worth or the money you have. Looking below the surface I believe that true wealth is developing lasting relationships with others and truly caring about others. These friends and family that you make will be there though everything but you may lose your money or possessions through that run. The real wealth lies within you and the relationships and choices you make every day.

Eventually, I would like to achieve the American dream by settling down with a wife and kids in my own home with a stable job. More than that though I want to develop lasting relationships and love my job. Obviously we will be working for a long time before we retire, I want to do something I love so that waking up every morning is exciting, and days are viewed as new opportunities. The American Dream is definitely a part of my future, but it is about finding the right people and job to make that dream become a reality. 

Le Blog, El Blog, or The Blog?

#1:As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.

 

This translation uses diction such as “transformed” to show that Gregor is a new person since he has changed into an insect. The imagery provided does not specify the type of insect because that doesn’t matter, he is changed. The connotation of this sentence is that his body and his entire being was changed into a bug.

#2:Gregory Samsa woke from uneasy dreams one morning to find himself changed into a giant bug.

The diction of “giant bug” generalizes the insect that he was turned into but also provides the reader with a better image. When you hear those words you can picture a giant, human-sized, bug in a bed. The connotation of this sentence is that he changed forms overnight but his inside remains the same.

#3:When Gregor Samsa awoke from troubled dreams one morning he found he had been transformed in his bed into an enormous bug.

 

The diction of “had been transformed” makes it seem like someone did this to him. This creates an ominous atmosphere as to who could change someone into a bug. The connotation of this sentence is that someone came in and changed his entire being into that of a bug.

#4:One morning, upon awakening from agitated dreams, Gregor Samsa found himself, in his bed, transformed into a monstrous vermin.

The connotation of this sentence is that Gregor is still the same person, evident by the use of “his bed,” when he wakes up but is in the form of a bug. The diction of “monstrous vermin” makes it seem like Gregor is now a super villain with bad motives. These words have a very negative connotation which is translated into the sentence.

 

Texts that are translated may not represent the entire purpose of word choice and meaning that the author wants it to. Different translations affect the connotation of the sentence and different forms of the sentence with different syntax and diction can alter meaning as well. I believe that diction and imagery are the most effective methods, as seen in these examples, to alter the meaning of a sentence.

            Diction is the word choice that an author makes. Different authors and translators have different opinions on diction. The diction of the first sentence as translated four different times really effects the meaning of the sentence. For example in the 3^rd example, “had been transformed” makes it seem like someone transformed Gregor. This is vastly different from “found himself transformed,” which shows no evidence of anyone having anything to do with the transforming. This affects the meaning of the sentence and the story as a whole because if someone of some higher being transformed Gregor then there is intrigue into who did it, if it just happened then no one questions the cause. Diction that the translator chooses to use reflect their own values and can alter the meaning of the sentence and the novella as a whole.

Imagery is another way to effectively alter the meaning of a sentence and a book. For example, in sentence number 4 “monstrous vermin” creates a terrifying image of a never-seen animal somewhat like a super villain. Compared to “giant bug” which creates an image of an oversized ant or cockroach. The first example of imagery alters the meaning of the story by creating a terrifying non-human image while the second is more imaginable and relatable. The imagery is another choice that the author makes and it is largely affect by diction. I think that diction and imagery are two methods of altering meaning because they are prevalent and help you imagine the book in terms of pictures and events. A little tweak in the event changes the outcome and the characters as a whole.