"The Waste Land"

1) A woman plays sad fiddle songs on strands of her own black hair. This scene sets a morose and somber mood to the poem.

2) whisper, bells, music, whistles. These words help create a feeling of soft music, such as that used during lamentation, or possibly simple boredom. They help convey a sense of loss and of emptiness.

3) The sun illuminates the sapling's size.
The canvas green rustles in the weighted wind,
Not howling, but branches and leaves lifted.
The height above the rest, towering over the forest;
strange for one so young to be so tall.

Technology: Does it Damage?

Technology does have a dark side. While it frequently makes things faster, easier, more entertaining, and cheaper, it also takes away deep thinking, patience, and creates apathy. The current technology today has led to increasing global warming through carbon dioxide emissions. People have become apathetic to the environment and basic health because of its convenience. The constant stream of media and information keeps us from thinking to deeply on any given subject. They keep our thoughts jumping from one subject to another. They keep us from patience, too, making sure that we're always waiting for the next thing, the next title, the next scandal, the next soundbite.

Basically, it makes things too fast, too polluted, too ritual.

The Human Element

I believe that all people can affect change, they just have to know how. The characters in the books we have read have each found a way to fight against an unjust society. Whether it was Montag's flight and memorization of Ecclesiastes, Proctor's prayers before the noose, or Huck and Tom's ridiculous attempt to free Jim, they each stood up for what they felt was right. People can affect change by moving. All movements, like the old cliche of a ripple on a pond, can affect everybody around them, no matter how small.

The changes affected by the characters varied in grandeur. Sometimes, they helped somebody gain their freedom. Sometimes, they left a simple legacy of honor and boldness. Their contributions were small and large, for now and for later, and the important thing is that they contributed.

Perhaps the books portray the influences one's actions can have as a little exaggerated, but while not all people can do as the characters did, a few people have definitely done things as significant as the characters' actions. The books are about what could be if people cared enough to try.