I Have a Thing for Character Analysis

When looking at my three blog posts, the two factors I took into account (along with the prompt questions that were suggested) were “How/what do I analyze?” and “How well were these written/executed?”

I’ll begin my thoughts on the latter question:
First off, I hate reading my own writing (which is something I obviously need to get over). Hate it. I hate it more than Monday mornings, cold sores, sweaty armpits, beer burps, and disco music. Why? Because for some reason, when I write something that I think is quality, that feeling of “hey, this is pretty good” expires. Perhaps it’s because I gain a better perspective by taking some time away from my writing. Therefore, looking back at the posts I published weeks ago made me cringe. It was an inner monologue of:

“Oh god, why did you write that sentence? You sound like an 8th grader.”

“You could have really expanded on that idea.”

“What are you even talking about? How about you try making sense.”

“Wow, this is really embarrassing. I hope people never remember reading this, ever.”

Of course, talking to myself in 2nd person is almost as concerning… but needless to say, if it wasn’t for this assignment, I would have never looked at these posts again so I could spare myself the pain. However, once I got over the good ol’ self hatred, it was interesting to see the possibility of certain trends in my posts; which there definitely were…

On to my second question: I noticed that in all three of my posts I talk about the characters. Specifically, the nature of characters, how they relate to each other, what their true intentions are, and what we can possibly expect from them due to their personalities. I have taken on these questions in every single one of my posts. I think what interests me so much about character analysis is the fact that there is so much evidence one can draw from: their speech/how they present themselves (word structure, jargon, attitude, length, interactions), what actions they make (how it affects themselves and their surroundings), and how their actions can relate to the play’s larger themes or metaphors. And for some reason, I find it enjoyable to break down the true nature of a character and to answer these questions.

What I value about weekly blogging: I’ve always been told that writing about literature helps one understand literature more. I can definitely attest to this- I find that thinking about the reading and then making these posts help me in having a greater understanding of the play as a whole. Plus, it's great that we have the choice to write about whatever we want. I think that causes me (and perhaps other classmates) to not mind these blogging assignments.