Sweeny's Class

This is my first time taking Sweeney's class since being at Richard Bland. Being a freshmen I had no idea what teachers were good from bad. Their was a lot of talk of a man named Sweeney and I just knew that I had to have him as my teacher. So far I am proud of my decision of deciding to take his class. He tries to use teaching strategies that he feel will relate to his students and that will get us involved in his lectures. To anyone who is trying to figure out next year what English teacher is for them take Sweeney! :) This semester we have started to read stories and discuss the stories as a class, watch plays, and write a few papers. The typical things that happen in English class.

My Favorite Story

This week in class we read three stories, How to Become a Writer, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, and The Yellow Wallpaper. Out of the three I found The Yellow Wallpaper the most interesting!

The Yellow Wallpaper was written around 1890 by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. This story is about a woman who is battling with nervous depression. She is married to a man named John who is her doctor. Her treatment to get over her sickness requires that she does nothing active, especially writing which she loves the most to do. She feels that activity, freedom, and interesting work would help her condition and reveals that she has begun a secret journal in order to “relieve her mind.” Her husband John belittles her about her illness as well as her thoughts. Her husband locks her away in a room with yellow wallpapers in an attempt to make her better. She becomes disturbed by this wallpaper. She describes it as "revolting." She eventually turns to the yellow wallpaper as an escape goat for writing. What started off as something horrible turns into her obsession.

This story was very weird but at the same time interesting! I would suggest to anyone who has not read it to read it.