Jenning's Intelligence

I have to say, I liked Paycheck much more than The Minority Report. Even though minority report was pretty easy to follow, Paycheck was even easier to follow. I also really liked the mystery aspect that the Paycheck had to it. I was always wondering what his next trinket would be and how Jennings would survive the next task at hand.

The quote I chose this week comes from the closing of the piece, "Don't look so unhappy:' Jennings said. He folded his arms. "The paper's safe-and the Company's safe. When the time comes it'll be there, strong and very glad to help out the revolution. We'll see to that, all of us, you, me, and your daughter."

I like this quote because it shows how clever Jennings truly is. This is one of his final statements and it does a great job of showing how he did accomplish blackmailing the company. However, the best thing about this entire story was how the reader gradually finds out about Jennings intelligence. The Rethrick Construction should’ve thought twice when bringing in the smartest and best mechanic. What I don’t get is how they didn’t see this takeover coming. I thought the timescoop allowed them to see into the future? But, I’m glad they didn’t, it led to a very interesting story. I was always excited to see what clever thing Jennings had coming next. Even in the last second when I thought he had failed in his mission, he came through and surprised us all. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this piece.

Time

The Garden of Forking Paths, was a very strange but intriguing piece. I feel like a piece such as things makes you think deeply, unlike the Crucible, which basically tells you what you should be thinking. I’m not going to lie though; this piece struck me as a little bit confusing. The main point I got from it was the fact that time is a tricky thing and leads to infinite possibilities.

The passage I chose was when Albert was explaining Ts’ui Penn’s idea about time, “This network of times which approached one another, forked, broke off, or were unaware of one another for centuries, embraces all possibilities of time. We do not exist in the majority of these times; in some you exist, and not I; in others I, and not you; in others, both of us.”

I’ve never heard about time in this way. The way it’s described seems as though it’s an object colliding with other things. I don’t really follow exactly how time can “fork off.” The only time I could imagine time “forking off” is when you’re dead and your timeline is simply over. Other than that, if I were to imagine time as an object I would imagine it a straight line that just continues on without any collision between anything else. It’s merely a way just to track your life. However, the way time is described in this piece, gives it much more power over everyone’s lives.

I also don’t understand how they can exist in a time period without each other. Aren’t we always in the same time period? I never thought time would be so complicated.

Reputation

The significant passage I chose this week is said by Proctor who was defending his name, “Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave my name!”—Act 4, pg 133

The last sentence of this “speech” was the one that caught my eye, “I have given you my soul; leave my name!” This quote here reveals to us that Proctor’s reputation is far superior than his own soul. Throughout the book there has been an overriding theme of reputation. Many in the town were sincerely concerned with how others viewed them. We can see this with both Parris and Abigail. Parris was concerned that others would condemn him if they were to find out his relatives were in touch with the devil. Abigail was concerned that Goody Proctor was “blackening” her name in town because of her affair with John. However, the one who struggles with reputation the most is John Proctor. John even verbally admitted to dealing with the devil, but would not have it posted upon the church. He didn’t want others to see his name as a shameful thing. He has prided himself on his honesty and if they “blacken” his name, there will be nothing left of him.

We talked in class how honesty led to the downfall of Proctor and this is true. He couldn’t have his name associated with so many lies in front of all the townspeople. Therefore, he gave up his life in the name of reputation. I would agree with Proctor if he gave up his life for a legitimate reason such as Goody Nurse, for truly believing in God. But to give up your life because of fear of a ruined reputation is ridiculous. I had once viewed Proctor as an admirable man, but now I see him as weak.

Golden Candlesticks

The significant passage I chose this week has to do with the materialism that lies with the town of Salem. It can particularly been seen with Reverend Parris but there are other instances with land where this issue comes up. John Proctor recognizes this, “But Parris came, and for twenty week he preach nothin’ but golden candlesticks until he had them.” (pg. 62)

Although Salem is said to be a Holy town, it seems as though there is more concern with materialism and reputation than religion itself. The materialistic hold is especially prominent in Reverend Parris’s character. There have been many instances like the one mentioned above that elude to the fact that money and possessions may be more important to Parris than anything else. He had previously mentioned how he was a successful businessman in Barbados and couldn’t “fathom” the poverty of Salem. As the story proceeds there is a continual weaving of materialism throughout the chapters. There are many disputes over land ownership and this eventually leads to bitter relationships. This is a critical theme to the story and leads to yet another theme as well: hypocrisy. Why would a town that claims to be focused on spirituality choose a minister who will only preach at an altar with golden candlesticks? The town is hypocritical and clearly does not maintain the holy status that they are perceived to be. As seen in the book so far there are three prominent themes: materialism, reputation/status, and hypocrisy. I predict there will be many more instances in which each of these themes will occur.