12-26-08

From Page 240 to Page 249

The vocabulary word for the day is:
Auspice = Forecast or omen

The quote of the day is from Seward's Diary but said to Renfield by Mina:
" 'Goodbye, and I hope I may see you often, under auspices pleasanter to yourself,' to which, to my astonishment, he replied: - " (p. 247)

Arthur and Mina think of themselves as brothers and sisters because Lucy died and Arthur was Lucy's fiance and Mina was Lucy's bestfriend and they both feel close to each other because of the death of Lucy and Mina was trying to be helpful.

Mr. Godalming and Morris visit Harker and his wonderful wife's home and studied the transcript of the various diaries and letters which Harker and his wife had made and arranged. Dr. Seward ask to see the patient Dr. Renfield.

I would comment on the pages we read in the book today but I can't understand what exactly is going on but I can say that I think Arthur and Mina will have a beautiful friendship because they had something in common that they loved and lost and that common was Lucy, Mina was the bestfriend and Arthur was the husband


A.M.J

Nov. 25, 2008

"Kiss her dead lips if you will, as she would have you do, if for her to choose. For she is not a grinning devil now-not any more a foul thng for all eternity. No longer she is the devil's un-dead. She is God's true dead, whose soul is with Him!" (P.229)

Lucy is no longer victim to Dracula's cruelties. She no longer poses threat to those around her and can finally rest her soul at God's feet at whom shall guard it indispensably. Kiss her dead lips now if you wish, for she has no valour nor need to attack now, she is no longer Dracula's un-dead; captive to his treacherous voodooism; she is at last God's true dead, released from captivity and allowed to rest in peace.

11/21

Pages 204-218
Vocab
Chagrin= a feeling of annoyance and embarrasment or disappointment.

Quote
" Van Helsing did not seem to notice my silence, at any rate, he showed neither chagrin nor triumph" Seward's Diary (page 211).


Arthur and helsing are at the graveyard and helsing wants to cut off lucy's head to do some sort of experiment on it but arthur doesnt want helsing to. But arthur than changes his mind cuz helsing manipulates him by saying that all of them gave her blood so she can survive so he also gets to decide if he can cut her head off.

"she is one of God's women, fashioned by His own hand to show us men and other women that there is a heaven where we can enter, and that its light can be here on Earth. So true, so sweet, so little an egoist - and that, let me tell you, is much in this age, so sceptical and selfish." (p.198) -Van Helsing
in class we talked about how much van hesling knows about vampires/lucy. i believe that he doesnt know much and he is just guessing. Like lucy is his guine pig that he is testing his believes on.

Jonathan Barker is now healed from the help of Van Helsing, Jonathan autmatically believes that Helsing will be able to help him in his troubles with Dracula. Mina and Van Helsing both have read through Jonathans diary so they are all on the same page about the situation. Van Helsing possilby read the article about the women biting women around town and he can infer that it might be Lucy since she has finally turned.

polyandrist- a wife who practices polygymy (having more than one wife)
"then this so sweet maid is a polyandrist,and me,with my poor wife dead to me ... am a bigamist"

jonathon and mina are walking through picadilly square and they see a cloaked man who is tall and thin and is transfixed on something so he doesnt even notice jonathon at first but jonathon does notice draculas pearly sharp white teeth and anamalistic appearance also dracula had a dark moustache and looked much more youthful he ges very upset after this and later forgets the whole thing after falling asleep

mina and jonathon made an oath not to read each others journals but mina has decided to break that oath and go into jonathons journal she reads all that he experienced and is troubled on which conclusion is worse: he husband has gone mad or that its all true and dracula is now free to roam around london

van helsing makes a speech about king laugh and its very long but there are alot of hidden meanings and its very eloquent

there is some report about the "boofer lady" attacking children and leaving them w/ small wounds on their neck the lady is both pretty and scary and possibly lucy

helsing found minas letters and want to meet her they meet and i think mina likes him but she probly doesnt they meet and talk and she decides to just give him jonathons journal

11-18-08

"IT WAS AS IF THE BLOOD, NO LONGER NEEDED FOR THE WORKING OF THE HEART, HAD GONE TO MAKE THE HARSHNESS OF DEATH AS LITTLE RUDE AS MIGHT BE." (P.170) STEWARDS DIARY.

Lucy's human life has died, death had restored her beauty. Arthur didnt realize that she was dangerous and was about to kiss her before she died. She hasnt really died she is just transforming into a vampire. Right when she transformed into a vampire she is the most innocent and pure she will ever be like a baby in the womb, and the womb for the baby is the safest spot possible. Thats what the quote is saying.

Van wants to cut off Lucy's head and take out her heart after the funeral. He put a crucifix into Lucys mouth which was later stolen. The lady who stole robs the dead but she might be messing with something more because Lucy isnt really a normal dead person. I think she might have caused alot more trouble than she knew she would because thats what kept Dracula away and the lady might get pay back later in the story.

Van Helsing is scared and walking around the house because he is nevous that Lucy is going to awaken. He has a lot of garlic around the house but he still needs to patrol. Van Helsing is about to read Lucy's diary so they might get some insight on when she changed or how. I dont think they are trying to save Lucy they just want to protect the rest of society. It is to late to save lucy, once you get your helpless.

Monday Nov. 17,2008

Vocab: Subcutaneous- Under the skin
Quote of the Day: "Van Helsing made a subcutaneous injection of morphia, as before, and with good effect." (page 157)
Pages: 157-166

Today we dissused what we read about last week and got caught up with all that has happened. Our reading today was about how Lucy has finnaily turned into a vampire after all this time. Everyone has noticed the change in her but no one has still put it together that she was bit by Dracula and is a full blown vampire now. A theme that has tooken place in the part that we read today would be murder, because now that Lucy is a vampire it shouldn't be long before she gets hungry and wants feed her hunger by killing someone and drinking their blood.

Comment Review Day 11.14.2008

Hey everyone,

I couldn't make it in today, but luckily I can write to you on the class blog! How cool is that? First and foremost, I hopefully don't need to explain myself when I say please be respectful to whoever is filling in for me today and get some work done to help boost your grade. Let's reflect back on the last chunk of Dracula we've read, then we'll regroup when I return. Here's what you do, for anyone that needs a refresher on comment review days:

1) Read through all the posts that everyone has written. When you get to the bottom of this page, click the "older posts" link to read more.

2) Write at least FOUR THOUGHTFUL COMMENTS on four different blog posts. You do this by clicking the "_ comments" link at the end of a post. Then you write your thoughtful comment in the window that pops up. Here's what I mean by "thoughtful":

- a detailed response to an opinion you read (why you do or do not agree with the blogger)
- an interpretation of a quote that the blogger wrote down
- bringing up an event/theme/character from the book that a blogger forgot to mention and giving your two cents on why it's important
- giving your detailed opinion about an event/theme/character the blogger did mention, telling us why you think it's important (or maybe why you think it's not as important as something else)
- using one of the vocab words in a sentence that shows me you know what the word means (YOU MAY ONLY DO THIS FOR ONE OF YOUR COMMENTS)

3) Add your initials to the bottom of your comment so I know it was you who wrote it (don't use your name though for safety reasons!)

4) After each comment you write, click "Anonymous," then click "Publish Your Comment"

Thanks! I'm reading through the posts now and a lot of you have some great ideas to respond to. However, if you think a post is missing something important (I can think of a few things!), add it in the comments. The more we have on this blog, I guarantee you the better you'll all do on the test you'll eventually have!

-Mr. Polley

P.S. If you want to discuss the part of the book you read for homework, you may do so in the comments section of this post.

"A brave man's blood is the best thing on this earth when a woman is in trouble. You're a man and no mistake. Well, the devil may work against us for all he's worth, but God sends us men when we want them." -Wacky Old Man Van Helsing (p. 157)

Sexist? Discuss amongst yourselves.

November 13th, 2008

Pages 140 -

Today's quote: "What does it all mean? I am beginning to wonder if my long habit of life amongst the insane is beginning to tell upon my own brain" (Dr.Seward p.142)

In the book today we read about wolves.. the wolf had glass on his face.. i think its because he jumped threw Lucy's window.. the wolves somewhat resembles death and the zookeeper reminds me about the old man from the hill. Thats weird.. A wolf escaped from the zoo?.. and it might of been the same wolf from the ship. I think Dracula is back.. something abot red eyes? I wasnt really paying attention so yeah.. good luck. uh.. we have homework tonight!!!

Wednesday, November 12th

pgs. 127 -

~Vocab~

Pallor - paleness

~Quote~

" As the transfusion went on something like life seemed to come back to poor Lucy's cheeks, and through Arthur's growing pallor the joy of his face seemed absolutely to shine." (Seward pg. 130)


Van Helsing, Dr. John Seward, and Lucy's fiance Arthur Holmwood have realized that Lucy has fallen ill and seems extremely weak. All she can do is lay in bed and tolerate the pain she's goinf through. Her symptoms led them to conclude that what she needs to become well again is blood. The two punctur wounds on her neck were also noticed but were disregarded because they didn't know what they were or were from. They decided to do a blood transfusion using the youngest and strongest man, Arthur. He had no problem with this proceedure because he's so in love with her and wants to see her get better. After the blood transfusion she seems to be a lot better and feels better. The big question in everybody's mind is how is she losing so much that she would need so much to be transfered into her...
Van Helsing is very knowledgeable about these evil spirits known as vampires and uses garlic to try and keep Dracula away. It's a big fear that he might come back for Lucy to finish what he had started.


We've read a lot about Lucy and her condition but my question is what has happened to Mina and Johnathan? They're both a big part of this story so I know they haven't died but I do think that Dracula has might've done something with both of them. I also wonder what's going to happen with Lucy since she's been bitten by Dracula. The doctors can't just keep giving her blood transfusions so something has to be eventually done with her. Does she even know what going on with her condition or somewhat of a disease???

nov 11

pg.16 Dracula

The enemy of my enemy is my friend

Lucy had a nose bleed an Seward got a example had found nothing wrong with the body,so the mind must be the problem. Seward called in his mentor Dr.Van Helsing for help with Lucy. Lucy getting better and better than worse and worse tell she dies and comes back to life as a vampire. Reinfield is collecting flies this could represent death or the devil. Reinfield is getting sharper and crazyier crazy when the sun goes down and when its at its fullest. Van Helsing running the show right now and it doesnt look good for Lucy.

"you learn from failure not success."

11-10-08

pg:105-??
paroxysm: a spasm, a sudden attack or outburst of your rage or laughter.

I never saw a lunstic in such a parixysm of rage before and i hope i shall not again (pg:103)

we watched a clip on dracula and the interview with the actor that play daracula in the movie it was basically about how the actor and the aurthor of the book think different meaning to being a vampire .they both think there are different things to being a vampire.

In the book he is talking to dracula and he now know dracula is in england and how he can control jonathan's brain because he has a brain fever that dracula gave to him.

renfield is trying to find dracula and how jonathan thinks lucy is getting fat because she's eating alot she want to eat more so she can get stronger and plus she cant control it

11/7/08

Pages 95-105

"His red eyes again! They are just the same." (p.100)
-Signifies that Lucy and Mina know something horrible is happening.

COLOR RED:
-Blood (life source)
-Devil
-Evil
-Unnatural-If white means pure (virgin) then red means evil (lustful.)

Mina woke up in the middle of the night and realized Lucy was no longer in the room, the door was not locked but it was closed. Mina ran out looking for her. On Lucy's favorite seat, Mina found her, it looked as if a dark figure was standing behind her. As she approached she felt no joy. As she got closer saw the dark figure, yelled Lucy and the dark figure turned it's head, and Mina say red eyes. Mina ran to the church and when she came out Lucy was Still asleep and alone. Mina woke Lucy and they walked home, on the way she dabbed her feet in mud so no one should notice her bare feet even though the town seemed dead. Mina promised not to tell anyone about the night, not even Lucy's mother.

-Half-reclining white figure: Like the girl from the grudge.
-Light as sharp as a sword cut: A harsh light, very intense.

Why would Dracula attack Lucy first?
-When Lucy was out of the room Mina came out side, perhaps it was to get to Lucy.
-Perhaps it's because Lucy sleep walks.
-Lucy is attractive.

Lucy looks better than she has in weeks, but Mina believes she pricked Lucy with the pin. She thinks she must have pinched some skin up in it because there were two small pricks. Lucy seemed more rest full than she had in a long time, Mina made sure the door was locked. Mina was woken up by the noise of Lucy struggling to get the door open, but eventually Lucy went back to bed. Looking out of the Window the moon looked brilliant, she saw a large bat fly out of the window then continue flying around outside. Lucy murmured "His red eyes again! They are just the same." (p.100) Lucy looked dazed and Mina realized she was looking over at a dark figure sitting a bit a ways from them. Lucy went to bed early, and Mina took a walk. The moon was very bright, and helped Mina to see Lucy standing the the window. By the time Mina got back Lucy was laying fast asleep. Lucy looks more pale than ever.

-One the fifteenth of August Lucy has been tired. Lucy found out her and Arthur will be married soon.

Lucy has been looking weaker, and more and more pale. Mina has been guarding the door so Lucy has just been walking around the room and staring out the window. Mina woke Lucy and Lucy was very weak.

Letters were exchanged between movers and people asking for the boxes soon. But what could be in the boxes? They might be Dracula's, maybe the boxes of dirt. The dirt for Dracula makes it so things are his property, no one can enter with out Dracula inviting them in.

Lucy has seemed better, she still looks very pale though. When Lucy and Mina were sitting in their favorite seat, Lucy reminded me of that night. Lucy said it seemed like a dream but not at the same time. Dogs were howling and whole town could here, the dark figure was with her then she felt as she was sinking in green water. Mina got a letter than Johnathan has been ill, and she is to go to Transylvania to nurse him well. She packs her things right away, maybe it would be good for Johnathan and Mina to marry there.

Johnathan got a brain fever, I think that Dracula used his mind power to make Johnathan believe he was very ill. Johnathan wanted Mina there to nurse him well, and that was probably exactly Dracula's plan, there was no easier way to get Mina to come to Transylvania, with no suspicions.

11/6/08

pp.87-95

Vocab: Yawing = failing to hold a straight course, turning from side to side.

"The wind was steady, and as we ran before it there was no yawing." (p.89)

Mina reads the Captain's log of the Demeter, the ship that washed ashore with only a dog and a dead man on it. In it the Captain explains that they started out with more men and one by one they started disappearing. Some men thought they saw a dark figure on the ship but no one could find it. Eventually only the Captain is left and he ties himself to the steering wheel with a crucifix. When the ship finally washes ashore a big black dog jumps off of it and runs away. The animals in town begin to act strangely (the animals are always the first to know!!!).

Taking lives: Dracula and Renfield both take peoples' lives physically but others metaphorically take lives. Lucy took away a part of Seward and Quincey's lives when she rejects them, Jonathan is taken away from Mina, Mina's life is taken away without Jonathan, etc.

I think that Dracula was on the ship and he was the one who took the lives of the men on the ship. He then took the shape of a dog and escaped. I also think that Lucy isn't really sleepwalking but is being hypnotised by Dracula and unconsciously drawn towards him so he can suck her blood.

11/5/08

Pages bottom of 75-

The pages that we are starting to read today is at the bottom of page 75 in Dracula.

Lucy is getting married to Arthur Holmwood in Autumn and she is already planning out her dresses and how her house will be arranged.

"For life be, after all. only a waitin' for somethin' else then what we're doin', and death be all that we can rightly depend on" (page 78) - Quote by The Funny Old Man (Mr. Swalis)

The theme that comes in play with the book Dracula is somewhat like feeling lonely and

Unhappy. Suspense and Tension is probably the only themes that I could actually hear about in this Book called Dracula for right now.

I think that this book is complicated and confusing because I somewhatunderstand the reading but then again I'm not so certain about the reading either, but I really do enjoy reading this book because this book gets me thinking about whats going to happen next, I think that if people were to just come out and say that thier vampires it would be cool because now we could know who not to spend much time with anymore especially when the moon sets in the position that it sets in movies, but then again I wouldn't want people telling me that their vampires because thats scary, I mean any person with a right mind would be close to any vampire.

November 4, 2008

Dracula: Pages 66-75

Vocab
Expostulate: to make a friendly protest, to reason or argue with a person
"He has at present such a quality that I have had myself to expostulate." (Seward pg. 72)

Chapter 6 - Mina Murray's Journal
Mina met an elder gentleman, who says he's about 100 years old. They are speaking to each other in a graveyard. We're not sure exactly why he's there. Our guesses are that he's visiting his friends grave or he might be the grave keeper. He talks with a weird accent. What I'm wondering is why is Mina in the graveyard in the first place? The core of what the old man is saying is that all the tombstones are lying. Nobody can be 100% perfect, and that only the good things are written on tombstones. He also stated that all the people buried in the graves are going to be judged on the Day of Judgement. This whole conversation taking place in the graveyard is reminding everyone of Hamlet. Being in the graveyard and the fact that someone has commited suicide to piss of his mother. Even though nobody knows the truth because suicide is still a sin during this time. What's the connection between the graveyard scene and Dracula? Mina also hasn't heard from Jonathan in over a month and that's freaking her out. It's the first of August when all this happens. When Mina gets home there is still no news from Jonathan.

Dr. Sewards Diary
Dr. Seward goes to visit Renfield, and notices that he's raising flies. A few days pass and Dr. Seward tells him that he needs to get rid of all the flies in the room. As the days go on the flies bring in spiders, and the spiders brought in sparrows, and then he asked for a kitten. (Oh yeah... On one of these days he ate a fly in front of Dr. Seward.) Later in July Sewards goes to visit Renfield early one morning and noticed all the sparrows were gone, and that there were feathers on the ground and a drop of blood on his pillow. Seward is starting to realize that Renfield is only eating the lives of animals.

Food Chain in Renfield's Room
Fly->Spider->Sparrow->(He wanted a cat to eat the sparrow)->Renfield

Renfield has been labeled as a zoophagus, meaning the absorption of lives. This name was given to him by Dr. Seward.

Comment Review Day 11.03.08

For today's Comment Review Day, please write four comments on four DIFFERENT posts on this page (there are six new posts on Dracula you can choose from). Here are the options for the kinds of comments I'm looking for (you are required to do at least one of each):

1) A thoughtful, open-ended question based on what the post talks about for others to answer.

2) Insightful, detailed response to a question posed by a classmate either in a comment or in the blog post itself.

3) Your interpretation of one of the featured quotes OR a sentence that uses the featured vocab word CORRECTLY, and in a way that implies you know what the word means. (ex. "Let's visit the clairvoyant to see if he can predict our future," NOT "I am a clairvoyant.")

CLICK "ANONYMOUS" and ADD YOUR INITIALS TO THE ENDS OF YOUR COMMENTS PLEASE!

***please do not comment on this post***