~~Wedding~~

(Photo by Anna Catherine Photography)

Last Saturday my best friends Alli and Josh got married at Bull Street Baptist Church downtown. I had the honor of being Alli's maid of honor. The wedding was beautiful and everything went amazingly! Our friend Anna did the photography and did an awesome job!

I encourage you to go here to see some more of the wedding pictures, and also to check out the rest of Anna's site and see her other amazing photography!

Abortion Awareness

Abort73.com is a comprehensive website with tons of information concerning abortion. You can view current statistics on abortion for the U.S., Canada, U.K., New Zealand, and Australia, as well as the outlook worldwide. You can also view opportunities to help with abortion awareness. Abort73.com helps to educate those who don't know what they should about the truth of the horrors of abortion. If you haven't visited the site before, you should check it out. It's amazingly eye opening.


Click here to see U.S. abortion statistics.
Click here to see U.K. abortion statistics.
Click here for worldwide statistics.
Click here to read the article "A Biblical Mandate to Do Something About Abortion."
Also, click here to see Abort73.com gear. (i.e. pens, bags, t-shirts, flyers, bottles, signs, etc.)

~~ABORT73.COM~~

Chemistry Wordle

I loved chemistry last year so I made a Wordle of it. Click the image to view a much larger version.

More on Old Photographs

Yesterday I posted a few old pictures that I have of my relatives from the early 1900s. What is interesting about these old pictures is that they are so well preserved. I just wanted to share a couple of examples of how they printed pictures then.

The top picture is one of my great-grandma's 6 month pictures from September 1912. As you can see, it is printed on a type of hard decorative cardboard. I have 3 pictures that are printed this way and they are all in much better condition that the ones that are printed on paper. It was common in the early 1900s for people to have formal portraits and such printed on this hard board in order to preserve it.

Another thing that they did was print photographs as postcards so that they could then mail the picture to family or friends easily. Above you can see another picture of my great-grandma (Mary Rosalia Lytle) as a baby with her dad. It was printed on the front of a postcard. You can see the back above. My great-grandmother's mom, Florence, mailed the card to her sister Mary on June 12, 1912. The inscription reads, "Just a glimpse of "Dad" and Mary Jr. --Flor."

Researching my Genealogy

Over the last few years I've become interested in researching my genealogy and finding out who my ancestors were. While researching, I've been able to trace my ancestry back in some cases as far as the late 1500s. I also found, thanks to a list that my great-grandmother had compiled, that I am a direct descendant of John Robinson, who was the pastor to the Pilgrims in Leiden, Holland before they made their voyage on the Mayflower. I've also been able to determine what countries my ancestors immigrated from. For example, on my Mom's side I've found that most of her ancestry is French and Scottish and that they immigrated to Canada in the 1600s. On my Dad's side, I'm predominately English and Irish. They all immigrated to the U.S. much later, around the 1830s.

One of the sites that helped me the most is RootsWeb.com. I've been able to do most of my tracing there. My other sources are simply things compiled by my great-grandma and her brother and other info as told to me by my grandma.

Obviously, the first thing to do is to get as much information as possible from family members because they are more reliable than computer sources. Then you can use computer records. Also, something I've looked into is immigration and military records. As a whole the process is very enlightening. It's fun to see where I've come from and who my ancestors were, even if that is my only connection to them.

The pictures above are pictures that I found when I was helping my grandmother sort out all of her old pictures a couple of years ago. The first two photos show my great-grandmother, Mary Rosalia Lytle Woodard. First, at six months, in September 1912. Next, circa 1915. The final picture shows my great-great grandparents Charles Woodard and Edith Robbins on their wedding day in 1904. It's fascinating, really, to see pictures like this. I really enjoy it.

Seeing Evidence for Creation Outside My Front Door

Although we have had a relatively cold winter here in GA, the weather has finally warmed up enough for our azaleas to bloom:

Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

Genesis 1: 11-13

Here we see God creating these beautiful plants. The flowers really show that God has to have created them and that something so beautiful couldn't have simply evolved from elements. Someone greater has to have shaped them with His hands for them to be so perfect!

The Purpose of Minor Characters in Pride and Prejudice

This is a paper that I wrote for my 2009-2010 AP British Literature class. We just finished reading and discussing Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Now we are reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. The next paper that I post will be discussing some aspect of this novel.

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The Purpose of Minor Characters in Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen’s most famous novel, is filled with many different minor characters. Some seem superfluous, but others bring life to certain scenes and help to advance the plot. The plethora of characters in the novel can be overwhelming at times, but each seems to have a purpose even though it may be minute. Certain plotlines in the story actually revolve around minor characters and the plot could not truly be complete without their influence.

Of the Bennet sisters, two are fairly minor characters. Lydia is not a minor character, as most of volume three revolves around her disgraceful elopement with Mr. Wickham. Kitty and Mary, on the other hand, play much less important parts in the novel. Mary Bennet is the middle sister of the five. She is very sober and spends her time with hobbies that usually only profit herself. She plays the piano with mediocre quality and causes a major scene at Mr. Bingley’s Netherfield Ball when she performs dreadfully and practically refuses to cease. She spends the rest of her time reading from Fordyce’s Sermons. “James Fordyce’s Sermons to Young Women was a popular guidebook on women’s conduct, published in 1767. In his sermons, Fordyce argued that ‘men of the best sense have usually been averse to the thought of marrying a witty female.’”(MyPrideandPrejudice.com) Mary obviously has taken this to heart, as she seems to have no sense of humor whatsoever.

Mary’s purpose in the novel seems to be to contrast her character with that of Lizzy and also, Lydia. Mary is some like Lizzy in the respect that she has intelligence; unlike Lizzy, she doesn’t use it for the bettering of her person. Also, in the book we never truly come to understand is Mary if really good or evil. She takes on the appearance of goodness, contrasting against Lydia, who has no morals. However, she persists in making some disparaging comments about Lydia after she runs away. “Unhappy as the event must be for Lydia, we may draw from it this useful lesson: that loss of virtue in a female is irretrievable -- that one false step involves her in endless ruin -- that her reputation is no less brittle than it is beautiful, -- and that she cannot be too much guarded in her behaviour towards the undeserving of the other sex.” (Austen) Her character also reveals that the parenting on the senior Bennets’ part probably became severely lacking after Elizabeth was born.

The remaining Bennet sister is Kitty, whose role is even more subtle than Mary’s. Kitty is the prime example of a pushover. Although she is two years older than Lydia she shadows her every move. After Lydia runs away it is revealed in a letter from Jane that Kitty knew more about the affair than she had originally let on. Kitty isn’t thought of to be very smart, but she has better qualities that Lydia, the stupidest of the girls. Mr. Bennet seems to realize his error with Lydia and therefore tells Kitty jokingly that she is to be confined to the house for ten years. Kitty, however, isn’t smart enough to get his joke, and, taking him literally, runs away to her room in tears. She generally continues with this demeanor, however, “the closing chapter of the novel says that her personality improves after she begins spending most of her time visiting Jane and Elizabeth after their marriages and being kept away from Lydia.” (Renee)

Kitty’s purpose in the novel seems to be one of the most ambiguous. She is there to show that Lydia often has ruling power over others, even some who are her elders. She also seems to have been included to further show the bad parenting given to her. Most of her scenes don’t further the plot. If they do, it is usually because of Lydia, Lizzy, or another character who is much more important than she. In several of the movie adaptations of the novel, Kitty is either entirely missing or her role is seriously downplayed. In the 2004 movie, Bride and Prejudice, a Bollywood version of the novel, Kitty’s character has been removed totally. In the 2005 version, her character, played by Carey Mulligan, doesn’t do much of anything. Ultimately, Kitty’s overall purpose never seems to be revealed, other than that she adds another sister to the Bennet family.

Mr. and Mrs. Hurst, Charles Bingley’s brother-in-law and sister, are very minor in the book and add almost nothing to the story other than comic relief. We see Mr. Hurst as a drunken man who sits around and sleeps during the day. He adds relief to tense scenes between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth by randomly waking up in the middle of their conversations. Mrs. Hurst plays almost no part at all, other than being there. “His sisters were very anxious for his having an estate of his own; but though he was now established only as a tenant, Miss Bingley was by no means unwilling to preside at his table, nor was Mrs. Hurst, who had married a man of more fashion than fortune, less disposed to consider his house as her home when it suited her.” (Austen) Both of Bingley’s sisters are with him largely because of money, nothing else.

The Lucas family is another set of minor characters to grace the pages of Austen’s novel. They also add some comic relief to the novel. Sir William Lucas is silly and mostly worthless. He has the same awe of Lady Catherine de Bourgh as Mr. Collins, embarrassing his daughter, Charlotte. “In spite of having been at St. James's, Sir William was so completely awed by the grandeur surrounding him, that he had but just courage enough to make a very low bow, and take his seat without saying a word; and his daughter, frightened almost out of her senses, sat on the edge of her chair, not knowing which way to look.” (Austen)

Charlotte Lucas, Sir William’s daughter, was Lizzy’s best friend, and ultimately married the Bennets’ cousin, William Collins. She married him only because she needed a husband for future security. Her view on marriage is actually quite odd. “Charlotte, in a speech Elizabeth cannot believe to be serious, suggests that ‘In nine cases out of ten, a woman had better shew more affection than she feels.’” (Adams) She also tells Lizzy that “Happiness in marriage is entirely a matter of chance.”

Charlotte is one of the characters in the novel who is hard to classify. Her role in the eventual marriage of Mr. Darcy and Lizzy is huge, so in that respect she cannot be classified as a minor character. If Charlotte hadn’t married Mr. Collins, Lizzy would never have gone to visit them. If she hadn’t gone to see the Collins, she would never have seen Mr. Darcy again or have had him initially propose to her. She also would never have found out the truth about Jane and Mr. Bingley or that of Mr. Wickham. In other respects, though, Charlotte is a minor character. She is largely absent from the second half of the novel. She reappears briefly near the end, but not to any great extent.

The only other member of the Lucas family that stands out is Maria, Charlotte’s little sister. She is friends with Kitty Bennet and she is another filler character, doing nothing to advance the plot. However, one time she is useful is near the end of the book, when Kitty is walking with Lizzy and Mr. Darcy. Kitty begs to go see Maria, thereby leaving Mr. Darcy and Lizzy alone, this resulting in their engagement.

The last important minor characters in Pride and Prejudice are Colonel and Harriet Forster. They only become important at the end of the novel. Colonel Forster is in command of the -----shire militia, and Mr. Wickham’s superior. It is with the Forsters that Lydia goes to Brighton. From Brighton, Lydia makes her escape to elope with George Wickham, leaving behind a note for Harriet. Colonel Forster, although a bit negligent, seems to be a good individual as he sets out immediately to search for them in an attempt to save them from eternal ruin. The Forsters become crucial to the plot in that they are the people who are responsible for Lydia when she elopes.

Although the minor characters in Pride and Prejudice sometimes seem to be unnecessary, they provide life to the story. Kitty and Mary highlight the Bennet’s bad parenting. The Hursts provide comic relief. The Lucas family adds depth to the story, and the Forsters become Lydia’s unknown enablers. Ultimately, they all play fairly important parts in the beautifully crafted novel by Jane Austen.

Works Cited

Adams, Carol J., Douglas Buchanan, and Kelly Gesch. "Pride and Prejudice." Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companion to Jane Austen (Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companions). New York: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2008. 5. Print.

Austen, Jane. "Chapter IV." Pride and Prejudice (Oxford World's Classics). New ed. New York: Oxford University Press, USA, 2004. 11. Print.

Austen, Jane. "Chapter XLVII." Pride and Prejudice (Oxford World's Classics). New ed. New York: Oxford University Press, USA, 2004. 219. Print.

Austen, Jane. "Chapter XXIX." Pride and Prejudice (Oxford World's Classics). New ed. New York: Oxford University Press, USA, 2004. 124-125. Print.

"Fordyce’s Sermons; Mr Collins’ Favorite Book - My Pride and Prejudice ." My Pride and Prejudice . N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2010. .

Renee, Melissa . "Story and History: Catherine "Kitty" Bennet, Basic Character Information." Story and History. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2010. .

MLA formatting by BibMe.org.

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All Material Copyright 2010 Caroline Carpenter. Please do not copy of reproduce material without permission from me or a link to my blog. Thanks!

Macbeth: Fact or Fiction?

(I'll be posting several different writing assignments that I completed for my British Lit class. To see the original explanatory post, click here.)

I wrote the following paper for my British Lit class. It highlights the differences between the play Macbeth and the actual Scottish history. Hope you enjoy!

To read a synopsis of the play first, click here.

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William Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is considered by some to be one of his greatest works, written at the high point of his career. Although Macbeth has some basis in reality, Shakespeare didn’t seem to care about historical truth when he composed his play. “Shakespeare's Macbeth bears little resemblance to the real 11th century Scottish king,” says the BBC on their website about historic figures. (“Macbeth”) Most of the characters were real characters in the history of Scotland. Duncan and Macbeth were really kings of Scotland, and Malcolm and Donalbain were Duncan’s sons. That is where most of the realities end.

The real Duncan, who would have been known as Donnchad mac Crínáin, reigned from 1034 to 1040, when he was killed by Macbeth. He became king after the reign of Malcolm and was “a much weaker character than Malcolm and a terrible leader,” according to Historic-UK.com. (“Duncan and MacBeth”) Duncan was, however, killed by Macbeth, although not in the way described in the play at all. Shakespeare has Macbeth plot to kill Duncan, mostly at the great suggestion of his wife. In reality, Duncan was killed by Macbeth at the Battle of Northumbria in 1040.

Shakespeare depicts Macbeth as having killed Duncan while he was a guest at Macbeth’s own home. In the play, Macbeth questions his choice of killing his friend, who has just honored him, but is pushed forward in the deed by his wife, Lady Macbeth. There is really no historical precedent to show that Lady Macbeth encouraged her husband in any way. While there is historical record of Macbeth’s wife—her name was most likely Gruoch—there is no indication that she had anything whatsoever to do with the murder of the king. The truth is that Macbeth killed his own king during a battle in 1040. If he did conspire with anyone, all of the evidence points to his cousin the Earl of Orkney who may have helped Macbeth commit the murder.

Shakespeare also messed with the ages of many of the characters in his play. Duncan is portrayed as an elderly man, when in reality it is much more likely that he was a fairly young man. As a result, Duncan’s sons, Malcolm and Donalbain, were most likely young boys, not the men that they are in Shakespeare’s tale.

Banquo is portrayed as a very upright and noble character in Shakespeare’s Macbeth. As Macbeth’s best friend it seems that Macbeth would have had pity on him, but that was not to be. Banquo is viciously murdered by mercenaries hired by Macbeth. The truth of Banquo’s existence can be questioned. It is not known if Banquo was a real person, or if he is just a legendary character. At Shakespeare’s time it was thought that the current line of kings, the Stuarts, was descended from Banquo. As a result of this, Shakespeare would have had to portray Banquo in a good light, or else it would have been considered an insult to the king, James I. The truth of the real Banquo’s character, if he in fact existed, is then left unknown.

The character of Macduff is purely fictitious. Shakespeare may have invented him in order to have a good character kill Macbeth. Macbeth was instead killed in a battle in 1057 by Duncan’s son Malcolm. Lady Macduff and her son are also, consequently, figments of Shakespeare’s imagination. Since they weren’t real, Macbeth could not possibly have ordered their deaths either.

At the end of the play the future of Scotland is left open. The witches from the play Macbeth imply that Banquo’s son, Fleance, will be king, in Act I, Scene III, line 67, when they say, “Thou shall get kings, though thou be none.” This, of course, never happened since the existence of Banquo, and therefore Fleance, is questioned.

In 1045, Duncan’s father Crinan tried to restore his grandson’s throne but was defeated and killed by Macbeth. Macbeth’s reign was also challenged in 1054 by Siward, the Earl of Northumbria, who is also a character in Shakespeare’s play. When Macbeth died he was succeeded by his stepson Lulach. Lulach was referred to as “simple- minded” and “foolish” (“Lulach”). His reign only lasted seven months. It ended when he was killed by Duncan’s son Malcolm in early 1058. Malcolm then finally became king. He reigned until 1093, when he was succeeded by his brother Donalbain, or Duncan II.

It remains unclear why Shakepeare chose to set a mostly fictitious story within the realm of true events. Shakespeare’s play is certainly more exciting and violent than real life, although the actual account seems almost as bloody and disturbing. Shakespeare also included the characters of the witches and their master Hecate, possibly to give the play its supernatural and weird feel. Even though Macbeth is a great literary work, it is almost entirely incorrect when it comes to the comparison with real life.

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Works Cited

“Duncan and MacBeth”, October 29, 2009, http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/Scotland-History/DuncanandMacbeth.htm

“Lulach,” Ocotber 28, 2009, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lulach

“Macbeth,” Ocotber, 29, 2009, www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/macbeth.shtml

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Above material © 2010 Caroline Carpenter. Please do not copy or re-post without permission or a link to my blog.

Blogging on British Lit

This year I've been taking a AP British Literature class though our homeschool co-op. The class is taught by my mom and I'm having lots of fun! We've read though lots of different things. I'll name a few and whether or not I liked it:

Beowulf (excerpt)(Liked)

Chacuer's Canterbury Tales (or part of it) (Liked)

Shakespeare's Macbeth and some sonnets (Liked)

Milton's Paradise Lost (excerpt) (Utterly Despised)

Obviously we have read a lot more than that.......but those are just a few examples. We just finished up the Romantic Poets and will soon be starting Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. My favorite of the Romantic poets was George Gordon, Lord Byron. Samuel Taylor Coleridge was my second, but although a good poet, he's just to weird for me.

I'll be posting some of the writing assignments that I've done so you can read them and tell me what you think.

The first thing that I'm going to post is a paper that I did comparing the play Macbeth to the actual Scottish history. I'm also going to post a sonnet explication of Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 and a poem analysis of Byron's The Destruction of Sennacherib.

The Uncommon

As you all know, I'm a member of the forums over at The Rebelution. Through these forums I met Ariel, who has started her own site for Christian teens. It is called the Uncommon and it is an internet magazine, or a web-zine, as we call it. The articles are posted in a forum format. The website went live on January 1st. Currently there are 19 members. Only 2 of them are guys, I think, and the site is definitely not just for girls, so it would be great if we had some other teen guys come over and join. The object of the Uncommon is to encourage other Christian teens to be uncommon in the eyes of the world by writing articles highlighting the big things that other Christian teens are doing in the world for the glory of God.

So please head over and check it out! Hope you enjoy it!