Does anyone remember how Gumby used to be able to ride his bike straight into the cover of a book and instantly be in the story? That's exactly what I wish I could do. Reading about the adventure of the Puritans sailing to what becomes the United States and Anne Bradstreet's experience, as awful as it may have been, makes me really really really wish I could see it and feel it. The most exciting part of reading a book is putting myself in it, and getting genuinely caught up in the story. I think that our readings are a Gumby-like experience, since we do have to put ourselves in the story to understand it, but I think it would be truly awesome to just jump right into the pages and live amongst its characters. One major positive effect of being able to jump into the story is that I would be able to form a new and different account of what happened- so that the story of the every day person, woman and child could be revealed...
I think what fascinates me most about the Anne Bradstreet reading is that it's completely different from what I previously knew about the Puritan conquest of the new world. I always thought that the Puritans came here in search of
freedom when really they thought freedom was contrary to fulfilling God's will. There was no freedom to be anything other than a devout and pious Puritan. Besides learning about the actual Puritan mindset I am also excited to learn about the origins of my own country! It is interesting to think about the American idea of manifest destiny and conquering land and capitalism... and where these tendencies originated.
My fantasy, Gumby stuck on books...
On a completely different note- I saw an advert for the Joffrey Ballet performing Othello. I would be interested in seeing this if anyone else would be interested also.
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