Friday, May 25, 2012

Anne's Imagination and Social Proof

One thing I have noticed about Anne's devoted fans, is that they tend to identify with her crazy imagination. This obviously leads to a huge group of people that are daydreamers. People who live in fantasy of worlds of their own. People who are inspired one moment, and then move on to the next thing they can't live without in the next. Exactly like Anne. I know this, because I am just like her. However, this daydream-y attitude does NOT lead to a lot of feedback with social proof. Ok. Maybe I am exaggerating. But I have had difficulty getting people to respond. This does not mean that their ideas and numerous sources haven't inspired me and my theories though.
So far I have been contacting people and posting questions about Anne of Green Gables on facebook, with a little feedback. It seems everyone "likes" my ideas, but it has been difficult engaging any one person in a lengthy conversation about this topic. However, I have had a little more success by commenting on fan reviews of Anne of Green Gables on Goodreads. The fans there have many interesting ideas about Anne's character. 
The best resource I have found has been the many, many blogs dedicated not only to Anne of Green Gables, but also to the topic of imagination within the blogging atmosphere. Their ideas have influenced my own theories about my topic of choice. I have emailed Janga, The Anne of Green Gables and L.M. Montgomery Lexicon, and Darcy Cowan, directly about the ideas they blog about, and am hoping for some responses!
Right now I am working up the courage to contact some experts on the topic. They are:

  • Paul W. Martin- An English Professor who teaches Canadian Literature with an emphasis on women characters and their roles throughout their books. 
  • J.T Barbarese- An English Professor who teaches Anne of Green Gables as part of a romantic modern literature class. 
  • Nancy McCabe- Is a Professor and a Director of a writing program. She also writes literary reviews and articles. 
  • Victoria Nash- An enthusiastic blogger who writes about Anne of Green Gables and imagination vs reality. 

While Social proof has been difficult, it definitely has been a rewarding learning experience. The little feedback I have had among family, friends, and social networks has helped me narrow down my ideas. When I first began thinking about topics for my paper, I had too many ideas whirling around in my head. It wasn't until I was inspired by the many blogs and syllabus (Syllabi?) that I finally discovered what interested me within the many topics of Anne of Green Gables. 

Monday, May 21, 2012

The Sources behind Anne of Green Gables Theory


Tweethis Statement: Anne, from Anne of Green gables suffers from a conflict between her imagination and the real world. Today’s blogging atmosphere naturally allows imagination to soar, but does this help or hurt our perceptions of reality?

The Lion and the Unicorn 34 (2010) 125-147 c. The John Hopkins University Press
http://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0&type=summary&url=/journals/lion_and_the_unicorn/v034/34.2.miller.pdf 
This is a scholarly monograph found through Project MUSE. This article asserts that the gothic imagination of character contrasts with reality in order to socially instruct the characters on discipline of their imaginations. Once the imagination is done away with, they will be ready for their own real life romances. This fits perfectly with my idea that imagination and wanting to project a certain image while blogging can hold you back from the real world.

Gates, Charlene E. “Image, Imagination, and Initiation: Teaching as a Rite of Passage.”
         Children’s Literature in Education 20.3 (1989): 165-173
          http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF01126458
This is a scholarly article in a journal found through google scholar. Gates argues that the combination of image and imagination leads to a more satisfying result than reality. This made me think about how people combine what they want people to think and the truth about the themselves when blogging in order to create something more interesting.

Solis-Gadea, Hecter Raul. “The New Sociological Imagination: Facing the Challenges of a New Millennium.”
          International Journal of Politics, Culture and Society 18.3-4 (2005):113-122
http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/20059678?searchUrl=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dimagination%2Band%2Btechnology%26gw%3Djtx%26acc%3Don%26prq%3D%2528imagination%2529%26Search%3DSearch%26hp%3D25%26wc%3Don&Search=yes&uid=3739928&uid=2&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=47699020948347 
This scholarly article, found through a search found by my cohorts on JSTOR, talks about sociological imagination as a way of facing intellectual challenges in present times. This helped me think of how imagination and learning go hand in hand with Anne’s character.

"Force of Imagination." The Dublin Penny Journal , Vol 3, No. 144 (1835), p. 319
http://www.jstor.org/stable/30003722?&Search=yes&searchText=imagination&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoAdvancedSearch%3Fq0%3Dimagination%26f0%3Dall%26c1%3DAND%26q1%3D%26f1%3Dall%26acc%3Don%26wc%3Don%26Search%3DSearch%26sd%3D%26ed%3D%26la%3D%26jo%3D&prevSearch=&item=12&ttl=19644&returnArticleService=showFullText
This scholarly journal article, found through JSTOR, relates a science experiment on the force of imagination. This made me think of blogging as a way to imagine that our lives are better. The force of imagination can make real things fall into place. Almost like the concept of "fake it till you make it." Anne was always trying to imagine the way things should be, and many of her dreams came true.

Montgomery, L.M., and Cecily Margaret Devereux. Anne of Green Gables. Peterborough,
         Ont.:Broadview, 2004. Print.
http://books.google.com/books?id=9kpgvRjMlNMC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
This is a scholarly edition of my primary text, and I found it through a recommendation on an article found on JSTOR. The commentary in this book suggest that imagination makes people individuals, instead of conformists. This made me think of all the blogs that are all the say format and are just part of the masses. They aren't extraordinary. Do blogs require an imaginative twist to make them unique?

"An Experimental Study of Imagination." The American Journal of Psychology, Vol. 21, No. 3(Jul., 1910),                      
     pp. 422-452.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/1413350?seq=2&Search=yes&searchText=imagination&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoAdvancedSearch%3Fq0%3Dimagination%26f0%3Dall%26c1%3DAND%26q1%3D%26f1%3Dall%26acc%3Don%26wc%3Don%26Search%3DSearch%26sd%3D%26ed%3D%26la%3D%26jo%3D&prevSearch=&item=21&ttl=19644&returnArticleService=showFullText&resultsServiceName=null
This is from a scholarly article from a journal found on JSTOR. This article is a scientific study of imaginations. It defines imagination as more than the ability to distort facts or the ability to live in a colored world rather than the "gray world of reality." It also means to see things with a rosy light, or to entice a feeling of sympathy. This helped me to see Anne's character in a new light, and helped define exactly what imagination was.

Rubio, Mary. "Satire, Realism, and Imagination in Anne of Green Gables." University of Winnipeg. c.2008.  http://ccl-lcj.ca/index.php/ccl-lcj/article/viewArticle/1213
This is a scholarly article found through google scholar. It was written about the imagination in Anne of Green Gables and compares it to the realism of life. It says imagination is romanticized, but that it happens in a way that shows the real event. This way, you see exactly what Anne's point of view is. This fits with my thesis, because it shows me that while some imaginative blogging might not be realistic, it could certainly show exactly what the writer's real point of view is.

Gammel, Irene. Looking for Anne of Green Gables: The Story of L.M. Montgomery and her Literary
           Classic. Macmillan. 2008. Print.
http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=8OL_VpTa7tEC&oi=fnd&pg=PA13&dq=anne+of+green+gables+and+imagination&ots=el83RJ9xn0&sig=pS5OEczbfR2onrzXPgZBjHgOLzs#v=onepage&q=anne%20of%20green%20gables%20and%20imagination&f=false
This is a book found on google scholar. It is a literary analysis of Anne of Green Gables, as well as the author. In the prologue, it points out the quote where Anne is saying that what she can imagine about herself is much more interesting that what she knows about herself. This fits with the idea in my thesis that people embellish their lives while blogging in order to seem more interesting. The idea of self protection and perception is more important than reality.

While this research experience was challenging, it helped a lot with developing my ideas. When I began, I had a very basic idea about the subject I wanted to write about. After looking at all the articles and journals about my topic, it helped me think more in depth about my theories, and exactly what direction I want to take my paper. It was nice to get back to my roots and research books and article rather than websites, but I do think that the websites will add a lot to my ideas as well. I think this will end up being the perfect mix of sources, but I am glad to finally have the bibliography finished, as citing sources is time consuming!!!