Please post your working essay concept. Please do not create a "thesis," yet. I would also revisit your blog responses; there are brilliant insights there!
Compose a fat paragraph, detailing your insights on the topic. What do you want to write about? Which prompt(s) will help you achieve your objective? What point(s) do you hope to make or explore? Which short stories will you use? How will you implement the documentary? What other films, novels, could help you in your quest? Remember, this is a working draft, so do not hold back.
At this juncture, do not worry about commenting on other's ideas in the blog space. We will have time to do that as a class on Thursday.
I look forward to your responses.
James Baldwin challenged centuries-old social hierarchies and blatant injustices, pressuring the white, American public to reconsider their perspective of African Americans. Alongside Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., Baldwin urged and plead that “I Am Not Your Negro.” American is centered around white people; “Racism is as American as cherry pie.”As Baldwin eloquently states, “it is entirely up to the American people whether or not they’re going to face and deal with and embrace this stranger whom they relied on so long.” In this essay, I aim to address the “David and Goliath” endeavor embarked by James Baldwin through his fictional works, the documentary, and the essay of Toni Morrison. Therefore, I chose the prompt about the conflict created when the will of an individual opposes the will of the majority.
ReplyDeleteIn the documentary, James Baldwin appeals to logic as he tools with reason and emotions. When an interviewer questions his notion of white versus black, Baldwin respond by clarifying that “the question the white population of this country has got to ask itself — North and South...for a Negro, there’s no difference between the North and South. There’s just a difference in the way they castrate you. But the fact of the castration is the American fact. If I’m not a nigger here and you invented him, you, the white people, invented him, then you’ve got to find out why.” Also, his relationships with other civil rights leaders like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr are discussed. Though James Baldwin used essays and writing as a means to protest, King used peaceful marches, and Malcolm X ushered violence, they all had a common value, a common idea; if you are white in America and you are not defending African Americans, then you are supporting white supremacy and the continual suffocation of basic human rights.
In Baldwin’s fictional works, “Going to Meet the Man” and “Sonny’s Blues,” he discusses white American from two perspectives; from the eyes of a white, racist police officer and an innocent, black school teacher. The sheriff feels his job is to protect “white people from the niggers and the niggers from themselves” and that “it wasn’t his fault if the niggers had taken it into their heads to fight against God and go against the rules of the Bible…!” Conversely, Sonny, an African American boy struggling with the law, finds refuge in a jazz club. The stark contrast between these works illustrate the natural tendencies of a subconscious racism while highlighting the humanistic importance of supporting people of color in America.
Toni Morrison’s purpose of writing the short story, “Recitatif,” was to confuse her readers. She intentionally did not reveal the races of her characters, rather forcing the audience to use their racial biases and form their own conclusions. However, it is impossible to use a “single story” to form an accurate picture of a character. This story can be helpful in connecting James Baldwin’s movement with the current Black Live Matter movement and appealing to a more contemporary, younger audience.
I want to explore the idea that what you are exposed to and what your surrounded by influence/impact one's life. Specifically, using “Going to Meet the Man” as my primary example, revealing how one’s upbringing shapes the morals and values they will possess in the future. Before the main part of the story, we see how Jesse has already been introduced to racism, as the neighborhood/environment in which he lives in already exhibits clear racism. Furthermore, the events that take place later seem to confirm that the way in which he was brought up and the society in which he was surrounded by created who he grew up to be. It is evident the influence his parents had, as after Jesse had witnessed the torture to the Black man, he felt as though his father “had revealed to him a great secret which would be the key to his life forever.” This moment allowed him to believe that this act of cruelty was normal. Along with his parents, society itself played a large role in defining his character. It is clear that, since the society around him was surrounded in racism, that Jesse believes this to be normal and he follows after what he sees around him. By growing up in a racist society, Jesse believes that these are the standard of the world; he does not know how unjust and corrupted the society around him truly is. This story is a great example to segway into the idea of how racism is still carried into our world today, as it is something that is taught and carried from generation to generation.
ReplyDelete“I Am Not Your Negro,” is a great vehicle to reflect back onto our society today and where we see this same idea play out in a broader lense. I also would like to try to incorporate the idea that during this time when racism was most prevalent, many people bought into what was around them; their morals and values were lost because of the racist society around them, speaking to the idea that our surroundings do shape the people we become. It is important to question, how do we work towards a society where racism is no longer an issue? Baldwin stated, “the truth is that this country does not know what to do with its Black population" and to some extent, we still see this prevail in our society today. In working towards a more equal society, we must not forget the past. If we pretend racism was a thing of the past, we disrespect and dishonor those who struggled and fought tirelessly. Instead, We must acknowledge the suffering that occurred, honor those who fought for their rights, and teach the next generation to learn from our country’s past mistakes. This idea is one Baldwin touches upon greatly, as he not only honors three prominent figures, Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr, but also calls for us to keep fighting against racism in today’s society.
Susan Matteucci
ReplyDeleteI am going to write my essay around the 1970 prompt; “choose a character from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you (a) briefly describe the standards of the fictional society in which the character exists and (b) show how the character is affected by and responds to those standards”. First, I want to include Sonny’s environment. Sonny wanted to leave home because he wanted to get away from drugs. The standards in the society of his school were to be cool and do drugs. His way of dealing with it was to escape, “the reason [he] wanted to leave Harlem so bad was to get away from drugs. And then, when [he] ran away, that’s what [he] was running from, really”. However, there was another part of Harlem that held him to different standards. The Jazz club was filled with sharply dressed men who looked like him. There, Sonny had to be open, play his soul out on the piano. The place helped him come to terms with his own failures and do better. In “Going to Meet the Man” Jesse is held to another standard. Jesse’s mother and father take him to a picnic. His father “sat Jesse down on his shoulders” and they watched with excitement as a black man was hung over a fire and slowly cut apart and killed. Jesse’s parents were excited by this ritual, his mother’s “eyes were very bright, her mouth open: she looked more beautiful than he had ever seen her”. Jesse was held to these standards; he was supposed to enjoy torturing black people. Jesse conformed to these standards, but he did start off questioning them. He thought, when he first saw the black man, “what did he do? What the man do?”. Later into the beating, Jesse “began to feel a joy that he had never felt before” (10). He became what his parents were and what the rest of those white people were, he “watched the hanging, gleaming body, the most beautiful and terrible object he had ever seen till now” (10). Jesse conformed to the evil around him, and in his adult life he became that evil by raping black women and beating up a young black man with the same excitement he had felt as a boy. Before the camp fire, however, he had had a black friend. A little boy named Otis. Jesse, before the picnic, usually got confused about race and “had grown accustomed, for the solutions of such mysteries, to go to Otis” (9). Jesse, if he had kept going to Otis for answers, might have been able to resist the constraints of his societies standards. After the picnic, however, he was lost. In “Recitatif” Twyla and Roberta struggle against the standard of their different societies. There are times when they fail. For example, when they meet at Twyla’s work when they were both teenagers. Roberta is cold and shrugs her off. Years later, when they meet again Roberta confesses that she was trying to conform to the standards of her peers; “you know how it was back then, black, white”. Later on in life, they meet again. They protest on different sides of desegregating schools. Their societies pushed them against each other. At the end of the story, both become conscious of what they had done, and manage to go against the pressures their societies put on them and reconcile. In the documentary, I want to talk about James Baldwin’s struggle with speaking out. Society tells black men and women to be quiet. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X were both killed because they spoke their minds. James Baldwin put himself into a lot of danger, actually moving to France because he was so afraid. He kept fighting, though, and helped the country. I also wanted to touch upon “Raisin in the Sun”. I need to familiarize myself on the names, but when the white man came to bribe them to move out of their neighborhood it showed the standards of their world. Black people and white people were not supposed to live on the same street. The family, however, broke free of those standards and moved anyway. I am so sorry this is so long, but these will be my main points for the essay.
The 1976, 2002, and 2012 prompts can help me to achieve my objective. For the 1976 prompt, it can relate to the fact that people of color have felt out of place in society due to the discrimination. Through this, they are opposed to their society in the sense that America has shown prejudice towards black people for a long time. For example, in the documentary, James Baldwin does not say that he hates white people. He think it would be destructive to feel this way about all white people. In this way, he is very conflicted because he has been discriminated by white people but he knows that he would be bad to generalize and say that all white people are evil. In the 2002 prompt, I am reminded how in Going to Meet the Man, the main character was friends with a black person when he was young. The prompt discusses how a character in the novel gives the readers trouble because he does not identify as purely evil or purely good. I see this dilemma with Jesse in which I would not say that he is purely evil. Because of his family and his surroundings, he later discriminated against black people and watched a lynching. This lynching was horrifying yet he felt a sense of pride when looking at his dad. Because of his upbringing, I cannot say that is evil despite the terrible things that he participates in. The 2012 prompt mentions how influential a geographical location can be. This again, makes me think of Going to Meet the Man because Jesse’s surroundings influenced the person that he turned into. He was a sheriff in the deep south who was surrounded by racist ideals. This shaped him into the man that he became.
ReplyDeleteI think the 1976 prompt or the 2012 prompt would both work with my idea of exploring the black perspective from the documentary and then film from the past and present and the issue of representation in films.There is clear opposition that white men forced upon the black people throughout their lives and working on how to reflect the perspective of each group on all spectrums of the matter of race. In the documentary it talked about tv shows that were seen and how James Baldwin thought the white female actor was beautiful and then saw a beautiful black women and thought that they looked so similar. This was a really stand out part of the documentary that made me want to look at film because it was an enormous aspect of our culture and has become an even bigger concept today. The part that stood out to me the most was when Baldwin said “It comes as a great shock to see Gary Cooper killing off the Indians, and although you are rooting for Gary Cooper, that the Indians are you.”, this quote made me step back and think about the power of film and how Baldwin as a child didn’t yet completely understand the racism that his country was built on so when he saw Gary Cooper he just assumed it was the good guy Also, in the documentary it showed the huge issue of representation in media and how even in film racism was built into all aspects of movies, and tv shows. Even looking at how today this is a major issue and how race in films has changed (or hasn’t changed) and the new issues that have grown from it today.
ReplyDeleteI would be interested in choosing the 2012 prompt which asks to choose a novel or play in which cultural, physical, or geographical surroundings shape psychological or moral traits in a character. I believe that Charles' Baldwin experience in France verses his treatment in America share different insight. s on different cultures approach with race. He was less excluded in France while in America his race was a constant thought. This comparison in terms of differing environments in similar to the short story "Recitif" where we have to young girls who have contrasting skin colors. Although they are both completely aware of their differences it is not until they leave the orphanage that the culture differences is striking. Society forces them to become complacent and assume the roles given. Their relationships and outlooks towards one another changes drastically in their time outside the orphanage.
ReplyDeleteAfter revisiting the provided works I noticed a pattern that repeatedly caught my attention. The trend of oblivion appeared evident in the narratives Recitatif, Going to Meet the Man, and I Am Not Your Negro. I would like to discover the relationship between oblivion and it’s potentially dangerous influence towards our actions— a small concept that is actually a major driving force in White Americans behind Black oppression. In Recitatif, there was a particular moment that stuck out to me after initially reading it, “"Listen to me. I really did think she was black. I didn't make that up. I really thought so… And you were right. We didn't kick her… But, well, I wanted to. I really wanted them to hurt her… It was just that I wanted to do it so bad that day-wanting to is doing it.” I feel that this quote accurately exemplifies human nature and that this idea and thinking is parallel to the voice in White America regarding Black Oppression— I want to explore the truth and hypothesize how things came to be, and whether Whites are/have been oblivious to the truth or if there is a good enough reason for oppression. Do White people even know why/remember their reason for hate? Are they just “going along with it” cause everyone else did? Or because they wanted to keep hating … to hate? Why did Whites create “niggers?” Is this question left unanswered because even they don’t know? These patterns of oblivion are prevalent throughout Going to Meet the Man in a White perspective. I want to utilize this narrative to demonstrate this claim of oblivion, using Jesse as an example to represent the majority of Whites. Were most of them born into this oppressing “belief,” or “idea” about Blacks? Jesse never got closure growing up, and it is terrifying to wrap our minds around the reality that some still stand behind the “mystery” of White justification for Black oppression today. Lastly, I believe that the closing line from Baldwin’s I Am Not Your Negro, poses a staggering question which pulls together my essential question, “If I'm not the nigger here, and if you invented him, you the white people invented him, then you have to find out why. And the future of the country depends on that. Whether or not it is able to ask that question.” Baldwin emphasizes how White people must face their Nation’s past in order to move forward, and explicitly states that questions are still left unresolved; these unanswered questions imply oblivion. I hope that after looking more closely with these works I will be able to formulate a strong approach with both race’s perspectives, voice, and patterns.
ReplyDeleteFor my essay, I was thinking I want to be writing about the nature of racism and how it can develop in people. I do not believe anyone is born a racist or a bigot and I think the stories we have read in class make a similar claim and can be used as evidence. This concept is sort of a continuation of the blog post I had written in response to the Baldwin stories but I hope to expand on the idea. I think very often, racism is learned by children at a young age when they grow up around it. Later, they pass it off to the next generation and the process goes on. This pattern is certainly highlighted in the story “Going to Meet the Man” by James Baldwin in which the main character is shown as a child inheriting racist tendencies from his father and the general community. I also think “Recitatif” by Toni Morrison would be a good piece to take material from because it features two young characters and how they learn process the concept of race together. Their beliefs and feelings are shaped by the people and events around them. The 1968 and the 1988 essay prompts will help me because they deal with how the brain processes the world. While I know I want to write the essay along these lines, I’m not sure exactly what question I should be seeking to answer or give my opinion on. If anyone has an idea for a specific prompt I could guide my essay with, I would love to hear it. Another question I have, off the top of my head I can’t think off any outside stories or films I could tie into my essay relating to this topic so if anyone has any ideas to that effect I would be interested.
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ReplyDeleteI believe I would like to explore the idea of home being both a physical and emotional place (2010 prompt). The idea of home is more complex than just the location where people grow up. It is a place that they are trying to escape, hold on to, change, and preserve all at once. Within America, everyone has small and large homes they live in from their houses to people to churches to schools. This is seen in “I Am Not Your Negro” where people think of both communities of specific races as well as specific people as home. People often want to leave home and improve their quality of life, just as Twyla in “Recitatif” wants to leave St. Bonny’s. As she grows away from St. Bonny’s she finds the stories and people she met there stay with her, memories she values and analyzes deeply. Twyla even dreams about the orchard before she meets Roberta again years later. Since the memories are from so long ago, sometimes it becomes unclear what the definite true stories were. This means each person has their own truth and ties to St. Bonny’s and especially to Maggie. As Twyla realizes that her and Roberta’s recollections are so different about the home they shared, Twyla doesn’t want to change her thinking, instead preserving her ideas for herself. Roberta, who was a close companion on a soulful level was a home for Twyla and vice versa during their time living together. Even though they both changed greatly throughout the story, they continued to share an indestructible bond through their thoughts, making them homes for each other. In “Sonny’s Blues” home is also more than just Harlem. Home is a sanctuary where the brothers can go back to no matter how badly they’ve messed up. They find this home in their passions as well as in each other. Sonny loves music and has a talent for it. Through his music, he is able to rekindle and complete the last bits of the home between himself and his brother. This idea of stability through all situations makes home an emotional state as well as physical location not only for characters in books, but real people.
ReplyDeleteI’m very drawn to the two prompts about conformity and cruelty, especially within “Going to Meet the Man”. It’s such a packed story that I think the two levels of analysis would be interesting. One one level, there is the molding of a mini-racist by the world around him, which he chooses not to question; on another there's a sense of abuse and hostility within his own living situation which, while being a different conversation than that which was originally posed, is still an interesting psychological interpretation of the story. Majorly, I want to delve into this other side of racism-- the side that created and forged it into a weapon. Baldwin, in the film, asks the final question of why white people need racism, what it does for them and what they are going to do to solve it. We see so much about racism and the massive terror it creates, in the form of riots and massacres, but I’d like to focus more on the smaller, finer points of it, where we see things like “street calculus” play in. In “Going to Meet the Man,” the racism and terrorism is explicit and unfiltered, but at the same time, there are little things about the story we forget about, for the purpose of seeing the violent issue. The conversation about sexuality and sexual assault in the context of racism is essential to this story where Jesse is talking about raping his wife and picking up black prostitutes as a sort of supplement. We see Jesse growing up with his mother being used in the same way by him father, and, more obviously, the literal castration of a black man as a symbol of black sexuality. We see Jesse forged in cruelty and grow to continue the same cruelty as he fills the role of the dominant and does not question his purpose in that role and what that implied for the non-dominant role. I want to explore the mentality of racism in the context of white people and how it is approached. So often, we look at the problem of racism and, rightfully, point fingers at white people, but the point never really lands in white peoples minds for some reason-- it is this reason and the way that mentality is formed that I’d like to explore, as well as how it is pushed. I think in a lot of white people’s minds they don’t actively attempt to be racist or they may even try to fight racism in their own way but in turn reinforce it. In a way, it ties into that cruelty which forges humanity in the way that it teaches us only what is able to be received. Sure, a white soccer mom may try to fight racism by saying “they're people to,” but really that just plays back into the racism by separating the group in general and assuming they weren’t human until you made them human. I think for many white people, including myself, it’s hard to really look at yourself and think about what you are doing and why. I know I’ve struggled with the idea of fear and to what extent is it rational and to what extent is it taught. Particularly, in Andover, I’ve lived next to Lawrence my whole life and my parents have always talked about it with such disgust as if it’s a resource being squandered, and while they are liberal people they don't really see what they’re saying. On the other hand Lawrence is a hub of drugs and violence causing it to be inherently dangerous, but there is always that ever hanging concept of red lining which has caused the issue in the first place-- a issue forged and executed with explicit racist intentions. I know I’ve felt that fear influence me in that sense, blaming the victim for a problem I, the white person, caused because it’s easier than seeing the dilemma at the core of my own mind. There are so many examples of this in our everyday life that we are just now starting to acknowledge and rectify. How do you see this in your life? Is there a way to solve it? How does this mentality play into our media and culture? How have you participated in it?
ReplyDeleteTo write my essay, I want to use a combination of aspects from the 1976 prompt and the 2010 prompt. I think the idea of “home” is intricate, personal, and extends beyond a physical structure in which we live. What do you call home? Do you love our home? Do you want to run away from home? Do you feel that your home detest you? Why do you keep coming home? DRUGS TO BLUES In “Sonny’s Blues”, Sonny’s home, his comfort, used be drugs. However, he found a new home, jazz music, specifically the piano. In Sonny’s old home, he is not loved, he is looked down upon by his brother. The piano is an escape, like an isolated house on the lake, where Sonny’s brother can admire his new found passions and skill. However, when Sonsyrea Tate says, “You can leave home all you want, but home will never leave you,” does this mean Sonny will ever detach himself from the home that was addiction? This thought makes me want to also include the SINGLE STORY TED TALK. While our home says a lot about us, can it really tell our complete story. I think not. GOING TO MEET THE MAN In the story Baldwin creates a perspective from a white family, and centers around the environment and morality of a young white child. Home could have been continuing his friendship with the young black boy, to think of each others as equals. But then home becomes a picnic, a really disturbing picnic. Seeing the lynching, and watching his parents so proud and glorified by it, builds a sense of superiority and hatred in a once pure heart. If they didn’t have a black women or man to hate, to torture, what do they have? What are they scared of truly facing within themselves? What do they hate so much about themselves, their lives, that they must express racial hatred? Wy do they object their own home? Then in connection with the words of Tate, if racism is home, what is comforting, does racism ever leave? I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO America was Baldwin's home, where he grew up, worked and lived for some time is the home he objects and the home (white America) that objects him. However, when he travels to Paris, there is great admiration and love. So what really is home the place that objects him, but where he rallies, or the place of acception. Today is America’s home and comfort is being colorblind. Not acknowledging black and white not is being complacent in a society where justice still lags far behind and racism still lingers (may be obvious or more hidden). Whether we like it or not, the 50s and 60s were not that long ago and white America can’t disassociate itself themselves from history: slavery, “creating the n word, the KKK, segregation. I am still thinking/looking for a movie, song, poem, ect that can embody or enhance one of the ideas above.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to write something about resistance against society “norms”. I enjoyed reading the novel, 1984, I found it interesting how Winston was standing up against the majority of people in society. That is a common theme which I find very interesting, and the 1976 prompt addresses just that theme. I think the documentary as well as some of the shorter stories work very well in incorporating the theme of being in opposition to one’s society. There are characters who are in the minority, at least in status, who are imposing their will against their majority. African-Americans have been the subject of discrimination for centuries, and they are left out of place in society. Most importantly, in the quest for equality, African-Americans and James Baldwin are left in difficult conflicts. People like Baldwin, and Martin Luther King Jr. did not want to resort to violence, but is it necessary? I will use the short stories as literary examples, and then back it up with the documentary, which shows real-life examples. Through these, are multiple conflictions that are faced that can be analyzed and explored.
ReplyDeleteThe story of “Going to Meet the Man” shows just how cruel and brutal humans can be. Within a couple pages, the main character Jesse is violent, racist, and disturbing, and that’s before the story of the lynching. Baldwin’s telling of the inhumanity of Jesse and his upbringing shed light on the social factors seen in essay prompt from 2015. In a completely different medium, the documentary “I Am Not Your Negro” explores the source and persistence of cruelty and racism. As Baldwin stated in an interview, “I am not a n*****, I am a man, but if you think I’m a n*****, that means you need it. The question you got to ask yourself, the white population of this country has got to ask itself...why”. With this in mind, I want to analyze how not only Jesse’s and his community’s actions stems from racism, but how the dehumanization, the “moral apathy, the death of the heart” from white Americans is the source of such sadism. To fully understand, I want to look into how Jesse’s background, including his family and neighbors, change his view on African Americans. To treat people so horribly, there has to be a detachment from humanity. This can be seen through the shift in language from “him” to “it”, the evolution of Jesse’s emotions, and diction written Baldwin. Although I’m not sure how to incorporate it into the theme, I want to talk about the topic of sexuality and rape culture and how it contributes to the story as well. We did not discuss the sexual pleasure Jessie had both on the first page and in the jail cell, and I want to have a better understanding of why Baldwin included it. However, I’m unsure of how to do that. Any suggestions? Ultimately, I want to try to answer, or at least point in the direction of answering the question that Baldwin poses.
ReplyDelete2010. Form B. “You can leave home all you want, but home will never leave you.”
ReplyDelete—Sonsyrea Tate
The idea that home is a place of mind or a dwelling sounds like the relationship between Baldwin and Paris in the documentary; there race relations are "irregular" from the relations seen in the United States vs the relations in Paris.
I wanted to explore the idea of how America’s views of race have progressed over time and impacted the people of today’s generation. I would use the 1995 prompt to show how Baldwin highlights the values of African American people by using characters in his stories who are alienated from that culture. I would also use some of James Baldwin’s stories to show past ideals of society and how race was seen during the 50s and 60s. An example I would use is the narrator from “Sonny’s Blues,” as he became isolated from his brother and his adoration for jazz music, not understanding his views about the world. He assumes that his drug addiction has taken over his life and sees him as all the worst parts of himself. Another story I would examine is “Going to Meet the Man,” as Jesse was raised to think of African American people in a certain light. Not being allowed to form your own ideas on someone blinds you from seeing them from who you really are. I would want to use the “I Am Not Your Negro” documentary to show a better comparison between the past and the present. The progression of violence against African American individuals is a prime example of how some things have still not changed.
ReplyDeleteThis is the prompt I would like to use: 1970. Choose a character from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you (a) briefly describe the standards of the fictional society in which the character exists and (b) show how the character is affected by and responds to those standards. In your essay, do not merely summarize the plot.
ReplyDeleteI think I am going to use this prompt because I really think this brings out the intentions of James Baldwin's especially in “Going to meet the man”
Jessie’s misconceptions of himself have manifested so much so that it is keeping him up at night, leading to him branch and abuse his power
(Black rape culture → Abuse of power → being a cop in America these are both past and present ideas)
Which connects to some present day incidents and music
“This is America” By Childish Gambino
“You grew up” By Oddisee
Leads to deep self-reflection that ends up being a detriment to him
All he remembers is the hatred that was ingrained in him rather than the learn out of it.
“But things changed when his pops got laid off /He blamed my father for the loss of his job/He said immigrants robbed citizens jobs /And I better never set foot again in his yard” (Oddisee).
“As we became adults in a cult called America, he got himself a job as an officer of law/My thoughts got blacker and his views got cracker/There was no way backwards, to the roots at heart” (Oddisee)
I apologize for this being brief, I was mix and matching prompts and attempting to solidify which I would like.