Alexandra's Terror with a Human Face Blog

Seraphima’s Extraordinary Adventure: A Christian Viewpoint to Totalitarian Resistance Alexandra Strapko With tears in her eyes, listening to the booming voices of her peer’s yell “God’s not real!” echo throughout the large ballroom of the orphanage, Seraphima could feel the weight of evil on her shoulders begin to tear down her faith. In the next… Continue reading Final Draft Paper #2

After reading Part III of The Power and the Glory chapter 4 stood out to me the most in regard to the lack of identity and ownership over ones actions due to fear. The priest had been captured by the lieutenant and was waiting in jail for the next day when he was to be… Continue reading Blog 10

Seraphima’s Extraordinary Adventure: A Christian Viewpoint to Totalitarian Resistance Alexandra Strapko With tears in her eyes, listening to the booming voices of her peer’s yell “God’s not real!” echo throughout the large ballroom of the orphanage, Seraphima could feel the weight of evil on her shoulders begin to tear down her faith. In the next… Continue reading First 2-Paragraph Draft Final Paper

From reading The Power and the Glory Part I chapters 1-4 there was one specific chapter that really stuck out to me in regards to totalitarian culture and how it is portrayed through fictional story telling. In chapter 2 of this section of the book on page 31 where Padre Jose is at odds with… Continue reading Blog 9

After hearing what the doctors had to say about the effects of COVID-19 on the public and the actions that were taken, both good and bad, it is evident that there was some misinformation spread in regards to the proper restrictions and guidelines relayed to the public by so-called experts. It was encouraging to hear… Continue reading COVID-19 Talk Reflection & Connection

Seraphima’s unwillingness to renounce God and say that he does not exist in front of her peers shows her tenacity to her faith in opposition to totalitarianism and communism, solidifying her identity as an Orthodox Christian. (51:25) Rita’s guilt after she tells the headmistress that Seraphima believes in God and the housekeeper’s response is that… Continue reading Planning Memo for Paper #2

Totalitarianism deals with both psychological and spiritual problems within a person or people as a collective. Solzhenitsyn brings up several points within his argument to solidify that there are aspects of both psychological degradation but also spiritual uplifting during times of extreme struggle as those who were forced into the camps experienced. He begins Part… Continue reading Blog 8

One key aspect of chapter 3 from Stalin’s War is United States willingness to forgive debts and provide loans to the Soviet Union in return for their willingness to negotiate a deal to repay their old debts. Stalin manipulated Roosevelt into recognizing Russia and providing them loans for their Tsarist history and claimed that Communism… Continue reading Blog 7

1984: The Totalitarian Aspect of Isolationism and its Impact on Relationship Building Alexandra Strapko             The sterile cage was closing in, the ravenous creatures scraping at the metal rungs, craving the smell of any semblance of fresh meat; he anticipated the sour smell of their breath and the cold wire against his cheek as the… Continue reading Mid-Semester Paper #1

In part I chapter 3 of Demons, Dostoyevsky brings in an interesting analogy comparing pain and fright with a boulder looming over ones head. This scene in particular is a conversation between Mr. Kirillov and the narrator, whom we do not know they’re name. Mr. Kirillov makes the claim that suicides have gone down in… Continue reading Blog 6