Thursday, April 14, 2011
Glogster Explanation
The word that I have chosen for my glog is violence. From that word, I pictured Jack and his hunter group killing a pig, and blood spurting from its wounds. That is why I chose my background to be red and blood-like. I also chose many key words to deepen the meaning of violence. The definition of violence is the expression of physical force against one or more people. Many times, that results in murder when the line has been pushed too far. When I think about violence, I usually think about shattered glass. That is a symbol for something that has gone wrong. When Jack smashed Piggy's spectacles on the ground, they broke, but that was only the physical part to it. Piggy and Ralph's trust towards Jack and his group are broken, which ultimately results in the splitting of the group. This shows how a little bit of violence can result in a big consequence. The image of the three knives in the bottom-right hand corner represent weapons that are usually used when violence occurs. The fire in the centre of the glogster represents the hate between Ralph and Jack as it is the main object that Ralph and Jack fight about. Ralph would talk about how important the fire is and their hopes of escaping the island while Jack likes to hunt and does not care much about the fire. This can lead to more intense arguments and violence. After reading Lord of the Flies, I have learned that violence can occur anywhere at anytime with anyone, therefore regardless of age and nationality, as long as their is nobody to control a group of people, there will always be violence, which is what's happening in Libya with Gadhafi. Nobody has control over him, and now he is bombing his own people.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Journal #4: Lord of the Flies （summative）
This week, Ms. Caldwell stressed connections greatly, and that is what my group has focused on, especially on Wednesday. That day, we were supposed to make many connections and share it within our group, then write about one main one. In our group, we stated many small connections, such as Lord of the Flies connecting to World War II, but our big main connection was a text to world connection was to the current crisis in Libya. Ghadafi, the leader of Libya for over forty years, created an unfair society for his people, and when they decided to rebel, he started attacking his own people. This is like Lord of the Flies where Jack was the leader of his tribe and he decided not to care about the fire and hunted only. When Ralph and Piggy rebelled against them because they wanted to get out of the island and the fire was the only way out, Jack would not listen, and he even started killing, as expressed in this quote: “The rock struck Piggy a glancing blow from chin to knee; the conch exploded into a thousand white fragments and ceased to exist” (ch. 11). Jack killed Piggy and he exploded the conch, the symbol for power and order. As soon as that conch was destroyed, the island was in a huge mess, and ultimately Jack and his tribe went inhumane.
The above connection can relate to an essential question: What does power have to do with fairness and justice? The amount of power that one person possesses controls how fairly and just they treat one person. The more power one has, the more unfair and unjust they will treat people, and vice versa. For example, a little boy has more power over another boy who is even littler than him, so he bullys him. However, when he is reported he will not treating the adults unfairly because he has no power over the adults.
Then on Friday, we watched the black and white film of Lord of the Flies. Although the internet was laggy, the film made me picture Lord of the Flies much better and clearer as visuals along with reading is always helpful!
In our group, I would have to say that our discussions were not as smooth and deep as before the break, and that is very obvious due to a two week long spring break between the English classes. However, we still had a pretty good discussion as we all tried to give examples of connections from the book to ourselves, other texts and the world.
In this book, the plot, setting and characters had major changes to them. When I started reading the book, I connected it to Hatchet (see my previous summative journal) as I thought it was going to be another boring survival book. It was about survival at first, but as the novel progressed, the main problem was not about surviving on the island - it was about humanity and how Jack and his tribe were being beasts, killing and being totally cruel and unjust，as they repeatedly say "Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!" (ch.9) Although the book does not say this, but should Jack had not been rescued, I make the assumption that he and his tribe will not be human anymore - they will evolve or de-evolve to a totally new creature, a totally new species. This is why I think this ending is slightly odd. Ralph was being chased by Jack and suddenly a ship comes and rescues him, leaving Jack and his group's aftermath unknown...
I would rate it a 7.5 out of ten because the plot, characters and setting were easily understandable, but some parts of the book dragged on and it just lacked that entertainment factor; I was not enjoying it fully when I read it. Oh well, I guess that's why we are analyzing them...
I improved on this journal as I brought in some quotes, I analyzed it more and gave it a rating.
The above connection can relate to an essential question: What does power have to do with fairness and justice? The amount of power that one person possesses controls how fairly and just they treat one person. The more power one has, the more unfair and unjust they will treat people, and vice versa. For example, a little boy has more power over another boy who is even littler than him, so he bullys him. However, when he is reported he will not treating the adults unfairly because he has no power over the adults.
Then on Friday, we watched the black and white film of Lord of the Flies. Although the internet was laggy, the film made me picture Lord of the Flies much better and clearer as visuals along with reading is always helpful!
In our group, I would have to say that our discussions were not as smooth and deep as before the break, and that is very obvious due to a two week long spring break between the English classes. However, we still had a pretty good discussion as we all tried to give examples of connections from the book to ourselves, other texts and the world.
In this book, the plot, setting and characters had major changes to them. When I started reading the book, I connected it to Hatchet (see my previous summative journal) as I thought it was going to be another boring survival book. It was about survival at first, but as the novel progressed, the main problem was not about surviving on the island - it was about humanity and how Jack and his tribe were being beasts, killing and being totally cruel and unjust，as they repeatedly say "Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!" (ch.9) Although the book does not say this, but should Jack had not been rescued, I make the assumption that he and his tribe will not be human anymore - they will evolve or de-evolve to a totally new creature, a totally new species. This is why I think this ending is slightly odd. Ralph was being chased by Jack and suddenly a ship comes and rescues him, leaving Jack and his group's aftermath unknown...
I would rate it a 7.5 out of ten because the plot, characters and setting were easily understandable, but some parts of the book dragged on and it just lacked that entertainment factor; I was not enjoying it fully when I read it. Oh well, I guess that's why we are analyzing them...
I improved on this journal as I brought in some quotes, I analyzed it more and gave it a rating.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Summative journal
I have added in more examples and connections and quotes from the journal that I had written before. I also explained in more detail.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Journal #2: Lord of the Flies (Summative)
The last week saw great discussions between me, Trevor, and Danny, with all three of us contributing ideas and listening to others, while Brenden and Chyna did not talk much, but they were listening. We tried to post questions to them and encouraged them to get them active in the discussion. Also, Ms. Caldwell visited our group twice which really gave us an extra boost and made us think deeper into the layers.
On the day of the mini-lesson about symbolism, we discussed about examples of symbolism in Lord of the Flies. The fire on the island symbolizes hope to be rescued and power. When Jack disobeyed the rules of the assembly, he had the support of his choir while Ralph lost support and power. Then Ralph's fire dwindled while Jack's fire grew. Another type of symbolism that we noticed was the conch representing power. Whoever had the conch would be able to speak in an assembly and everyone else would have to listen. However, when the rules are broken, chaos occurs. The trust between Ralph and Jack is destructed, along with Ralph's confidence. Our group also discussed the five words that Ms. Caldwell gave us and connotation of the word. I remember our group looked at the word "destruction" and posed the question: When might destruction be positive? When one is using destruction to destroy a negative issue, such as the Allied forces fighting against Germans and the Holocaust in World War Two, that is definitely an example of positive destruction.
Then, on Wednesday, Ms. Caldwell gave us an open discussion. Sometimes, Brenden would go off-topic by shouting random words out, but me and Trevor did a good job putting him back on topic. We looked at the board and discussed irony. One big irony that we discovered was that Jack was the biggest and oldest, however, he is the most immature out of everyone as he says "'Bullocks to the rules! We're strong - we hunt! If there's a beast, we'll hunt it down! We'll close in and beat and beat - !'" (P.99) when Jack was going hunting for a pig other than keeping the fire alive when there was a ship. Had they kept the fire going they might have been rescued, but Jack just lets it go as if he did not care at all, which he does care. Another irony we found was in the front cover of the book. The title of our book is "Lord of the Flies", but for some reason, there is an image of a bloody pig shown. Because that we have not read up to the part where it introduces "Lord of the Flies", we do not know exactly what it is, but we can infer that there is a boy named Piggy, and he is being tortured by an evil person.
Reading this book made me think of the books "Hatchet" and "The Life of Pi". In "Hatchet", the protagonist is living in the wilderness all by himself and tries to survive by making food and shelter with his hatchet that was given to him; and in "The Life of Pi", the main character escaped a shipwreck by sailing off in a rescue boat with a lion. He tries to survive in the middle of the ocean with limited food supplies. Both of these books talk about survival, which is why I made the connection to "Lord of the Flies". Whether it was the main character by himself or with a group of people, they are all stranded somewhere with no grown-ups and try to survive.
When Ralph was on the island for the first time with no grown-ups, he loved it. He would go swimming, exploring - all without the pressure of adults. He had all the freedom he wanted. However, later on in the story, he feels homesick. He had no showered since he was on the island, his clothes were worn and dirty, and wanted to use his nails as a toothbrush! I connect Ralph to myself, as last year when I went on the school trip to Orlando, I felt free and happy because there was absolutely no pressure, and I got to enjoy the sunshine. However, near the end of the trip, I realized how much I missed home, just like Ralph.
Another connection I wanted to make was the Germans cutting off the food supply of the Dutch in World War Two. Because that the Dutch had no food, they were doing everything they needed to survive, which includes eating tulip bulbs. They had no chance of surviving had not the Canadians risked their lives to help liberate the Dutch. The same thing is happening in this book. Ralph and the others have a limited food supply that will run out, if no one rescues them.
Brenden also gave a very insightful connection to note as he connected "Lord of the Flies" to the German translation Beezlebub. Beezlebub, known as the "prince of demons" is one of the seven princes of hell, which can connect to our title saying that there is one person in the group of children who could be evil. The person that I think is the most evil in the book is Jack, as he "made a step forward and smacked Piggy's head" (p.75) and broke his specs. Jack was a bigger and older person than Piggy, but he still beat Piggy up. Not to mention that he disobeyed the rules of only the people who possessed the conch could speak. Is this not looking like the "prince of demons"?
In the past two discussions I had contributed a great amount. I have also listened carefully to what my group members had to say and added on to them. For example, when Danny said that Jack is older but more immature, I said that it was an example of irony. I am also liking the discussions more as our group can come together and pull off effective discussions about the book and I like the book too.
When my group is discussing, time goes by so fast that the class ends before we know it. We are very engaged into the discussion as we talk about the symbolism, irony, characters, metaphors, setting, and the key words. We work really well as a group.
On the day of the mini-lesson about symbolism, we discussed about examples of symbolism in Lord of the Flies. The fire on the island symbolizes hope to be rescued and power. When Jack disobeyed the rules of the assembly, he had the support of his choir while Ralph lost support and power. Then Ralph's fire dwindled while Jack's fire grew. Another type of symbolism that we noticed was the conch representing power. Whoever had the conch would be able to speak in an assembly and everyone else would have to listen. However, when the rules are broken, chaos occurs. The trust between Ralph and Jack is destructed, along with Ralph's confidence. Our group also discussed the five words that Ms. Caldwell gave us and connotation of the word. I remember our group looked at the word "destruction" and posed the question: When might destruction be positive? When one is using destruction to destroy a negative issue, such as the Allied forces fighting against Germans and the Holocaust in World War Two, that is definitely an example of positive destruction.
Then, on Wednesday, Ms. Caldwell gave us an open discussion. Sometimes, Brenden would go off-topic by shouting random words out, but me and Trevor did a good job putting him back on topic. We looked at the board and discussed irony. One big irony that we discovered was that Jack was the biggest and oldest, however, he is the most immature out of everyone as he says "'Bullocks to the rules! We're strong - we hunt! If there's a beast, we'll hunt it down! We'll close in and beat and beat - !'" (P.99) when Jack was going hunting for a pig other than keeping the fire alive when there was a ship. Had they kept the fire going they might have been rescued, but Jack just lets it go as if he did not care at all, which he does care. Another irony we found was in the front cover of the book. The title of our book is "Lord of the Flies", but for some reason, there is an image of a bloody pig shown. Because that we have not read up to the part where it introduces "Lord of the Flies", we do not know exactly what it is, but we can infer that there is a boy named Piggy, and he is being tortured by an evil person.
Reading this book made me think of the books "Hatchet" and "The Life of Pi". In "Hatchet", the protagonist is living in the wilderness all by himself and tries to survive by making food and shelter with his hatchet that was given to him; and in "The Life of Pi", the main character escaped a shipwreck by sailing off in a rescue boat with a lion. He tries to survive in the middle of the ocean with limited food supplies. Both of these books talk about survival, which is why I made the connection to "Lord of the Flies". Whether it was the main character by himself or with a group of people, they are all stranded somewhere with no grown-ups and try to survive.
When Ralph was on the island for the first time with no grown-ups, he loved it. He would go swimming, exploring - all without the pressure of adults. He had all the freedom he wanted. However, later on in the story, he feels homesick. He had no showered since he was on the island, his clothes were worn and dirty, and wanted to use his nails as a toothbrush! I connect Ralph to myself, as last year when I went on the school trip to Orlando, I felt free and happy because there was absolutely no pressure, and I got to enjoy the sunshine. However, near the end of the trip, I realized how much I missed home, just like Ralph.
Another connection I wanted to make was the Germans cutting off the food supply of the Dutch in World War Two. Because that the Dutch had no food, they were doing everything they needed to survive, which includes eating tulip bulbs. They had no chance of surviving had not the Canadians risked their lives to help liberate the Dutch. The same thing is happening in this book. Ralph and the others have a limited food supply that will run out, if no one rescues them.
Brenden also gave a very insightful connection to note as he connected "Lord of the Flies" to the German translation Beezlebub. Beezlebub, known as the "prince of demons" is one of the seven princes of hell, which can connect to our title saying that there is one person in the group of children who could be evil. The person that I think is the most evil in the book is Jack, as he "made a step forward and smacked Piggy's head" (p.75) and broke his specs. Jack was a bigger and older person than Piggy, but he still beat Piggy up. Not to mention that he disobeyed the rules of only the people who possessed the conch could speak. Is this not looking like the "prince of demons"?
In the past two discussions I had contributed a great amount. I have also listened carefully to what my group members had to say and added on to them. For example, when Danny said that Jack is older but more immature, I said that it was an example of irony. I am also liking the discussions more as our group can come together and pull off effective discussions about the book and I like the book too.
When my group is discussing, time goes by so fast that the class ends before we know it. We are very engaged into the discussion as we talk about the symbolism, irony, characters, metaphors, setting, and the key words. We work really well as a group.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Response
I suggest if your two other mates are not into it, you first try to ask them questions to pull them in. When that doesn't work you can ask me a question about the textand I can stay with your group for a while. As you have indicated if it keeps occurring after you have tried all then you and Danny cna discuss but you do need to try and pull the others in. However keep pulling me in with a question about the text.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Journal #1: Lord of the Flies
The first two discussions of our groups was really not enthusiastic at all because of the four people in our group, only Danny and I were here for the lit circle discussions. We discussed about the similarities and differences in our characters. Because that Danny had read farther than me, I had the opportunity to learn about a further character, which helped me understand him better when I was at that part of the story.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Movie Analysis - Inception
Synopsis:
In the film Inception, Dom, the main character was exiled out of the US because his wife committed suicide and framed it on him after Dom planted an idea in her mind by going through her dream. However, his family is still there, and Dom tries to find a way back into the US. He then meets Saito, who says he can clear Dom's records if Dom goes into Fischer's dream and finds the code for the safe which contains important information. Dom agrees and does his best trying to come back to the US.
What are the layers of context/setting in this film?
The obvious is that Dom is trying to go into other people's dreams and fight off all the projections that appear in every person's dream. Every time he is fighting these projections, his deceased wife Mal appears, and every time he is reluctant to shoot her because he loves her. However, she is dead, and what's dead is dead; in other words, Mal cannot be the same Mal he once loved. The dream purposely put Mal in for a projection to stop Dom because he know he would never be able to get past it. In the end, he has to face himself and kill her for himself and his family. In order to return to the US, Dom has to steal the information via a number of dreams, or, in other words dreams within a dream; each of these dreams gets hasher and darker as the layers of dreams build up. The first layer is a rainy city, the second a hotel, the third and bottom layer is the cold and snowy mountains - all of these layers have projections, more as Dom goes deeper.
What expression of darkness had the most impact on you and why?
In the film Inception, Dom, the main character, was going into Fischer's dream and trying to steal information from him using methods to convince him that he is in a dream. This expression of darkness impacted me the most because Dom is going into other people's privacy and tricking them into telling him valuable information. If anyone did this in the world we live in today, that person who has the ability to go dream-travelling would make huge amounts of money, as he would have all the information he would need in this world! However, it is too bad that we do not have this technology in this world, as it would be totally unjust, unless if we were Dom, because of his situation of not being able to return to US and seeing his family after his wife Mal committed suicide and framed it on him. Dom going to other people's dreams and stealing information is absolute darkness, but we do not realize it because of his situation.
EQ-How does the study of fiction and nonfiction texts help individuals construct their understanding of reality?
We do not live in a perfect world; everybody knows that. There are always something lurking around, something mysterious that nobody knows. When Inception talks about technology that could permit people to go into other people's dreams, most people would open their minds and say "Hey, could this actually be possible?" In this case, there is no evidence that technology could allow us to invade other people's minds, however, this also tells us that there is more to this world than what we only see. There could be an asteroid coming towards Earth right now, or there could be an atomic bomb project right this instant, and nobody knows about it. Therefore, we must be aware that anything could happen in this reality.
Connection
I like to connect this film to I Am Legend because of the risk it takes to do something. In Inception, when Dom and his team go dream-travelling, there are many projections who try to stop them, including a projection of Dom's wife, Mal. Should a member die while in a dream, they will go into limbo, where they are trapped forever. The risk in I Am Legend is the cure for cancer. When a cure is finally found, the cure mutates into a more deadly strain of virus, which basically exterminates the world. This explains that whenever we try to accomplish a task, me must think of all the consequences associated with it.
How does the filmmaker convey evil or darkness?
The filmmaker conveys evil through its plot and characters and setting. The plot focuses on Dom going through other people's brains and stealing information. This infringes on privacy rights. Also, there is a lot of violence in this film. The characters also convey evil and darkness. Mal, Dom's wife had committed suicide already, but every time Dom goes into a dream, Mal is there as a projection, always wanting to give Dom failure. The people stealing information from other people's minds also conveys darkness. The setting conveys darkness too. In one scene, it shows the levels of the elevator of Dom's dream; each with a different memory of Dom and his family. One level shows his kids in a sunny day playing and having fun, while the very bottom level displays a hotel room, all wrecked, glass shattered everywhere, toppled furniture, and an open balcony where Mal commits suicide. Along with the tone of the music, every time we think about this kind of setting, we can get an impression of Mal framing her suicide on Dom.
T-W: This world is full of people robbing and stealing from other people. Most of the time, we despise these thieves because they are violating human rights and infringing on our privacy. However, we do have to understand that some of them have a ethical purpose just like Dom trying to get back to the US to see his family again. Maybe the people are poor and have nothing so they steal, or maybe people steal because someone else has treated them unfairly - Whatever the case is, we have to differentiate what kind of thievery is good and bad, and help the people who desperately need help
How can a character represent darkness?
A character a represent darkness through their thoughts and actions. In one scene, Dom and his team were forcing Fischer to spill out the code because of the greed of the information inside the safe. Also, Dom's thoughts of Mal will always scar him and always influence him in every choice that he makes, as the distant memory still exists in his mind. Mal, as a projection, will always try to cause Dom failure.
In the film Inception, Dom, the main character was exiled out of the US because his wife committed suicide and framed it on him after Dom planted an idea in her mind by going through her dream. However, his family is still there, and Dom tries to find a way back into the US. He then meets Saito, who says he can clear Dom's records if Dom goes into Fischer's dream and finds the code for the safe which contains important information. Dom agrees and does his best trying to come back to the US.
What are the layers of context/setting in this film?
The obvious is that Dom is trying to go into other people's dreams and fight off all the projections that appear in every person's dream. Every time he is fighting these projections, his deceased wife Mal appears, and every time he is reluctant to shoot her because he loves her. However, she is dead, and what's dead is dead; in other words, Mal cannot be the same Mal he once loved. The dream purposely put Mal in for a projection to stop Dom because he know he would never be able to get past it. In the end, he has to face himself and kill her for himself and his family. In order to return to the US, Dom has to steal the information via a number of dreams, or, in other words dreams within a dream; each of these dreams gets hasher and darker as the layers of dreams build up. The first layer is a rainy city, the second a hotel, the third and bottom layer is the cold and snowy mountains - all of these layers have projections, more as Dom goes deeper.
What expression of darkness had the most impact on you and why?
In the film Inception, Dom, the main character, was going into Fischer's dream and trying to steal information from him using methods to convince him that he is in a dream. This expression of darkness impacted me the most because Dom is going into other people's privacy and tricking them into telling him valuable information. If anyone did this in the world we live in today, that person who has the ability to go dream-travelling would make huge amounts of money, as he would have all the information he would need in this world! However, it is too bad that we do not have this technology in this world, as it would be totally unjust, unless if we were Dom, because of his situation of not being able to return to US and seeing his family after his wife Mal committed suicide and framed it on him. Dom going to other people's dreams and stealing information is absolute darkness, but we do not realize it because of his situation.
EQ-How does the study of fiction and nonfiction texts help individuals construct their understanding of reality?
We do not live in a perfect world; everybody knows that. There are always something lurking around, something mysterious that nobody knows. When Inception talks about technology that could permit people to go into other people's dreams, most people would open their minds and say "Hey, could this actually be possible?" In this case, there is no evidence that technology could allow us to invade other people's minds, however, this also tells us that there is more to this world than what we only see. There could be an asteroid coming towards Earth right now, or there could be an atomic bomb project right this instant, and nobody knows about it. Therefore, we must be aware that anything could happen in this reality.
Connection
I like to connect this film to I Am Legend because of the risk it takes to do something. In Inception, when Dom and his team go dream-travelling, there are many projections who try to stop them, including a projection of Dom's wife, Mal. Should a member die while in a dream, they will go into limbo, where they are trapped forever. The risk in I Am Legend is the cure for cancer. When a cure is finally found, the cure mutates into a more deadly strain of virus, which basically exterminates the world. This explains that whenever we try to accomplish a task, me must think of all the consequences associated with it.
How does the filmmaker convey evil or darkness?
The filmmaker conveys evil through its plot and characters and setting. The plot focuses on Dom going through other people's brains and stealing information. This infringes on privacy rights. Also, there is a lot of violence in this film. The characters also convey evil and darkness. Mal, Dom's wife had committed suicide already, but every time Dom goes into a dream, Mal is there as a projection, always wanting to give Dom failure. The people stealing information from other people's minds also conveys darkness. The setting conveys darkness too. In one scene, it shows the levels of the elevator of Dom's dream; each with a different memory of Dom and his family. One level shows his kids in a sunny day playing and having fun, while the very bottom level displays a hotel room, all wrecked, glass shattered everywhere, toppled furniture, and an open balcony where Mal commits suicide. Along with the tone of the music, every time we think about this kind of setting, we can get an impression of Mal framing her suicide on Dom.
T-W: This world is full of people robbing and stealing from other people. Most of the time, we despise these thieves because they are violating human rights and infringing on our privacy. However, we do have to understand that some of them have a ethical purpose just like Dom trying to get back to the US to see his family again. Maybe the people are poor and have nothing so they steal, or maybe people steal because someone else has treated them unfairly - Whatever the case is, we have to differentiate what kind of thievery is good and bad, and help the people who desperately need help
How can a character represent darkness?
A character a represent darkness through their thoughts and actions. In one scene, Dom and his team were forcing Fischer to spill out the code because of the greed of the information inside the safe. Also, Dom's thoughts of Mal will always scar him and always influence him in every choice that he makes, as the distant memory still exists in his mind. Mal, as a projection, will always try to cause Dom failure.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Cask of Amontillado
What are the layers of context setting in this film?
How does the filmmaker convey evil or darkness? Is i through the plot, imagery, characters, setting? What expressions of darkness had the most impact on you and why?
How can a character represent darkness? Who or what is evil in this film? From whose perspective or in what context?
What factors contribute to the character's evil actions? What patterns in society or contexts help and/or hinder and/or change his behavior?
What are the roots of this person's choices/evil/dark behavior? What are the choices he/she makes or could have done differently?
How does this character/plot/setting symbolize the darkness in all of us? In humanity?
How does the filmmaker convey evil or darkness? Is i through the plot, imagery, characters, setting? What expressions of darkness had the most impact on you and why?
How can a character represent darkness? Who or what is evil in this film? From whose perspective or in what context?
What factors contribute to the character's evil actions? What patterns in society or contexts help and/or hinder and/or change his behavior?
What are the roots of this person's choices/evil/dark behavior? What are the choices he/she makes or could have done differently?
How does this character/plot/setting symbolize the darkness in all of us? In humanity?
Monday, January 10, 2011
Why is there darkness in humanity?
The definition of humanity is the quality of being human. Human nature is usually described as benevolence, kind, caring, et cetera, but wars and violence are also a very big part of humanity. That brings up the question: Why is there darkness in humanity? The literal meaning of darkness is the absence of light, but some further meanings are wickedness or evil, obscurity or concealment. If we turn on the news, chances are they will say something about shootings. This is totally darkness, as anything evil is considered dark also. All the time, we have wars, violence, crimes, thievery - these are all very dark, and they are very well part of human nature. But the real question: Why is it a part of human nature? One may argue that the society is unfair to the citizens, and therefore the citizens rebel by committing crimes. Also, darkness could be used to bring out the justice system. Without bad, there cannot be good. Regardless of the reasons, darkness exists, and it is a big part of human nature.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Act I Scene v REFLECTION
1. In my scene, Act 1 Scene v, Lady Macbeth reads a letter from Macbeth saying that he has been named Thane of Cawdor by the King. This is very surprising to Macbeth because he had visited the witches beforehand and the witches predicted that Macbeth would become the Thane of Cawdor. Lady Macbeth hears this great news and starts to ponder about the fame and power at her hands. That leads to my first essential question: What is ambition? Ambition is the desire for personal achievement. It is what drives us to fulfill what we want or need. For me, I have the ambition to do well in school. I would try my hardest, and do all the work assigned to the best level possible. In Macbeth, Lady Macbeth has the ambition to become famous and powerful, and that is why she "loves" Macbeth, not because she actually loves him dearly, but because she sees the potential to become famous and powerful.
2. I learned that working in groups is not as easy and smooth as expected. At the beginning, Brenden and I could not choose what scene to do because there were too many to choose from and that we were too slow to choose; other people have taken it before us. However, there were more than enough scenes available to the entire class, and so we were able to decide on one. Another area is trying to find availability. Chyna was never available to do it on the weekends, so we decided to finish it on a Thursday, however, Brenden did not come, and so we did not finish. That is another thing I learned. One can never trust another one's words.
3. Overall, something important that I have learned is that if something is not 100% done, never put it on one person's hand to finish it and expect it to be 100% finished. When I left Brenden's house on Sunday, it was pretty much completed, except that he needed to add voices and animations to the video. To one's surprise, the program kept on crashing on him an he resorted to making a power-point with no animation and no voices, so we had to read it out on the spot, which Ms. Caldwell told us exactly not to to.
4. Something that I noticed that I need to work on for next time is speaking in front of the entire class. I feel that I did not speak entirely of what I have planned to speak in front of the class, and many times I just could not find the correct word to perfectly describe the situation when I was explaining the plot summary and essential questions, and therefore stumble and leave a huge gap in the oral presentation. I never bring a piece of paper up to reference to because I think that it would be more professional to go up there and present by pure knowledge. Next time I will rehearse a little more and try to be more relaxed when standing up there in front of the class.
5. Overall, something that I am proud of is that with our difficulties of our group (we could never get together and work as one), we still managed to pull this out and finish this project with some quality.
6. Brenden - 45%
Don - 40%
Chyna - 15%
We fail!
But screw your courage to the stick place,
And we'll not fail. When Duncan is asleep -
Whereto the rather shall his day's hard journey
soundly invite him - his two chamberlains
Will I with wine and wassel so convince,
That memory, the warder of the brain,
Shall be a fume, and the receipt of reason
A limbeck only: when in swinish sleep
Their drenched natures lie as in a death,
What cannot you and I perform upon
The unguarded Duncan? what not put upon
His spongy officers who shall bear the guilt
Of our great quell? (I,vii,66-79)
In this quote, Lady Macbeth has the perfect plan - make the two guards drunk and Macbeth murders King Duncan. Determination is a quality needed for ambition. Even to this extent - Killing somebody - Lady Macbeth still has the motivation to do anything necessary to get what she desires most. Sadly, this ambition involves crime, and crime is unjust. Now both Lady Macbeth and Macbeth have this huge dilemma: Get power and fame for the expense of committing a crime, or don't do anything and get nothing. Lady Macbeth convinces Macbeth of all the prizes that could be theirs if he kills King Duncan - and Macbeth is convinced. Therefore, Lady Macbeth has more power over her husband, which leads to my next essential question: How does power corrupt? As we all know, Lady Macbeth and Macbeth team up together to kill King Duncan. This messes up the entire hierarchy and kingdom as without a King, there is no order. Macbeth was later named King, however, because that he has power over everybody, he can do whatever he wants to. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth still have the ambition for more power and fame, and so Macbeth orders people to kill Banquo, because Macbeth is afraid that Banquo will snatch his power away from him (As prophesized by the witches).
Thou shalt get kings, though thou be non: So all hail, Macbeth and Banquo! (I,iii,70-71)
Macbeth is still obsessed with the witches' prophecies to Banquo, and so he dispatches people to kill him. Another murder! Power is corrupting out of control! Lady Macbeth corrupts Macbeth with power by convincing him to kill the King, and with that newly acquired power, Macbeth corrupts even more by ordering people to murder Banquo, which leads to more power, which then he will corrupt by killing MacDuff's family. This is how power corrupts.
3. Overall, something important that I have learned is that if something is not 100% done, never put it on one person's hand to finish it and expect it to be 100% finished. When I left Brenden's house on Sunday, it was pretty much completed, except that he needed to add voices and animations to the video. To one's surprise, the program kept on crashing on him an he resorted to making a power-point with no animation and no voices, so we had to read it out on the spot, which Ms. Caldwell told us exactly not to to.
4. Something that I noticed that I need to work on for next time is speaking in front of the entire class. I feel that I did not speak entirely of what I have planned to speak in front of the class, and many times I just could not find the correct word to perfectly describe the situation when I was explaining the plot summary and essential questions, and therefore stumble and leave a huge gap in the oral presentation. I never bring a piece of paper up to reference to because I think that it would be more professional to go up there and present by pure knowledge. Next time I will rehearse a little more and try to be more relaxed when standing up there in front of the class.
5. Overall, something that I am proud of is that with our difficulties of our group (we could never get together and work as one), we still managed to pull this out and finish this project with some quality.
6. Brenden - 45%
Don - 40%
Chyna - 15%
Monday, November 15, 2010
Act 1 Scene 5
This scene is about Lady Macbeth, in Inverness, reading a letter from her husband, Macbeth, about the witches saying " 'All hail, Macbeth! That shalt be king hereafter.' " (23), which is ironic because "the missives from the king, all-hailed [him], 'Thane of Cawdor' (39). Macbeth wants his wife to keep it secret. Then, she talks to herself saying that Macbeth will be the King, and she is going to talk him out of whatever is stopping him from doing so.
Afterward, a messenger enters, saying that "The king come here to-night" (41) Lady Macbeth starts to develop an evil plan in her mind. She says: " 'Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty! make thick my blood, stop up the access and passage to remorse, that no compunctious visitings of nature shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between the effect and it!' " (41). Macbeth enters, and Lady Macbeth convinces Macbeth to murder the King。
I have decided to pick the following essential questions:
What is ambition? - Lady Macbeth has lots of ambition to kill Duncan
What is loyalty? - Macbeth is loyal to King Duncan at first
What is power? - Being Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth has lots of power, but not as much as the King
How does power corrupt? - Macbeth and his wife have the ability to kill King Duncan
How far is one willing to "go" to get what they desire most? - Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are willing to kill the King
Afterward, a messenger enters, saying that "The king come here to-night" (41) Lady Macbeth starts to develop an evil plan in her mind. She says: " 'Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, and fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty! make thick my blood, stop up the access and passage to remorse, that no compunctious visitings of nature shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between the effect and it!' " (41). Macbeth enters, and Lady Macbeth convinces Macbeth to murder the King。
I have decided to pick the following essential questions:
What is ambition? - Lady Macbeth has lots of ambition to kill Duncan
What is loyalty? - Macbeth is loyal to King Duncan at first
What is power? - Being Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth has lots of power, but not as much as the King
How does power corrupt? - Macbeth and his wife have the ability to kill King Duncan
How far is one willing to "go" to get what they desire most? - Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are willing to kill the King
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Act 1 MacBeth
What is ambition？
"The desire for personal achievement" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambition) is the definition for achievement. everyone has it, and needs it. As a student, my biggest ambition is to study well and get into University. Others may have other ambitions, such as their biggest dreams. Ambition gives us the drive to go on in this world. In Macbeth, Lady Macbeth has the ambition to murder King Duncan.. The quote by Lady Macbeth, "And we will not fail. When Duncan...our great quell?" (61) gives plan about what they will do as a team to kill him. Because that Macbeth was loyal to Duncan at the start, he dares not to execute this plan. However, because of Lady Macbeth's power over her husband, she convinces Macbeth. Ambition is usually a good quality, if one is ambitious about a pursue in career, or an achievement. However, as explained in the example, ambition can be bad, too. Having the ambition to murder someone is never a good thing.
"The desire for personal achievement" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambition) is the definition for achievement. everyone has it, and needs it. As a student, my biggest ambition is to study well and get into University. Others may have other ambitions, such as their biggest dreams. Ambition gives us the drive to go on in this world. In Macbeth, Lady Macbeth has the ambition to murder King Duncan.. The quote by Lady Macbeth, "And we will not fail. When Duncan...our great quell?" (61) gives plan about what they will do as a team to kill him. Because that Macbeth was loyal to Duncan at the start, he dares not to execute this plan. However, because of Lady Macbeth's power over her husband, she convinces Macbeth. Ambition is usually a good quality, if one is ambitious about a pursue in career, or an achievement. However, as explained in the example, ambition can be bad, too. Having the ambition to murder someone is never a good thing.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Response to The Lesson
How does what I know about the world shape the way we view ourselves?
In the Lesson, by Toni Cade Bambara, the kids do not know anything about the world. They think that it is a peaceful, free world and you can do anything they want, be anything they want. Therefore, they run around everywhere, having fun with their friends, and not caring at all in this world. Their lives revolve around the street kids. When Miss Moore brings them to the store, they are so oblivious to this world. They want to buy this, they want to buy that, when really, they do not have enough money to afford anything, and even if they did, there would be way more better and efficient things to buy, such as food or clothing. Now that they understand that the world is not always fair, they become more cautious and aware. But in the end, all they are is kids, and they should be doing what kids should be doing: living a happy life. And that is exactly what they continue to do as the main character says to Sugar: "'We could go to Hascombs and get half a chocolate layer and then go to the Sunset and still have plenty money for potato chips and ice cream sodas.'" (6)
In the Lesson, by Toni Cade Bambara, the kids do not know anything about the world. They think that it is a peaceful, free world and you can do anything they want, be anything they want. Therefore, they run around everywhere, having fun with their friends, and not caring at all in this world. Their lives revolve around the street kids. When Miss Moore brings them to the store, they are so oblivious to this world. They want to buy this, they want to buy that, when really, they do not have enough money to afford anything, and even if they did, there would be way more better and efficient things to buy, such as food or clothing. Now that they understand that the world is not always fair, they become more cautious and aware. But in the end, all they are is kids, and they should be doing what kids should be doing: living a happy life. And that is exactly what they continue to do as the main character says to Sugar: "'We could go to Hascombs and get half a chocolate layer and then go to the Sunset and still have plenty money for potato chips and ice cream sodas.'" (6)
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Image reflection of The Lesson
This picture relates to my short story because it is a picture of just kids playing, not having a single care in this world. In my short story, the kids are so naive and so uneducated that they do not realize how cruel this society actually is.
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