"Fall Semester Reflection"

Do you read your colleagues’ work online?  How often? What is it like to read their work? How does being able to see everyone’s work online at any given time change the way you do your work?
Yes, I usually read my colleagues' work when I don't understand something. Its easy for me to read blogs with reliable authors. It gives me a better example of what I'm supposed to do.
How has the publicly and always visible course blog made this course different from one without a blog?  How would the course change if the course blog disappeared tomorrow?
It gives you the option of actually reflecting your personality into your work. It would take the meaning away from collaborating working groups since we ask each other to correct homework or work together on assignments. 
Has publishing your work for the public to see changed your approach to completing an assignment? How so?  How would your feelings about the course change if you couldn’t publish your work that way?
It makes you try harder because people are able to see where you are with your work and how much effort your putting into it. It would takes away the meaning of letting us work with our peers.
Has your experience of the physical classroom changed because of the open & online aspects?  Where does your learning actually happen?  
Yes, it is a great learning experience because we are able to work with the other class periods. Their blogs are listed on the same webpage as ours so we could see their styles of work. It's a great way to expand connections and build a educational relationships. 
You were described in the Macarthur Foundation/DML  interview as “a pioneer”-- how do you describe the experience on the edge to people who haven’t been there (friends and family)?
I usually show them my blog after I finish a long assignment because they wonder what I am doing and why.
How do they respond when you describe the brave new world in which you’re working?
They are amazed at all the work we put into our blogs.
What do their responses mean to you?  What effect(s) (if any) do they have on you?
If they like my blog I simply smile because I know I am doing a good job. It encourages me to try harder and post more because they want to hear what i have to say.

Literary Analysis #5: The House On Mango Street

GENERAL

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).

This novel explains the reality that many people go through. It is a story of a young girl living in a town that she does not like at all. She feels that she is trapped. Esperanza is a young girl who is guiding us through her life. She is always watching the things that are going on and we get to listen to different stories of peoples life’s while she is talking about hers. I feel that the author’s purpose of writing this novel was to show young girls that are in the shoes of Esperanza that there is in a happy ending. Just because you are from in place that has low expectations doesn’t mean that you have to set the bar that low for yourself.

2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.

The theme was that no matter where you live, how you look, what others think of you, how much money you have, the amount of friends you have, you shouldn't  set low standards for yourself. People will put you down, make you feel that you don’t belong at times but nothing is easy. As long as you do what you need to do that's all you need. 

3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).

The author's tone was pretty constant. It had great details and gave you that feeling that you were welcome to continue reading. 

• Every first few sentence the novel said, “We didn’t always live one Mango Street.” Right there the Narrator begins the story with a line that lets you know that she expecting you to be listening.(page 3) 
• The next example is when Esperanza says, “this was the house Papa talked about when he held a lottery ticket and this was the house Mama dreamed up in the stories she told us before we went to bed.”(page 4) 
• “I knew then I had to have a house. A real house. One I could point to. But this isn’t it. The house on Mango Street isn’t it. For the time being, Mama says. Temporary, says Papa. But I know how those things go.”(page 5) In this line she lets us into her thoughts during a moment in which she is feeling horrible about herself. She allows herself to be vulnerable. 

4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers. (Please include edition and page numbers for easy reference.)

Diction- “ If you don’t get them you may turn into a man.” Nenny says this when Lucy, Esperanza, and Rachel are talking about why women grow hips. With this statement we as readers are reminded how young these girls and how for being so young they have had to go through so much already. 
Characterization- “ Yes, I nodded even though I knew that wasn’t my house and started to cry. I always cry when nuns yell at me, even if they’re not yelling.” (page 45) Here we see a side of Esperanza that we have not gotten to see from her so far. Well, we did in the first chapter when a nun commented on her house but this is the first time we see Esperanza spill tears. It lets us see that she is strong but every strong person has a heart that aches when in distress. 
Setting- “One day I will my pack my bags of books and paper. One day I will say goodbye to Mango. I am too strong for her to keep me here forever. One day I will go away. (page 110) When I give this as an example of setting it doesn’t make much sense, unless you are me, so let me explain myself. I mean a seting as in set of mind. She is in a new way of thinking. There is no longer anything fences that will hold her back. Only herself can get in the way now. 
Personification- “The dog is big, like a man dressed in a dog suit, and runs the same way its owner does, clumsy and wild and with the limbs flopping all over the place like untied shoes” (page 21) This part is where the new kid(Meme Ortiz) comes into the neighborhood and even his dog matches the way that the environment is.
Point of view- “But I think diseases have no eyes. They pick with a dizzy finger anyone, just anymore.” (page 59) Aunt Lupe was sick and I think this could be a connection with the surroundings. It is described as a place where no one wants to be by choice. Esperanza could say she dislikes it so much that it makes her “sick”. 
Conflict- “ The water pipes broke and the landlord wouldn’t fix them because the house was too old. We had to leave fast. We were using the washroom next door and carrying water over in empty milk gallons.” (page4) The whole was affected by their way of living. The pipes was the reason that they had to move which later becomes the reason why Esperanza finds the motivation to be better then what others expect her to be. 
Mood- “The snoring, the rain, and Mama’s hair that smells like bread.” (page 7) I love this part because it reminds me of my grandparents house. It would be raining while grandpa is knocked out on the couch, snoring amd grandma and I would be baking something sweet at midnight. So when I read this quote coming from young Esperanza I can feel the calmness she feels in that period of time that this is happening in.
Theme- “Before Keeler it was Paulina , but what I remember most is Mango Street, sad red house, the house I belong but do not belong to.” (page 110)Yay! A happy ending to a wonderful story. This quotes raps up everything. This is where she puts it into writing the things that she has learned. 
Imagery- “Everybody laughing except me, because I’m wearing the new dress, pink and white with stripes, and new underclothes and new socks and the old saddle shoes I wear to school, brown and white, the kind I get every September because they last long and they do.” (page 47) Esperanza is feeling like a out cast. She knows that if she had money this wouldn’t be happening. It doesn’t help either that everyone is laughing but at the same time I feel that maybe she thinks they are all laughing but really it could all be in her head. I wouldn’t be surprised though if they were all laughing only because this is a cruel place that she is in. 

CHARACTERIZATION 

1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization.  Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?
Both indirect and direct characterization is used because it changes things up and it is a great strategy to make reading a lot more interesting. Sandra Cisneros has a way of writing to where you get a specific out look on a character. The way she describes her characters make you almost become part of the characters. 

• Indirect: “I’m about to tell her that’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard, but the more I think it…” (page 50) Esperanza has her own thoughts but is easily influenced as we can see clearly. Also, another example of her being easily influenced is when her uncle Nacho says, “Then Uncle Nacho is pulling and pulling my arm and it doesn’t matter how new the dress Mama bought is because my feet are ugly until my uncle who is a lair says, You are the prettiest girl here, will you dance, but I believe him, and yes, we are dancing, my Uncle Nacho an me, only I don’t want to at first.” Uncle Nacho saw that she was self conscious about her shoes so decided to pull her out on the dance floor to show her that she is beautiful. To him it didn’t matter if her shoes were not the most lovely things on the planet. He told her she was the prettiest girl in the room and she doesn’t believe it but after dancing around she starts to believe it. Which is awesome because I am she IS very pretty on the outside as she is on the inside. 
• Direct: “They are without respect for all things living, including themselves.” (page 29) The kids of Rosa Vargas are wild and this is example of the truth being told. “Is a good girl, my friend, studies all night and sees the mice, the ones her father says do not exist. Is afraid of nothing except four legged fur. And fathers.” (page 32) Alice is only afraid of ending up working hard her whole live and never enjoying herself and of course her father because he is stuck in the place she doesn’t want to be in. 

2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character?  How?  Example(s)? 
When the novel takes time to focus on Papa it changes things a lot because not only does Esperanza feel shocked about her father crying but we are a bit shocked that she would be telling us this. She gets to see her father in a way that she has never seen him in and we get to be with her in that moment. 

• “Your abuelito is dead, Papa says one early morning in my room. Esta muerto, and then as if he just heard the news himself, crumples like a coat and cries, my brave Papa cries. I have never seen my Papa cry and don’t know what to do.” (page 56) 

3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.

The protagonist is a dynamic and a round character. Some examples of this are in the ending of the story when Esperanza is saying how one day she is going to get out of the place that she in. She says out loud how she is going to leave and what others are going to say about her when she does leave. 

4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character?  Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction.

After reading this novel I come away feeling like I met the characters that were introduced. Each chapter that we read goes into details of the life’s of each person or group of people that Esperanza knows. 

• “Earl lives next door in Edna’s basement, behind the flower boxes Edna paints green each year, behind the dusty geraniums.” Getting to know how each character lives was a big part of feeling like we were apart of the story and characters.

=]

When you use blogger correctly, you're able to find GREAT resources like "What does a Nurse Practitioner do" : D This blog is made by a person who is a nurse practitioner herself. The blog has posts based on what the author's done, and I know it's going to be a helpful resource.
Kudos blogger, you made my night!!!

Lit Analysis #4: No Exit

GENERAL 

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).

"No Exit" is a book that consists of four characters. However, only three are placed in this room, which is supposed to be Hell. Of course, the characters believe the stereotypes of Hell. They expect to tortured by a numerous of objects/machines. Yet, Hell is a normal room, but has no exit. The room has sofa's and lights. One of the characters, Inez asks what the characters have done to have gone to Hell. Estelle and Garcin deny they have done anything wrong. Throughout the book, the characters admit to what they have done and have realized why they were brought there. Also, they have realized that Hell is not itself, but the people you are with. Garcin has tried to leave the room, but there is no exit. The characters are stuck and must remain in Hell for eternity.

2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid  cliches.

The theme of this book is to notice that the choices you make are the one's you must hold on to forever. There is no escape. Also, do not stereotype. Hell is not what the characters seem because it is much more than that. You are with people who have the same mindset as you. They most likely believe they have done nothing wrong, yet they have done the most vile sins.

3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).

The author tone is suppose to help the audience correctly interpret life, and the choice weare dealt with. The author constantly mentions how there is no exit. The tone is overall didactic.

• “There were days when you peered into yourself, into the secret places of your heart, and what you saw there made you faint with horror. And then, next day, you didn't know what to make of it,you couldn't interpret the horror you had glimpsed the day before. Yes, you know what evil costs.” 

4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers. (Please include edition and page numbers for easy reference.)

Metaphor: “I'm going to smile, and my smile will sink down into your pupils, and heaven knows what it will become.”

Anaphora: "No, I wasn't joking. No mirrors, I notice. No windows. "

Rhetorical question: "And what use do you suppose I have for one? Do you know who I was?"

Allusions: the book relates to art and music.

Simile : "Oh just look at her face, all scarlet like a tomato." " And presently we shall be naked, as new born babies"

Imagery:"A man's drowning, choking, sinking by inches, till only his eyes are just above water."

Allegory:

"GARCIN: What's this?

VALET: Can't you see? An ordinary paper-knife.

GARCIN: Are there books here?
VALET: No.
GARCIN: Then what's the use of this?"
Symbolism: The vase at the end represents how your life can be easily broken, yet easily stored, but one crack can cause your life to end immediately. 
Repetition:  When Garcin keeps saying over and over and asking if he is a coward. Towards the end of the play.

CHARACTERIZATION

1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization. Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?

• "You see, I'm fond of teasing, it's a second nature with me-- and I'm used to teasing myself. Plaguing myself, if you prefer; I don't tease nicely."

• "I feel so queer. Don't you ever get taken that way? When I can't see myself I begin to wonder if I really and truly exist. I pat myself just to make sure, but it doesn't help much.” 

2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character? How? Example(s)?

Throughout the whole book, the diction and syntax for each character remains the same. Although, the characters have different personalities, they are still common. 

3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic? Flat or round? Explain.

There are no protagonist characters because they are all the same since they have done unforgivable things to belong in Hell. They're no characters that change so they are all flat.

4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character? Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction.
I don't believe I've met any of the characters because they are so mean, and so inconsiderate. However, I do believe I've met people close to them. The world is filled with many people who are mean, and don't believe they do anything wrong.

NOTES: "No Exit"

Intro:

• 19 centuary philosopher's developed existentialism
• Existentialism : philosophical and cultural movement which holds that the starting point of philosophical thinking must be the experiences of the individual
• Jean Paul Sartre
• French writer  
• popularized existentialism
• produced No Exit in Paris
• 4 characters :   
• Valet
• Garcin
• Estelle
• Inez
• Entire play takes place in a drawing room.
• "Hell is other people" {put yourself in the drawing room with two people you hate the most in the world}

Lets begin...

• GARCIN and VALET enter the room
• GARCIN doesn't care for the Second Empire drawing-room
• mentions how different everything is
• "instruments of torture" are the racks and red-hot pincers and all the other paraphernalia
• GARCIN see's there are no mirrors or windows or toothbrush or bed
• VALET mentions how "guests" are always asking the same annoying questions
• "Where's the torture-chamber?" 
• "...they start in about their toothbrushes and what-ot."
• GARCIN "So that's the idea. I'm to live without eyelids. Don't act the fool, you know what I mean. No eyelids, no sleep; it follows,doesn't it?"
• VALET asks if GARCIN can see
• his uncle is the head valet & has a room on the third floor 
• says the bell doesn't work
• GARCIN tries the bell but it remains silent
• tries many times to get assistance
• after he sits down the door opens & in comes INEZ with VALET
• 
  

VOCABULARY FINAL ADVICE

I HOPE EVERYONE HAS BEEN STUDYING FOR OUR  VOCABULARY FINAL  BECAUSE IT'S COMING UP SOONER THAN ONE THINKS. IF ANYONE NEEDS ANOTHER STUDY METHOD I SUGGEST USING QUIZLET. THAT'S WHAT I'M USING AND IT HELPED ME PREPARE LAST TIME. GOOD LUCK! (:

Chose A Place

Think about the place you have chosen as your hell. Does it look ordinary and bourgeois,like Sartre's drawing room, or is it equipped with literal instruments of torture like Dante's Inferno? Can the mind be in hell in a beautiful place? Is there a way to find peace in a hellish physical environment? Enter Sartre's space more fully and imagine how it would feel to live there endlessly, night and day:

My hell has been my physics class. Though it seems like an ordinary place, what happens inside it isn't. It's torture instruments have been the equations and quizzes. One expects these things, but one doesn't expect them to be as harsh. The mind can be in hell in a a beautiful place and one can find peace in a hellish physical environment depending on how its being displayed. Sartre's uses the character's descriptive language to create this isolating room. To live there it would be a nightmare. It's negative atmosphere would drive me crazy and the idea of being trapped could ruin my mind.

Allegory of the Cave Sonnet

{UPDATED}

They are people just like you and I
But like a worm they sleep where they lay
Not understanding the outside
Just in a cave for someone to prey

One was able to be free
From all illusions and pain
But given the chance of reality
In hopes of something to gain

By breaking a tradition
That was harsh and unfair
It gave him another mission
But to avoid their harsh stare

There is a reality outside the cave
But only one true hero is that brave

Journal: 11/20/12

Describe a symbol that means something to you. How did the symbol come to represent an abstract idea?  Is the idea shared by others or is it yours alone?  If it's an individual interpretation, what does it say about you?  If it's social, how does interpreting the symbol identify the reader/viewer as a member of the tribe who "gets it"?

-A dream catcher means something to me since everytime I look at it I think it'll free me from bad thoughts. One day, Sammy came back from Arizona and in his belonging he had a dream catcher. He told me the story behind the dream catcher and I began to believe in its existance. This symbol respents purity because it cleanses bad dreams or thoughts. I overthink things but when I do I feel that the dream catcher detangles it. The dream catcher means that I will be protected and freed from bad thoughts. I believe that having a symbol that represents you will be a good motivator. A dream catcher helps me by assuring me that anthing 'evil' will be taken away from my thoughts, actions and dreams. It's a way of saying that tomorrow is a new day.

Plato's Allegory of the Cave

http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.8.vii.html

1. According to Socrates, what does the Allegory of the Cave represent?
-The allegory of the cave represents how individuals reject reality and don't understand the truth behind life. 
2. What are the key elements in the imagery used in the allegory?
-Prisoners were the ignorant individuals, cave was a world of imagination, sun was the reality of life, darkness was the lacking of truth, and the freed prisoner was philosophers. 
3. What are some things the allegory suggests about the process of enlightenment or education?
-After a while an individual will get the opportunity to embrace the truth. One must take the knowledge and do wisely with it. 
4. What do the imagery of "shackles" and the "cave" suggest about the perspective of the cave dwellers or prisoners?
-Shackles show the prisoners being held against their will to live a life that is planned for them. The cave is merely where they plan to revise it to any state they want it to be. They are trapped from reality and unable to realize what lies past the light. 
5. In society today or in your own life, what sorts of things shackle the mind?
-The government shackles our minds by controlling everything we do and removing anything that may lead to someone discovering something. 
6. Compare the perspective of the freed prisoner with the cave prisoners?
-The freed prisoner was exposed to self thinking and realization, while the cave prisoners were stuck thinking their "normal" was normal.
7. According to the allegory, lack of clarity or intellectual confusion can occur in two distinct ways or contexts. What are they?
-
8. According to the allegory, how do cave prisoners get free? What does this suggest about intellectual freedom?
-Cave prisoners get freed by being exposed to freedom. Other people let them see the light and show them a new source of knowledge. 
9. The allegory presupposes that there is a distinction between appearances and reality. Do you agree? Why or why not?
-Yes, because not everything is what is seems. People could assume that just by looking at someone they were a tidy person, but when they look inside the person's backpack it seems as if a tornado had already been there.  
10. If Socrates is incorrect in his assumption that there is a distinction between reality and appearances, what are the two alternative metaphysical assumptions?
-

Vocabulary Final

I'm still working on the Vocabylary Final list but I will finish the list this weekend!
Enjoy Quizlet (:

Quote of the Day

 

“If you try and lose then it isn't your fault. But if you don't try and we lose, then it's all your fault.”

Reciting My Sonnet

Sonnet VII

By Hartley Coleridge

Is love a fancy, or a feeling? No.

It is immortal as immaculate Truth,

'Tis not a blossom shed as soon as youth,

Drops from the stem of life--for it will grow,

In barren regions, where no waters flow,

Nor rays of promise cheats the pensive gloom.

A darkling fire, faint hovering o'er a tomb,

That but itself and darkness nought doth show,

It is my love's being yet it cannot die,

Nor will it change, though all be changed beside;

Though fairest beauty be no longer fair,

Though vows be false, and faith itself deny,

Though sharp enjoyment be a suicide,

And hope a spectre in a ruin bare.

Literature Analysis # 3: Invisible Man

General

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).

• Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison was written in 1952 in New York City. The story begins when an African-American man introduces himself to the reader as the "invisible man." He had gone underground to write about his life when the narrator flashed back to the events that lead up to his present state. Since his birth, the narrator was a gifted public speaker and was invited by the white men to give a speech in which he received a scholarship. When he was at college, he was assigned to drive Mr. Norton around the school campus. After seeing and overhearing information about Jim Trueblood, Mr. Norton got a drink from Golden Day and fainted. When the college president heard about this he expelled the narrator from school and sent him to New York City for him to find a job. He meet Emerson's son, and he offered him a job where the narrator got injured and lost his consciousness. After the narrator recovered, Brother Jack heard his speech and asked him to join the Brotherhood. The Brotherhood decided that the narrator was using the Brotherhood for his own personal use and moved him around to different places. After, the narrator tried to get revenge on the Brotherhood and by doing so he tried to get information. When he returned to Harlem a riot broke out and was caught in the confusion before running away. The narrator finally fell into a manhole where he told his story and determined he was ready to emerge from underground and be himself.

2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.

• The major theme of the novel had to be the racism between African-Americans and Whites. As the narrator tried to identify himself throughout the book, he realized that he was unable to fully express his true abilities to society. They controlled him and used him for their own personal needs. Because of this treatment, the narrator defines himself as the invisible man. 

3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).

The author's tone was thoughtful and optimistic. Instead of writing a story out of anger and frustration due to racism, the author tone was more realistic towards the situation.

• "And I love light. Perhaps you'll think it strange that an invisible man should need light, desire light, love light. But maybe it is exactly because I am invisible. Light confirms my reality, gives birth to my form." (Prologue)
• "All my life I had been looking for something and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what it was. I accepted their answers too, though they were often in contradiction and even self-contradictory. I was naïve. I was looking for myself and asking everyone except myself questions which I, and only I, could answer." (Chapter 1)

• "Whatever it was, I knew I'd have to keep it pressed down. I had to. For if I were successful tonight, I'd be on the road to something big." (Chapter 16)

4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers. (Please include edition and page numbers for easy reference.)

*Irony: The narrator's first job was for a paint company that had "Liberty Paints", but the narrator wasn't able to experience any sense of liberty throughout the novel.
*Symbolism: The "Optic White" was a symbol that resembled race because in order to make the white paint dominant the dark colors had to be covered up, same as in society. 
*Dialogue: When the narrator was to give a speech he was not only afraid of them, but also of what they had to say to him.
*Setting: It's during a time period where racism was still alive and the dominate race controlled everything.
*Plot Tension: No one is able to see the narrator for who he really is so he becomes the invisible man and disappears.
*Diction: Abusive language reflects the treatment between the races.
*Imagery: They was he felt when giving a speech could easily be seen by anyone because his confidence wasn't always there. 
*Emotional Appeal: He descried the Brotherhood and how it applied to their everyday lives.  
*Motif: The Brotherhood's mistreatment causes him to break free of their power and seek revenge for himself. 

CHARACTERIZATION 

1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization.  Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?

Direct Characterization:

• "I am not ashamed of my grandparents for having been slaves. I am only ashamed of myself for having at one time been ashamed." (Chapter 1)
• "What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?" (Chapter 13)

Indirect Characterization: 

• "You right, but everything that looks good ain't necessarily good." (Chapter 13)

2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character?  How?  Example(s)?

When the dominate race talked the diction was demanding and rude. The narrator tried to focus on how two-faced those people were. When the narrator focused on himself, his diction was thoughtful and fierce.

• "(Not that I believed this – how could I, remember my grandfather? – I only believed that it worked.) It was a great success…It was a triumph for our whole community. " (Chapter 1)

3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.
The protagonist is a dynamic character because throughout the novel he talked about the changes he underwent. He started as a person who didn't know much, to finding out that not everyone could be trusted. He is also a round character because his personality changed as well. He encountered situations that changed the way he thought by informing himself of the different traits society carried. 
4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character?  Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction.

 I feel  like I met a person because the narrator had to over come issues that were realistic. I was able to understand how the narrator saw the world he was living in.

• "How had I come to this? I had kept unswerving to the path placed before me, had tried to be exactly what I was expected to be, had done exactly what I was expected to do – yet, instead of winning the expected reward, here I was stumbling along, holding on desperately to one of my eyes in order to keep from bursting out my brain against some familiar object swerved into my path by my distorted vision." (Chapter 6)

Sonnet Analysis Part I

Is love a fancy, or a feeling? No.

It is immortal as immaculate Truth,

'Tis not a blossom shed as soon as youth,

Drops from the stem of life--for it will grow,

In barren regions, where no waters flow,

Nor rays of promise cheats the pensive gloom.

A darkling fire, faint hovering o'er a tomb,

That but itself and darkness nought doth show,

It is my love's being yet it cannot die,

Nor will it change, though all be changed beside;

Though fairest beauty be no longer fair,

Though vows be false, and faith itself deny,

Though sharp enjoyment be a suicide,

And hope a spectre in a ruin bare.

What makes a Sonnet, a Sonnet?

• 14 decasyllabic lines
• rhymed to prescription
• single rhymed
• rhyme formation
• a-b-a-b     c-d-c-d     e-f-e-f     g-g

Big Question

Why is it that "when one mans happy, the other mans sad"?

Quote of the day

“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime"

EXTRA EXTRA READ ALL ABOUT IT

This just in.... I found another website that might be helpful to our class. As I was searching for the quote Hayden mentioned in class today, I came across a page that explains some of Hamlet's quotes. The quotes are a bit everywhere, but I was able to find what I needed. Enjoy. (:

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HAMLET QUOTES

Also, I found a website that uses Hamlet as a journal entry. It's a unique point of view, but I found it interesting. Enjoy!

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HAMLET'S JOURNAL

Take what you can from it..

Today in my zero period class we filmed a video (<--That's the link.. ) where fellow students and I crafted a Socratic Seminar and touched on many subjects. We asked many questions and Hayden was able to help us understand the essay topic on performative utterance. Our class asked questions about the blog, Hamlets essay, and how we would play a role in the essay. It was a fun experience and we got a lot done considering the minimal time we had.

Vocabulary # 11

Affinity- relationship by marriage

Bilious- of or indicative of a peevish ill nature disposition
Cognate- of the same nature
Corollary- A proposition inferred Immediately from a proved proposition with little or no additional proof
Cul-de-sac- a pouch
Derring-do- a daring action
Divination- The art or practice that seeks to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge due to the interpretation of omens
Elixir- A substance capable of prolonging life indefinitely
Folderol- a useless accessory
Gamut- an entire range or series
Hoi polloi- the General populace
Ineffable- incapable of being expressed in words
Lucubration- to study by night
Mnemonic- intended to assist memory
Obloquy- abusive language
Parameter- an independent variable used to express the coordinates of variable point and functions of them
Pundit- a learned man
Risible- provoking laughter
Symptomatic- having the characteristics of a certain disease but arising of a different cause
Volte-face- a reversal in policy

Sonnet

Sonnet VII

By Hartley Coleridge

Is love a fancy, or a feeling? No.

It is immortal as immaculate Truth,

'Tis not a blossom shed as soon as youth,

Drops from the stem of life--for it will grow,

In barren regions, where no waters flow,

Nor rays of promise cheats the pensive gloom.

A darkling fire, faint hovering o'er a tomb,

That but itself and darkness nought doth show,

It is my love's being yet it cannot die,

Nor will it change, though all be changed beside;

Though fairest beauty be no longer fair,

Though vows be false, and faith itself deny,

Though sharp enjoyment be a suicide,

And hope a spectre in a ruin bare.

http://www.pemberley.com/litcomp/sonnet7.html

GROWING MY PLAN

This is the blog fellow students and I contacted. It hasn't been active for some time, but we hope they look back and respond.

http://aplove.blogspot.com/2007/11/ap-lit-hamlet-actscene-notes.html

AP HAMLET PLAN

1) http://itintegrationsg.blogspot.com/2009/01/hamlet-study-chart.html

This website offers a lot of information on Hamlet. It gives a better insight on the play and lets the audience dig deeper on Hamlet.

2) http://www.online-literature.com/quiz.php?quizid=479 

This is a quiz that helps the reader test their knowledge on Hamlet. I'm planing to use this website as a reference because it asks questions that Dr. Preston might consider to asks our class.  

3) http://millsenglish.com/wordpress/?cat=16 

This website gives examples of  past AP questions and it mentions things the audience should be aware of. It's a a great resource to look back to because it has a lot to offer. 

4) http://aplove.blogspot.com/2007/11/ap-lit-hamlet-actscene-notes.html

This website has notes on Hamlet and can be used by comparing other notes to see if everything's the same or if something important was missed. It's a great resource to refresh the memory and be on tract.   

5) http://www.gradesaver.com/hamlet/study-guide/ 

This is another website I might look back to because it has a lot to offer. When one plays around with the website they find 4 quizzes and essay topics to look to if they need further understanding of the play.

Vocabulary #10

aficionado- A person who is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about an activity, subject, or pastime

browbeat- Intimidate (someone), typically into doing something, with stern or abusive words

commensurate- able to be measured by a common standard

diaphanous- Of such fine texture as to be transparent or translucent

emolument- Payment for an office or employment

foray- A sudden raid or military advance

genre- A realistic style of painting that depicts scenes from everyday life

homily- An inspirational saying or platitude

immure- To confine within or as if within walls; imprison

insouciant- carefree or unconcerned; light-hearted

matrix- a substance, situation, or environment in which something has its origin, takes form, or is enclosed

obsequies- A funeral rite or ceremony

panache- A bunch of feathers or a plume, especially on a helmet.

persona- The role that one assumes or displays in public or society

philippic- a bitter or impassioned speech of denunciation; invective

prurient- unusually or morbidly interested in sexual thoughts or practices

sacrosanct- Regarded as sacred and inviolable

systemic- Of or relating to systems or a system

tendentious- Marked by a strong implicit point of view; partisan

vicissitude- A change or variation