Star Wars Episode VII + Final Blog Post

Here is the extra credit video on Romeo and Juliet. This is for Wes Murry and me. This took all afternoon after-school Friday to film, some editing Friday night, and then finished editing on Sunday. I think it turned out really well!

If my English blog is a body of work, I would say that it would be about an average middle school writer growing up into a 10th grader. The beginning of my blog was very low-key, almost uncaring about the blog assignments, as if they are just some easy 10 point thing. For example, the very first sentence of my blogs is "I enjoy reading a lot." The whole post was about how I like reading, when I like reading, and my favorite book.

The next two posts were about irony in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Very basic, but my knowledge was increasing a little bit all ready. After that came my earliest memories, life lessons, best friends, and character symbol. My symbol for the post was a gavel for a judge, which is most likely the most obvious thing you can think of. But none the less, I was thinking! After that came the motif of a Mockingbird. I really liked that book because it was not to hard to read, it had a good storyline, and when you helped us figure out the symbols and motifs and what those things meant, then we were able to start realizing the in-depth-ness of some of these novels.

The next thing that we did was the Animal Farm theme project. I really wish that there would me more projects like this throughout the year. They take a lot of work, but if they are assigned a month or so in advance, (and you don't procrastinate), then they are much more fun. I learn a lot better when I have fun, and this assignment helped me understand what the point of theme is.

After that it was 2010 already! We did our new-year's resolution post, which I have kept more or less, and it was to be more self-motivated. We then read The Importance of Being Ernest. I sort of liked that book, but I didn't like the whole Victorian Era research part. It didn't help me understand the book any more. But we wrote our first portion of an essay with that book! I sort of liked the group essay idea, but mostly it was just chaotic trying to make sure everyone's parts fit and they all do the right thing and we get them in the right order... sheesh. But then came Great Expectations, which I loved because I got 95 on the essay, and it was a great book. I was finally getting a good grasp on picking out themes, motifs, and symbols. The skits were fun, too, and I got to dress up as Miss Havisham, with the sheet as my dress.

The blog about finding something in the real world that relates to Romeo and Juliet was very pointless. So was the one about fate. The summer reading gave me some good ideas for this summer, but with the honors 10 book and the AP World assignment, I think I am pretty set. Nearing the end, in the essay writing skills post I talked about how much I love the Gilman Method, and that has been the most helpful thing for me this year.

Altogether, this blog could be summed up as an average writer growing in his interpretation and writing skills over the course of a year. A theme could be that you won't get anything unless you work hard for it. If you plant seeds, but you don't water them, then what is the point of planting the seeds in the beginning? Thank you so much, Mrs. Gilman, for being such a great teacher this year! You have taught us all so much, but we never felt pressured to learn too much too quickly. I really hope you will be teaching AP 11th, so that I may have a chance to get into your class a second year! For my quote, it would have to be "Something (tsk tsk) reeeal nice!" Cousin Eddie says this in WalMart in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. I think this has been a (tsk tsk) real nice 27 posts!

Essay writing skills

      I will say this first: I love the Gilman Method! It has been SO helpful! I like to be extremely organized and have everything completely ready to go, with CD's and CM's and transitions, before I start typing. The Gilman Method is perfect for that!

      I was very scared at the beginning of the year for essays. I had no idea how long they would be, what I would write about, and how I would think of enough ideas. But as we started doing short timed writes, the group essay, and finally the Great Expectations essay, and now this, it sort of worked it into me. I have been able to annotate knowing that later on I am going to have to write an essay. Some days annotating is just to get my homework done, but when I see a good idea I try to remember what color it was so I can use it later. (I use several colors of sticky notes) I have also been able to find a good motif with two sides (light/dark, strong/weak), and explain how those develop a theme. I like doing that because 1. it makes 3 easy paragraphs and 2. It keeps me from repeating commentary. The commentary used to be very hard to think of, but it has become easier and easier ans I have been learning more and more.

      This essay has been more fun to write that a nuisance because I have a very clear understanding of what I want to do for the 3 body paragraphs. On the 'B' list is:

1.Transitions may be poorly used, rough, or lacking.
I think my essay flows pretty well, but there aren't that many transitional words between 'chunks' and CM's. (Yet!)

2. Failure to use present tense always.
I use it almost always, but I think there are a couple of things like 'was' or 'were'. (In progress!)

Other than that, I think I have done pretty good on my essay! Again, I would not be able to do this without the Gilman Method! Thank you!

Summer Reading

I had to think way back to the beginning of school to remember a good book for reading this summer. I thought of some books that other classmates had read for their summer assignment that they said they liked, and I got these:

The first book is Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. I want to read this book because Jacob Peterson said it was really good, and it sounded like a very interesting plot. The time line is not chronological, and it is told from different peoples' points of view, so the timeline develops with the plot. Most off the characters are in the air force, and the main character's name is Yossarian.

The next book I chose is Mutiny on the Bounty, by Charles Nordhoff and James Hall. It is an extremely long book, but I like longer books sometimes, because I take longer to read it. I have heard it has a very engaging plot, but can be a little bit slow at times. I am up for a challenge!

I cannot wait for summer! (to read the books, of course!)

Themes and Motifs: Fate

I decided to do fate as the theme for this blog post. I saw Clash of the Titans during spring break and the intro to the movie was talking about all the stars pre-determining fate and everything being set way before time even began. I personally do not believe any of it, but because it is a very standing out theme in the play and I understand it I decided to blog about it.

The Chinese animal symbol that I am based on my time of birth is a monkey. Weird. My zodiac symbol is Gemini. Also very weird. The planets I have personal control over are Mercury and the Sun. I possess creative potential and enhance my impression on others by wearing 'the finest attire'. My lucky colors are copper and gold. It just gets stranger and stranger. I don't care at all about any of this, and hardly any of it fits me! I like to think I am creative, but I am not a monkey (?) and I don't wear 'the finest attire', I don't plan on owning any planets, and my favorite color is blue. But how does this fit into Romeo and Juliet?

In the prologue it says "A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life" (1.0.6) and this says right from the beginning that they will have bad luck together and that they just aren't the right fit for each other. But a good quote from scene three would be where Romeo says "I doubt it not; and all these woes shall serve/For sweet discourse in our times to come." (3.5.52-53) He is finally realizing that his fate has already been set for him to be banished from his true love. I think that just because I am creative and that is what my horoscope says doesn't mean all of them are true for everyone. In the same way, Romeo is hoping that what has supposedly been pre-determined he can switch back the stars to do what he wants them to do. Romeo also says to Friar Lawrence, "Ha, banishment. Be merciful, say 'Death'" (3.3.13) His star (if he is one) is simply being shot out of a cannon in the exact opposite direction that he wants to go. He would rather just end his life and get rid of the tormenting that he is going through.

That is all. Again, I don't believe anything of the star-stuff, but it is kind of funny to look at. I found out I am born on the same day as Andy Griffith!

Culture Shock: Romeo and Juliet

It was pretty dificult to find something to blog about, but I found a story about a police officer who arrested a man who was about to kill his wife. The man was driving too fast and had his high beams on, which is a typical sign of a drunk driver, so the cop followed him. He pulled him over and searched the car and there was a gun. The guy with the gun broke down and was really overwhelmed because he was going to use that gun to kill his wife.

This exemplifies a theme from R&J which is said by Friar Laurence, "Young men's love then lies, not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes." This shows how the man married his wife mostly for good looks and not for true love, so that fake love ended up turning against him to hate.

English Reflection Extra Credit Blog

This year in English has been a very good one so far. Some of my favorite activities are the group activities where we get to pick our own groups. The skits were very fun, but I felt like we didn't have enough time to prepare, and that we could have done a much better job if we had had a couple more days. But I understand that it was the week before spring break and we had to finish it quickly. I really like doing DGP all on one day, because it is always pretty easy to get 9-10 points. It has sort of become something that you just get used to doing, getting out DGP and working with a friend, finishing way ahead of time, and then talking. Another thing I have liked in this class is how the atmosphere is always calm and happy and everyone just sits on top of their desks and talks during the 10 minute break. I have also really enjoyed the frequent extended due dates, not because I don't finish the work, but because it makes me feel not as rushed and that I have that much more time to do a good job on it. I have never felt super-pressed about this class, and it has always been a class that I look forward to before lunch. It is one of my favorite classes, for sure.

Great Expectations Skit

Some ideas I have for the skit are as follows...

1. The part where Mrs. Havisham catches herself on fire and Pip uses his greatcoat to smother the fire and ends up burning his hands.

2. At the beginning where Pip first meets his convict and he tips Pip upside down and eats the bread in his pocket.

3. The scene (that is only described in the book) where Molly kills the person she was jealous of and gets the scratches on her wrists.

Which one is your favorite?

A Question about Biddy

Pip and Biddy are talking to each other in the very end of this week's reading...

"Biddy," said I, "I made a remark respecting my coming down here often, to see Joe, which you received with a marked silence..." "Are you quite sure, then, that you WILL come to see him often?" (ch 35, 306)

I don't understand at all why all of a sudden Biddy was extremely mean and condescending to Pip. I get that he says that he'll visit Joe often, and he doesn't, so Biddy doesn't believe him, but why is she just so mean? That is what I want to know, because the two used to be extremely close.

Great Expectations Photo

The picture that I chose for chapters 17-22 is a waterfall, and it symbolizes two things. One, it shows how Pip just lets his emotions pour out on Biddy, like water pouring over a cliff. He doesn't stop for anything, and lets Biddy know all his feelings, and in the same way the waterfall doesn't stop falling. (until it hits the water below). Another thing the waterfall symbolizes is Miss Havisham's life. She starts off really well, being an heiress with a ton of money and about to be married, but then she just falls and falls... eventually she just hit the water below and became stagnant, having the clocks stopped and nothing in the house changing.

Great Expectations Quote

Pause you who read this, and think for a moment of the long chain of iron or gold, of thorns or flowers, that would never have bound you, but for the formation of the first link on one memorable day.

This quote takes place the night after Pip goes to Miss Havisham's house. He was refering to this day and how he was forever changed. This day has altered him in several ways. First, he decided that he does not want to be Joe's apprentice. He wants to be a gentleman, so that he can impress Estella. He has also became embarrassed of his home. Pip describes it as grimy, plain, and doesn't want Estella to see him in this 'lowly' state. He ended his fantasies of the door being a 'magical portal', and other similar sayings that represent immaturity. Pip's character has been changed drastically starting from this day. He was young and foolish, and has dreamed of being Joe's apprentice. He was also having childlike fantasies, but this all started to end after this date. He was becoming a 'young man', and realized that he doesn't have to follow what others have planned for him, like being Joe's apprentice. He wants to be a gentleman, so that he can impress Estella.

One day that has forever changed my life was during the last week of 6th grade. Mr. Allison, my band teacher, asked me if I'd like to try an instrument called the bassoon. I said I would like to, even though I had no idea what that was. I took the instrument home over the summer, and in 7th grade Mr. Allison had me playing in the 8th grade band. Ever since that, I have loved playing, and have been able to go to All-States, be in paid orchestras, and play in solo competitions. This has affected my character because I can relate a lot of the parts of practicing my instrument to my life. Tricky notes and fingerings are just like problems you have to deal with, and you work them out untill they are perfect. Sometimes we practice the easy parts in life or music too often, and we need to work on what we can't do, so when the time comes to perform, you are completely ready.

p.s. I have a concert with the Capital Philharmonic Orchestra, and we will be performing several pieces such as the Star Wars Suite and The Planets. The concert is at the Evergreen Christian Church, and it starts at 6:30 (pm). Here is a link:

http://capitalphil.com/

Please come! It will be an awesome concert!

This is actually the graded part.

Topic sentence: Jack and Gwendolyn have a very cautious and formal relationship with each other, and Wilde is using this as an example of most Victorian Era relationships.

Transition/point #1:
an example of this.../formality, politeness
CD: "You're quite perfect, Miss Fairfax!" -Jack, p 38

CM1: very formal, talk using high diction
CM2: polite to each other, very complementary

Transition/point #2:
this shows how.../cautiousness, unsure about their love towards each other
CD: ""Do you really love me, Gwendolyn?" -Jack, p 39

CM1: slightly unsure about whether they really love each other

CM2: this makes them very cautious, at to not offend anyone

Transition/point #3:

Wilde's point by showing this is.../satire, demonstrative of all Victorian relationships

CD: "I mean we must be married at once; there is no time to be lost." -Jack, p 42

CM1: suddenly they become wanting to be married the moment they are sure of each others' love

CM2: Wilde uses satire and saying that all relationships were like that during the Victorian Era

Concluding sentence/Transition to next paragraph:

Jack's unknown brother, Algernon, is in a much different type of relationship with Jack's ward, and Wilde again uses satire in their relationship.

So there it is, and Josh, you can start off your paragraph based on my conclusion, or tell me what is wrong with it, and either of you can give suggestions. please!

heres my part

Jack and Gwendolyn have a very cautious and formal relationship with each other, and Wilde is using this as an example of most Victorian Era relationships. One detail about their formality towards each other is when Jack says, “You are quite perfect, Miss Fairfax.” (p 38) This shows how they talk using higher diction to each other. It also shows their politeness and constant complementing towards each other, and how they never downgrade one another. The reason for their behaving in this manner is because they are not fully sure if they really love each other, and Jack says, “Do you really love me, Gwendolyn?” (p 39) This goes to prove how they are slightly unsure of whether or not they love each other. For this reason, their relationship is very cautious and formal, that way they will not offend one another. Wilde’s point in having this relationship in the play is to show satirically how most Victorian Era relationships are this way. Jack says, “I mean we must be married at once; there is no time to be lost!” (p 42) Wilde uses this to show that once they are sure about their love towards one another, it is like instantaneous marriage. People in Victorian Era relationships behaved this way, and that is what the author suggests. Jack’s unknown brother, Algernon, is in a relationship much different from his own, and again Wilde uses satire on their relationship.

so there it is josh and laura. comment! and tell me of any mistakes cause its taken off all our points for every mistake!

and also i will bring the intro and my part printed so don't worry about that.

Ernest essay thesis/intro paragraph

Here it is....

In the play The Importance of Being Ernest by Oscar Wilde, the author mockingly connects three male to female relationships by their thoughts, speech, and actions towards each other to develop their characters, moral values, and to express his thoughts towards Victorian Era marriage and relationships. Whether it be love at first sight, cautious relationships, or a hidden attraction, Wilde clearly shows a deeper understanding of human nature. The relationship between Jack and Gwendolyn is an example of a cautious attraction, while Algernon and Cecily were love at first sight. Reverend Chauseble and Miss Prism, though, are in a more hidden attraction, so they are not as flamboyant as Jack and Gwendolyn are towards each other.

My part of the ernest essay

my group is doing #5. I'm doing the part about Jack+Gwendolyn. So, there we go. josh is doing Algernon +cecily, and Laura is doing Rev. chaussable and prism. comment! i was thinking we would work on the conclusion/intro/thesis stuff tommorow, and then that night do our individual paragraphs, then on wendsday, we peer edit them. in case you didn't know, Laura, josh and i are both going to be gone over the weekend so we don't have that time to get it done. Comment! and i will comment on yours!

Victorian Research/Importance of Being Earnest

Doing the research on the Victorian era prior to reading The Importance of Being Earnest has helped my understanding of the plot and characters immensely. One way it has enhanced my understanding is with females' role in society. One example of this is where Gwendolyn says "Ernest, we may never be married. From the expression on my mother's face I fear we never shall." (p53) This shows how younger women were bossed around by their moms or their husbands. In fact, all of a wife's possessions go to the husband when they are married.

Another way doing research on the Victorian era has helped me is by understanding why they talk about the things they do, and what they find important. Jack was saying "Well, yes, I must admit I smoke." and Lady Bracknell responded "I am glad to hear it." (p47) What the people back then considered important is way different than it is now, with things such as moral values, etc. Some things considered important for marriage were smoking, ancestry, and wealth, not as much whether you really loved the person or not. My knowledge of the Victorian era coming into reading the play has made everything from clothing to marriage easier to understand.

new years resolution

I've never really done new years resolutions, but as I thought about it, I realized I am not a self-prompter, or I don't really start things by myself. I rarely practice my instrument without being told, sometimes I would much rather do something else. Also, just other little bad habits like putting off homework and stuff all come from not having self-initiative.

It's ironic that I chose this to be my new years resolution because self initiative is a thing that you need to keep up resolutions. So, I guess to keep something like this up, you just need to say to yourself "I will be different" and then just work as hard as you can to change yourself. It can also be hard because it takes time for people (especially your parents) to notice how you are different. This is because your grades won't go up instantly just because you decided to be different. So I need to just live through any discouragement that comes because of that and just keep working harder.