End of Year Reflection

               From start to end, I have been generally the same personality wise, albeit a little more mature due to aging; however, as a writer and reader, I have seen and learned so much more than I did before the class.  I have learned methods by which I may persuade others, helping lead, and learn to see through persuasions for the manipulations that they really are. 

1. The essay I felt was the most difficult to write was the rhetorical analysis.  This essay was difficult for me because it, depending on the passage, could be very difficult to find good examples of rhetorical devices that could craft strong and unique essay.
2. I found the Synthesis essay the easiest.  I find it easy because all you have to do is pick sources that they give you and build upon them.  We also learned a lot about how to analyze sources, which made it easier to plan the essay out and reference it in the essay.
3. The novel/book I liked the most is either the Crucible or The Things They Carried.  I had a fun time with the Crucible, especially when the TUTS, or whatever it was called, came and we acted the play out.  That was fun.  The Things They Carried had a lot of depth without boring me. 
4. My least favorite novel/book was In Cold Blood.  The book is tiring for anybody, and I would have to read huge chunks at a time because I would procrastinate.  The story had long drawn out parts.  Also the obsession thing with Perry, I did not have a taste for.
5. I would like to thank Mr. Thomas.  The class was not a burden on me and I wasn't afraid of entering the class ever.  The atmosphere was positive and good.  Just keep doing what your doing and everything will sort itself out.  Thank you.

 

The Things I Carry

The Things I Carry

• Physical Item
• I usually carry a watch with me whenever I leave for school or races.  It doesn't really have some sentimental value or some significant emotion attached to it, but it helps me keep time and  keep track of my pace when I run.  As a runner it is a important item for something I love to do.  When I run without it my wrist feels bare.  If I forget it at home, I just tell myself to remember it tomorrow.

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• Dreams/Goals
• What is it that drives a man past the very edge of human endurance.  It is will.  A tireless desire of self-improvement that pushes any man onward to be better.  That is my goal, my drive.  To be stronger, faster, smarter, kinder, wiser, better.  My dream is to fulfill my potential and never let myself fall short of that.  The will to fight through struggle and pain valiantly is what I possess and what I strive to hold onto until the day I die.  I want to be more than what I am, and I will be more than the limitations I face as I break them again and again.

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•  Relatiionship
•  My "Martha," so to speak, will be my love, my wife.  I work hard for her everyday so that when our fates entwine I would be a man worth living with.  My future love drives me to meet her with my full confidence, for the choices I make today will be the ones I will have to live with tomorrow.  I am driven so that I won't be a burden on her.  I will be half of the arch, her the other half, supporting each other throughout our stand.  If I am not worthy of her yet, then I my will to be so will motivate to be worthy of her, not partially but completely, wholly.

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• Personality
•  Three adjectives to describe myself? Why only three? Which do I choose?  If I had to choose: Diverse, Manifold, Conglomerate.  I am varied, not bound by a limited number of things.  The elements of me are what make up my personality.  They do not result in one thing easily nor should they.  I am boundless, limitless.  Why? Because I believe that.  Who else would I want to be if that limits me?  There would be no reason.  The different aspects of me are seen throughout my day.  If another wants to analyze what makes me up, then they simply need to stand by me.  There may be difficulty in understanding me, but whats the fun in discovering me without a little intrigue or mystery.  To be diverse, all noble and good qualities, helps me to push harder than ever to become something more.

 

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• Memory

• Forget memory.  Some may argue that it shapes you that events change you.  That may be true, but I do not let it constrict me or even over-shape me.  Clinging to a memory is not always healthy.  It can cause stress and inhibit further growth.  I have no specific memory that drives me from my past.  I fight everyday to make memories in the future.  I haven't made them yet and I won't until I get there.  Memories are not made by dwelling on past ones.   

      These are the things I carry.

The Cultural Question

         

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            The culture of one's parentage should not have to be forced upon him.  A person is his own not what others desire him to be.  For if the child did not come from the society of his parents, then what possible direct connection could he possibly possess.  This a dilemma that modern day children struggle to face today in America.

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           Most people struggle to decide whether or not to embrace their cultural heritage, like Maggie, or to alienate themselves entirely to become something new, like Dee.  Neither of which are without benefit or without downsides.  The struggle of choice is one that happens in everything, but is one of the biggest issues with this uncertainty.  Some are ambivalent and others indecisive.  But there may be a third option to this ordeal.

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         The third option is to obtain the hybridization of both options, where certain aspects of your heritage are reflected in your everyday self.  You shouldn't have to decide on whether to be yourself or to take part in where your family is from.  The way your parents raised you should have had an impact on who you are and what you will become.  This is regardless of whether you embrace their roots or not.

 

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           What I personally do to be the third option is nothing.  Parts of the culture of my parents are reflected in my manner and in my actions.  I don't have to try to embrace my heritage, nor do I alienate myself from it.  I chose the third path simply by being me.  Isn't that how culture grows without a revolution having to take place?  So for now I will continue walking down the third path, unworried by the triviality of ambivalence over my culture.

The Definition of the Horror Story

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      Here are a list of things I would incorporate from the Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allen Poe into the writing of a horror movie.

• The dark ominous setting.  The setting sets the mood in any story.  A dark setting with creeping, pale, obscuring fog, ancient architecture, and shifting, deep shadows adds to the effect of the unnatural.  Poe did this in the House of Usher to great effect. I would use this to plant the seed of fear and suspense in my audience.   

•  The portryal of characters.  The characters of a horror story are as equally important to the story as the setting.  Pale, mysterious, brooding characters help to reinforce the unnatural, unsettling the audience.  Roderick Usher is one such character.  Poe depicts him as unnaturally deathly and makes his appearance and mood detached and ethereal.  I would create my characters in such a way as to ensconce the peculiarity of the story, unnerving the audience.

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• The supernatural or ethereal is a key part in a horror story.  Poe uses this when the Mad Tryst is being read and the sounds of the story happen in reality.  This sows fear into the characters and, further, the audience.  I would use the abnormal and supernatural in order to establish the plot and aid it along.

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• The fear of the unknown is a primal fear found in all.  It is a very useful tool in acquiring the basis of a horror story.  Poe gives brief unsettling instances of the narrator seeing Madeline even though she is dead.  The noises during the Mad Tryst are another example of that.  I would use the fear of the unknown to create suspense in the story.

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• The creation of doubt and mystery at the end is another good item to use.  Poe destroys the house in a flash of light and the house sinks.  This raises the question of the reality of the situation.  Did it really happen?  Am I delusional?  This would leave a disturbed feeling in the audience and would further facilitate the fear in the story.

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The Fault of Finding Fault

               Finding fault in people, especially leaders, leads to harm and static motion.  Any potentially brilliant ideas get shot down when the person is "the cause" of whatever is a matter with the world.  Not only does this prevent some potential progress but also furthers the downfall of the said person's character.  The United States has a tendency to do just this with its leaders in government.

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               President Herbert Hoover was one of the presidents in office during the Great Depression.  Many Americans blamed him for the Great Depression.  This made a lot of trouble for him during his time in office.

One of his ideas was to end the laissez faire policy of America thus the government having direct intervention to help the economy recover.  The mere thought of this plan had many Americans angered at its suggestion because laissez faire was one the most important of American ideals.

               

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            Maybe his sentiments for solving the Depression could have solved it, but who is to say.  The scrutiny a blame on him made him lose in a landslide to Roosevelt.  Eventually the economy bounced back, in part due to WWII.  The world is full of possibility; maybe his plans would have worked.

           The many choices and ideas one can fulfill sometimes become blocked due to who we are painted as.

If we are blamed for the devestation of today, then are we doomed by a lack of redemption.  For it takes much time to rebuild trust, even when it is unjustly  taken.  Humanity should strive to consider the options of others if they can help and not block them because of who suggests them.

                         The Antihero of our Time

      

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              An antihero is a protagonist who lacks the pure hero moral compass.  They could be lacking mercy or nobility of character that the "normal" view of a hero would usually be.  People usually have conflicted feelings over such a character because they adore him but are simultaneously unsure about supporting some of his darker traits.

              Severus Snape, from the Harry Potter series, is one example of an antihero.  He is "one of the good guys," but he also is a major rival to Harry Potter.  Snape is a spy for Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts and nemesis to the dark, evil wizard Voldemort.  In being so, he is often called upon to carry out deeds of both the light and the dark.

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                     Snape, throughout the book, partially antagonizes Harry Potter causing Harry to believe Snape as a man of bad character.  Harry isn't entirely wrong however.  Snape did tell Voldemort about a prophecy in order to spare Lily, Harry's mother and Snape's love, which caused Voldemort to go to kill Harry's parents and attempt to kill Harry himself.  He turned spy for Dumbledore after that.

                 Snape eventually killed Dumbledore.  As a result most people lost faith in Snape as a good guy, but his reasons revealed more of his light.  Dumbledore was cursed by a ring and was about to die soon anyway, also Draco Malfoy, a student at Hogwarts was sent to kill Dumbledore, and Severus killed Dumbledore so that Malfoy would not become a murderer.

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                  In the end, at Snape's end, the best of Snape is revealed.  The reason's for his darker deeds and characteristics.  His memories revealed that he was a "good guy" in the end.

                  Snape has relations to the character of Ichabod Crane from Sleepy Hollow.  They both have a measure of selfishness: Snape's exemplified through revealing the prophecy to Voldemort to protect Lily,even thought she was married to James Potter, and Ichobod in his desiring to marry a girl to receive wealth.  They both are teachers at their respective schools and are not hesitant to discipline their more rambunctious students.  The third thing is that they both desired women they could not have: Snape with Lily, and Ichabod with Katrina.

                 Snape is an Antihero.