Monday, November 28, 2011

Vernacular

The language cultures and societies use every day differ from another. For example, the language spoken in Spain (Spanish) is completely different than the language spoken in England (English). Furthermore, the words we use within a specific language changes under various circumstances. Your vernacular is expressed as the words you use on a daily basis. For example, the stereotypical Australian will use the word "mate" repeatedly when talking to another person, and this is known as their vernacular.



As you watch this video, you can see that he tries to use an Australian's vernacular for comedic value. Sadly, he did not know that Austria is different than Australia and failed to make the connection.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Thinking Outside the Box

Plato describes the limitations of our thinking through a sense of knowledge. Through his "Allegory in the Cave" he expresses that the general people have no idea what is going on around them, and only people of greater power know the truth. When they were given permission and saw the light, they were scared and wanted to return to ignorance. However, as they stared into the light more, they realized they wanted to learn more. With this, Plato told us that we are limited to what we know by a higher power, and the only way that we can discover more and educate ourselves is by searching for knowledge. If we do not search for knowledge, we will simply be prisoners staring at what "they" want us to know.

Sarte describes the limitations of our thinking through a sense of isolation and secrecy. We are limited to what we know through other people's truths and lies. In some cases, people are not capable of determining what is true and what is false because others have control over what they know (As Inez had control of Garcin in "No Exit"). If truth and honesty is not met, then the madness generated consumes people forever. The hell depicted by Satre isn't one of physical pain and discomfort, but instead it is one of psychological torture and misery. In other words, we are limited to our thinking by the people we interact with everyday. The only way to get around this is to not seclude yourself to one train of thought. One must be open-minded and ever-changing in order to avoid suffering.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Literature Analysis #3

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

1. The story is a fictional memoir narrated by the author himself. There is no central plot because the story is written as a collection of multiple events that don't take place in chronological order. One chapter in particular, "Ambush", stood out the most, however. This chapter depicts a moment when Tim is walking down a dirt path during the middle of the night in Vietnam. As he's walking, his heart begins to pound faster and faster due to his situation circumstances. It develops a sense of suspense to the audience and you can imagine yourself in his shoes. When he hears something up ahead, Tim gets even more frightened. He readies a grenade, and is not hesitant to throw it if necessary. All of a sudden, he sees a silhouette in the night and releases the grenade. After a grueling few seconds, the grenade explodes and kills the man. From that day, he states, Tim was never able to look at the world in the same way - he had killed a man.

2. The theme of the specific chapter is that war changes people in ways that civilians will never understand. Unless you are personally faced in this position, as many soldiers are, you will fail to comprehend what happens to people when they return from the battlefield. Some might think they can relate in certain ways, but I believe that nothing compares to killing a man you know nothing about. It's a feeling a never want to experience in my life.

3. The tone of the story is fearful. Throughout the entire story, Tim is a coward, and he wants nothing to do with the military at all. He is scared every morning he wakes up and every night he painfully drifts into a sleep. The only thing that keeps him sane is his friends.

4. O'Brien's use of setting, syntax, and diction empowered the text to make it intense and seem lifelike.

  • Setting:
  • Syntax:
  • Diction: 

Thursday, November 17, 2011

The Big Question

What is a black hole and how are they created? If anything, what lies on the other side of a black hole?

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Hamlet is Not an Epic Hero

Hamlet is Not an Epic Hero
            Hamlet’s language differentiates him from epic heroes, such as Beowulf, in a couple of ways. The diction and tone of Hamlet’s colloquial language are noticeably different to those of Beowulf’s. Hamlet is a confused, young boy while Beowulf is a heroic, arrogant man, and this is expressed through how the characters speak. Although both Hamlet and Beowulf are critically acclaimed characters in literature, their speech distinguishes them from one another entirely.
            Diction plays a major role throughout all of Shakespeare’s plays and literary works, and Hamlet is no exception. Throughout the play, Hamlet promotes himself as an intelligent young man through his use of words. For example, in Hamlet’s soliloquy he states, “Thus conscience does make cowards of us all, and thus the native hue of resolution is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought…”After analyzing this quote, it is clear that Hamlet was well educated through his use of words (i.e. sicklied).
            Beowulf, among all arrogant men, speaks with words of power. Beowulf speaks highly of himself in order for his language to correspond with his actions and appearance. After all, what is a hero if he cannot express his accomplishments? For example, Beowulf states, “My father was a famous soldier, known far and wide as a leader of men.” Beowulf says this to promote himself, and his words (i.e. “…leader of men”) accomplish just that. The word “leader” is highly praised in all cultures and it allows the people to realize where he came from, and who he really is.
            The words a man uses tells you what kind of person they are, but the way a man says these words tells you what they are truly saying. Tone plays a major role in Hamlet’s language because it allows for indirect characterization throughout the play. For example, when Hamlet considers, “To die, to sleep – to sleep – perchance to dream: ay there’s the rub…” Hamlet is coming to a sudden realization when he practices self-overhearing, and we can tell through his tone. This phrase can be interpreted in a variety of ways, but Hamlet’s meaning is clear when his tone of realization sets in. After analyzing Hamlet’s language, it is clear that he speaks with an optimistic tone, and keeps an open mind through his speech.
            An epic hero requires a stern, confident tone to achieve an encouraging standard. Beowulf practices this technique throughout the epic, and his tone allowed him to attain a role model stature that he longed for. For example, immediately before diving into the lake to face his foe, Beowulf states, “And if your enemy should end my life then be, O generous prince, forever the father and protector of all whom I leave behind me, here in your hands, my beloved Comrades left with no leader, their leader dead.” This shows how Beowulf’s language expresses his determination to be the role model for his people.
            Both Hamlet and Beowulf use their language effectively to express their purpose and thoughts. Hamlet speaks in a subtle, indecisive manner while Beowulf speaks ambitiously and with heroic-like words. Although both characters’ purposes are meaningful, their languages differ between one another greatly. 

Monday, November 7, 2011

Self-Overhearing

Self-overhearing is the technique in which one says something orally, and then re-interprets the meaning of the words to create a different understanding of one's previous comprehension. It is practiced in both literary works and in real life. For example, in Hamlet, Hamlet has several soliloquies in which he develops a new mindset based on his previous thoughts and opinions. I, too, talk to myself occasionally to sort my thoughts and to attain a greater understanding of my own thinking. Critical thinking and the development of one's mind is accomplished through the practice of self-overhearing.


Sunday, October 23, 2011

Literature Analysis #2

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

1) The Road is the story of a man and his son in search of a refuge in a post-apocalyptic world. Throughout their pursuit to a new beginning, they encounter numerous setbacks. The father's top priority is to keep his son alive and healthy. He will do absolutely anything for his son, and his son feels protected and cared for. At such an early age, it is important for his son to feel safe because it will keep him mentally sane and functional. Furthermore, scavengers would constantly pose a threat to the father and son. As the journey goes on, the father slowly starts to suffer from his poor health. Near the end of the story, the father dies from disease and the son is offered to join another colony. The son accepts, and the story ends with the son venturing away with his new found family.

2) The theme of the story is how the power of hope can affect the way we live. If the father had not hoped for a refuge on the coast, he would not have struggled to get his family there. The father would have eventually died from his disease wherever he was, and the son would have been alone. The son would have never been picked up by the colony in the end, and he may have died, as well. Hope is a feeling we get that drives us to work for what we want. Without it, nothing would happen, and no progress in society would be made.

3) The tone of the story is depressed. Nothing seems to work right for the father and son. They are constantly struggling to survive and only hoping that the rumors they heard of the coast were true. The author accomplishes a sympathetic mood for the audience with his depressed tone. For example:
  • "I told the boy when your dream about bad things happening, it means you're still fighting and you're still alive. It's when you start to dream about good things that you should start to worry." 
  • "How many people do you think are still alive?" "In the world? Not very many."
  • "Do you ever wish you would die?" "No. It's foolish to ask for luxuries in times like these."
4) McCarthy's use of syntax, imagery, and setting aided him in expressing his theme of the power of hope.
  • Syntax: 
          "You forget what you want to remember, and you remember what you want to forget."
  • Setting:
          The setting is in a desolate wasteland where there is no happiness to be found. Sorrow lurks in nearly everyone's lives.
  •  Imagery:
          "Then they set out along the blacktop in the gunmetal light, shuffling through the ash, each the others' world entire."

Friday, October 21, 2011

Tools That Change the Way We Think

The internet is one of my main sources of education and entertainment. This alone tells you that who I am today is heavily influenced by what I read and see on tbe internet. (Cracked and youtube) I wasn't always someone who would research numerous topics to gain knowledge purely for my self-being, but internet access made this possible. I now find myself analyzing things in everyday life more than necessary because I developed this state of mind. For example, simple things like how people present themselves or speak will spark countless thoughts. I believe the internet has benefitted not only my education, but who I am, as well.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

In Search Of

After watching the video, I was surprised about what the internet is really capable of. I may have known about the algorithms behind the filter bubble, but I never knew how complex it was. The fact that there are 57 different factors that play into what I see when I simply search something on a search engine (i.e. Google) is remarkable, and frightening. Furthermore, now that I know that literally every link I click, every website I search, and every document I email is contributing to the development of my filter bubble, I will be more weary of the filter bubble. A question I frequently asked myself was, "Does this mean that people have been plagiarizing some of my work and ideas that I share with people (via Email or Facebook) over the internet?" If Google and Facebook have access to my information, then surely others do, as well. I believe I can begin improving the effectiveness of my searches by being more specific to the point where I will get valuable results regardless of my interests and habits. I believe that the filter bubble is only effective to a certain point. If people learn to bypass the system, it may become of less concern for those of us that are on the internet frequently.


When searching what Shakespeare's life was like, I opened Google, and typed in "Who was Shakespeare and how did he write his plays?" Earlier I simply typed, "Who was Shakespeare?" After refining my search, I was surprised to see no related websites even though I only added several more words onto the search. With the new search, I found a website <http://absoluteshakespeare.com/trivia/biography/shakespeare_biography.htm> and I learned more about Shakespeare than I did before. For example, I learned that his education supposedly took place at the King's New Grammar School in Stratford which taught basic reading and writing. However, there is a lack of evidence of any college education, and this leaves a mystery behind how Shakespeare was able to write as fluently and effectively as he did. 

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Notes on Hamlet

At first, I thought the play was going to be boring (Excuse my diction), difficult to interpret, and utterly pointless to analyze and discuss. I never enjoyed Shakespeare, nor did I understand his works. However, after reading thus far into Hamlet, my opinion has changed. I still struggle in interpreting Shakespeare's text, but it is definitely less strenuous than it once was. I believe by analyzing and discussing his work now, I am strengthening my reading comprehension skills and improving as an "English" student. Furthermore, the play is full of suspense and it always keeps the audience guessing what Hamlet will do next. Personally, I think Hamlet is preparing for his move on Claudius to finally kill him and avenge his father. I believe it will be a torturous death and the ending will be gruesome. Hamlet can't simply kill the king, he has to rigorously murder him.

Who was Shakespeare?

Shakespeare, or the "Master" of English Literature, was an actor and playwright. Shakespeare lived in London and wrote numerous plays. However, these plays were not always published, some were written down as tracts, instead. Many of his plays were performed in the Globe Theater in London. We don't know how Shakespeare attained his knowledge of royalty because he was simply a middle-class man. It's odd for Shakespeare to know the upper-class system in depth, and many people believe he cannot be the true author of his work because it seems impossible for one to accumulate this knowledge under his circumstances. Students, like myself, are intimidated by Shakespeare's work. Shakespeare is strenuous and difficult to expound. After practicing with his works, however, I find myself being familiar with his writing style, and it doesn't take me nearly as long to comprehend his work. I am better at reading the text and interpreting the words, but I still struggle with finding the deeper meaning within his text. It takes a literary genius in order to fully understand what he truly meant by his words.

To Facebook or Not to Facebook

Facebook is a spectacular invention that enables people around the world to communicate efficiently. This invention also enables unfamiliar people to learn anything, and everything, about oneself without he/she knowing it. Facebook is simply just a tool, or scalpel (In reference to Dr. Preston's analogy discussed in class), that can benefit and harm society. Facebook shouldn't be praised or blamed when, in reality, the people using it are responsible for its actions.

Monday, October 10, 2011

(Don't) Be Hamlet

Alex McKinney
10-10-11
Period 6
Hamlet Soliloquy Essay
            Hamlet has felt emotions many people will never feel or understand. Certain situations and emotions in life cannot be comprehended unless they are experienced firsthand. Hamlet’s dilemma is a perfect example of one of these situations. Both decisions cannot be considered more correct than the other, but I do believe that death is the most logical pathway under Hamlet’s circumstances.
            Hamlet is an uncontrollable and emotional wreck. He slowly breaks down as he thinks about everything occurring around him. His father was killed by Claudius, the love of his life, Ophelia, is skeptical in her approach toward him and, worse of all, nobody accepts Hamlet’s mourning. For example, shortly after the death of his father, the queen states, “Good Hamlet, cast thy knighted color off, and let thine eye look like a friend on Denmark. Do not for ever with thy vailรจd lids seek for thy noble father in the dust. Thou know’st ‘tis common. All that lives must die, passing through nature to eternity.” With absolutely no support, it is difficult, if not impossible, to overcome the feelings that Hamlet is experiencing.
            Hamlet doesn’t just feel depressed; he has conjured an incomprehensible animosity towards Claudius. Hamlet’s father died at the hands of Claudius, and Hamlet loses control of his rationality. In response to Guildenstern, Hamlet answers, “I have of late – but wherefore I know not – lost all my mirth, forgone all custom of exercises; and indeed, it goes heavily with my disposition that this goodly frame the earth seems to me a sterile promontory…”Hamlet is slowly going insane. It is as if Hamlet’s soul was destroyed when he lost his father, and he is being replaced by an entirely new soul with different ideals. In this perspective, Hamlet has already died, and it is impossible for him to be resurrected.
            After analyzing Hamlet’s dilemma, the logical decision is clear to me. Hamlet needs to kill himself in order to free himself of his troubles. Even if Hamlet were to take revenge on his uncle, Claudius, nothing would be resolved. Hamlet died with his father, but he is trapped as a soul inside a body in which he has lost control over. The confused, corrupt Hamlet has emerged from the depths of his depression and anger to take control. In Hamlet’s last plea before losing all rationality, he states, “To die, to sleep – no more – and by a sleep to say we end the heartache, and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to. ‘Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished.” The only way for Hamlet to escape his pain and suffering is through death.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Literature Analysis

1. The Stranger by Albert Camus is a story of an ordinary man that goes through a life changing experience in a short amount of time. The main character's mother dies in the beginning of the story, and he seems untouched from this tragedy. Later on, Mersault is invited to a beach house with some of his friends and he agrees to go with them in order to get away from everything. While walking around on the beach with his peers, he encounters two Middle Eastern men and they start a feud. The feud results in one of the Mersault's peers being shot, and the Middle Eastern men run away. However, Mersault returns to the beach later and he kills the man that shot his friend. Once word gets out, the Mersault is sent to court and he must take part in a trial. The novel ends with Mersault receiving a death sentence, but at this point, he does not care.
2. The theme of the novel is that one's life should be lived purely for enjoyment. Nothing should hold somebody back from doing what makes them happy because nothing matters.
3. The author's tone is completely emotionless. It seems as if the story is being told by an elderly man with a monotone voice.

  • "He was moving toward the casket when I stopped him. He said, 'You don't want to?' I answered, 'No.' He was quiet, and I was embarrassed because I felt I shouldn't have said that. He looked at me and then asked, 'Why not?' but without criticizing, as if he just wanted to know. I said, 'I don't know.'"
  • "It occurred to me that anyway one more Sunday was over, that Maman was buried now, that I was going back to work, and that, really, nothing had changed."
  • "For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate."
4. The five literary techniques I noticed from The Stranger were:
  • The first-person point of view
          Any excerpt would work as an example, but here is one that I like - "I acknowledged that that was      their right. It also meant that they must have had time for it. As for me, I didn't want anybody's help, and I just didn't have the time to interest myself in what didn't interest me."
  • Imagery
          "The sky was already filled with light. The sun was beginning to bear down on the earth and it was getting hotter by the minute."
  • Symbolism
          "All I could see in his slightly lopsided face were his two very bright eyes, which were examining me closely without betraying any definable emotion. And I had the odd impression of being watched by myself."