Breathing Dreams like air- blog 13

     The American Dream is defined as the idea that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. Despite this, I believe that the American Dream is different for every person living in the United States. Everyone has different goals they are pursuing and different aspects of life bring them happiness. Personally, I would describe the American Dream as the freedom to do whatever I want and follow my personal dreams. My definition of wealth is not material goods. I value material goods and understand that money is a necessity, but only consider money as a means to facilitate my happiness. To me, wealth is found in experiences and moments in my life where I am very happy. This happens the most when I am outdoors or spending time with people I love. A wealthy person is someone who lives a fulfilling life and is always happy. Most americans tie wealth into money. The average person views wealth based on the paycheck someone takes home. Someone is wealthy if they have a lot of money and they are poverty stricken if they do not have much cash. I disagree with this common belief because there are many people with a huge amount of money are not happy while there are many people with almost no money who are a joy to be around and love life. Money is a means to happiness, but being rich is not the same as being wealthy. A wealthy person is someone who is happy because they love what they are doing with their life. I believe that monetary wealth and poverty play a small role in the whole scheme of things. As long as someone has a positive outlook on life and are doing what they love, I would consider them very wealthy.  

Everything I Need to Know I Learned in IB Language & Literature Year 2 blog post 15

It was sunny yet cold outside as I tied into the rope and patted climbing chalk onto my calloused hands. Today was the day I would retry Arms Control at Pilot Mountain. The last time I climbed this route, I could not finish the roof and fell nearly twenty feet. Adrenaline coursed through my veins as I placed my hands on the cool, rough rock and then moved my feet onto the wall. The first few moves were very hard. I grasped the tiny crimps and strained to move myself up the route. Soon, I was past the difficult start and onto the easy and juggy holds midway through the climb. Smoothly, I clipped each bolt and clambered closer and closer to the intimidating roof climb. I got to the rest stop on the route and sat back to steady my breathing before I attempted the roof. After a few seconds, I began to climb again and moved up right under the roof. I grabbed the huge jug and set my feet before the big move. I gritted my jaw, moved my right hand out to the slippery crimp and jumped with all my might for the big hold on the edge of the roof. Got it! Excitement surged throughout me, but I remembered that the climb still wasn't done. I clipped the bolt on the roof and traversed along the jugs until I was right below the chains at the top of the climb. I reached up for a great hold right by the chains and pulled myself to victory. I had completed the climb and had gotten my first 5.11 outdoors! Extremely happy, I lowered myself down the rope to the praise of the climbers below. Arms Control had given me a great deal of trouble, but I finally climbed it. 

Here I am on the crux move of Arms Control (5.11d)

Blog Post 14 Witty Whitman

Step 1: Reading Whitman's notebook was an interesting experience. Often, his notes were different to make out. I appears that this notebook was a place for him to write down any idea that comes to mind before he forgets it. The notebook hosts a wealth of ideas and poems such as "The Hills of Brooklyn" and "The Ship of Libertad." Among the notes, Whitman also had various drawing and sketches of men, possibly those mentioned in his poems. It appears to me that the sketches and poems all represent ideas and theories that Whitman had throughout his life. The notebook was the foundation for the poems he wrote and he used it to record all of his ideas, so he could later organize them into cohesive poems. After looking throughout Whitman's notes, it is obvious that he is very creative and used poetry to express his ideas and beliefs.

Step 2: After taking a deeper look at the notebook through the helpful translations, I concluded that my original opinion of Whitman's notebook was mostly accurate. Whitman's priceless notebook was a place where he could absorb in his thoughts and record notes and bits of poetry that were based on his lifetime experiences and the people he idolized or interacted with. Lincoln, Whitman's favorite president was mentioned in the notebook because of Whitman's enormous respect for him. After reading the yellow notes of Whitman's book, I observed that many of his notes were based of the time period he lived in. Whitman experienced the brutality of the civil war and a great deal of his notes were melancholy accounts of the bad emotions that arose on either side during the civil war. Whitman used the civil war as grounds for a great deal of poems. A deeper look at the notebook revealed that Whitman was very observant, and similar to a sponge, absorbed details from his surroundings and used them in all of his poetry.

Blog Post 12, Nothing Really Mattress

#1:As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.
Syntax- uneasy, transformed, gigantic, insect
Imagery/details- He slept poorly, and and transformed into a strange creature
Structure- simple, concise
Other stylistic/figurative elements- introductory sentence
#2:Gregory Samsa woke from uneasy dreams one morning to find himself changed into a giant bug.
Syntax- uneasy, changed, giant, bug
Imagery/details- Reader can picture Samsa as a giant bug
Structure- short, concise
Other stylistic/figurative elements- doesn't provide much information, short intro sentence 
#3:When Gregor Samsa awoke from troubled dreams one morning he found he had been transformed in his bed into an enormous bug.
Syntax- troubled, transformed, enormous, bug
Imagery/details- more detailed, reader knows he awoke in his bed
Structure- longer, but not run on
Other stylistic/figurative elements- leaves the reader asking why 

#4:One morning, upon awakening from agitated dreams, Gregor Samsa found himself, in his bed, transformed into a monstrous vermin.

Syntax- agitated, transformed, monstrous, vermin

Imagery/details- included the most detail, reader gets a mental picture

Structure- choppy, wordy

Other stylistic/figurative elements- introduction sentence, hook

How does the word choice, syntax, punctuation, and imagery shift in each affect meaning? Is one more effective than another? Why? What does this exercise bring up about the difficulty of reading translated texts? How do different translations effect the tone of the sentence? 

     Word choice plays a very import role in determining the meaning of a sentence. Each translation provided covers the exact same scenario, but word choice, syntax, punctuation, and imagery make the sentences a little bit different than each other. In every sentence, different words are used to describe Samsa's sleep and the creature he changes into. The different word choices make the sentences have slightly different interpretations by the reader. Some of the sentences provide a more detailed description of setting, while others are simpler and leave the reader asking even more questions. Word choice is the most effective way of manipulating the meaning of a sentence because changing one word could leave the sentence meaning something completely different. Good word choice is vital if an author wants to effectively convey the intended meaning of a sentence or text. 

     This exercise shows that translating texts can be a very difficult business. If even a slight mistake is made, then the meaning of the sentence can be lost or changed. Different translations can cause the tone of the sentence to be altered. By changed a word from one language into a similar but not exact word from another language, the entire tone of the sentence can shift from passive to aggressive or interested to passionate. Each word was specifically chosen by the original author and is extremely important to the overall meaning. Translators need to be careful they do not make mistakes that could alter an author's original intention. 

Blog Post 11- Freebie!!!!

FREEBIE!!

I've got you covered

I decided to compare the bottom two covers of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. These images cover the same story, but show it a two very different angles. The cover on the left captures a beautiful part of the story where Ruth, Kathy, and Tommy go visit a boat that washed up near one of the donation clinics. This is a very emotional scene, and the three friends share a heartwarming moment where they connect one last time before Ruth passes away.  The cover mimics the warm glow of a sunset at the beach and is very calming. The cover on the right is a much bleaker cover that focuses on the purpose of the clones. It brings out the gruesome side of the story and reminds the reader of the bleak outcome the clones are destined for. They will eventually donate their organs until they "complete." This cover uses much bleaker colors and, while it covers the same story as the cover on the left, it is centered around the sad side of the story.

Left Cover:
1. Peaceful, Beautiful, Calming. This cover makes me think of my summer trips to the beach where I get to relax with friends and spend time with family. I love relaxing on the beach and watching the majestic sunset, and this cover evokes many memories of evening beach strolls.
2. If I didn't read the novel, I would think it was a love story about a fisherman and his wife. He would go out in dangerous weather to catch fish, and she would always be afraid he wouldn't make it back. This image captures a beautiful part of the actual story by Ishiguro where the three friends are sharing a moment together before they all complete.
3. The boat washed up on the shore is depicted on the cover. It is pictured from the same view the three friends would have had when they visited. They sat on the beach and admired the sun set over the boat.
4. The cover depicts the book constructed as a love story. It shows a beautiful scene in the story.
5. People who enjoy writing about love stories would right this book. People who enjoy reading about heartwarming love stories would read this book.

Right Cover:
1. Bleak, Sad, Melancholy. This cover makes me think if the Holocaust. It depicts a skinny human torso silhouetted with barbed wire.
2. If I didn't read the novel, I would think it was a bleak love story, centered around two Jews in concentration camps. They would be separated by the Nazis, but would always try to survive, so they would be reunited after the war.
3. The skinny torso depicts one of the clones. It shows their organs and focuses on their sole purpose of existence. We are looking at the viewpoint from the non-sympathetic humans. They only look at the clones as organ factories.
4. This cover depicts the book as a melancholy story.
5. People who enjoy writing sad stories would right this book. People who enjoy reading about sad, but touching stories would read this book.

Blog Post Nine, Once Upon a Time

https://www.ted.com/talks/joe_sabia_the_technology_of_storytelling

     TED talks are a very interesting way for speakers to convey revolutionary ideas and speeches. In the Technology of Storytelling, Joe Sabia explains the evolution of storytelling and how new technologies changed it over thousands of years. He speaks to an enlightened and interested audience. The people at TED talks are usually well educated and eager to hear the speaker. Sabia begins by introducing Lothar Meggendorfer, the creator of the first pop up book. This is an excellent lead into his presentation, and throughout the video, he tells us how storytelling was revolutionized and has become more interesting and interactive as more technology was created. He explains that the stories often remained consistent and the messages behind them were generally the same, but the human race has progressed from "depicting hunting on cave walls to depicting Shakespeare on Facebook walls" (Sabia). His presentation was very interactive and drew the viewer in because he gave the whole talk using his iPad as the background. He referenced funny pictures, provided real examples, and maintained the audience's attention. He spoke relatively fast and kept his presentation concise, yet full of information on the subject. He did a great job of including the audience, and there was never a dull moment. I picked this talk because of the intriguing title. I actually thought it was going to explain the methods behind telling a good story and was surprised when Sabia instead talked about the actual technology used to portray stories. I can really relate to this talk because I have used a great deal of technology when reading or listening to stories. I love books on tape because they make car rides shorter, and I can work out while listening to them. When I was smaller, I loved picture books because they kept my attention and allowed me to see what was going on in the story. Sabia's presentation was very interesting and included a wealth of information of the progression of the methodology behind storytelling.

Blog Post #8- Baby

2. Film noir literally means “black film.” As you are watching the film, keep track of all the elements in the picture that seem dark or depressing. Think about the characters, the setting, and the storyline.

           Double-Indemnity was a very melancholy film. The whole story centers around a wife who wants to murder her abusive husband, and a once-innocent salesman who lets himself get caught up in the whole affair. The settings are generally dark and much of the movie takes place at night in dimly lit apartments or city streets. All of the characters add to the darkness of the film. Walter Neff is a successful salesman with a dark side. He saw a married woman and began flirting with her. The innocent flirting led to a more serious involvement, and he eventually helped her plan her husband's murder, so she could collect his life insurance policy. Phyllis Dietrichson is an evil women who manipulates Walter and uses him to compose a plan to murder her husband and get her a 100,000$. Mr. Dietrichson is an alcoholic who treats his wife very badly. Each one of the main characters add to the darkness of the film. Nearly all of the elements in Double-Indemnity add to the noir classification of the film by bringing up dark and depressing ingredients. 

Netflix for Macbeth- Blog Post Seven

1. Scandal- A popular show on Netflix, Scandal is an intense drama that tells the story of a powerful team of lawyers who work for government officials. They are cased to clean up an official's dirty past and protect them from exposure to the public. The lawyers jobs are to protect the government officials public image and hide anything wrong they may have done. This would be a perfect show for Macbeth because he has a terrible past and rose to power by killing King Duncan. He might have watched this show to get tips on how he could hide his evil actions, and as something he could easily relate to.

2. Limitless- This movie is an intriguing thriller in which a poor author finds a pill that allows him to use 100 percent of his mind. Once he used the drug, he became immensely addicted and took more and more in order to become successful and rich. Eventually, he discovered that the drug caused him to have black outs where he committed awful crimes such as murder. Despite this discovery, he was so corrupted by power that he continued to use the drug. Macbeth would watch this movie because the main character is very similar to him. Despite knowing the consequences of their actions, both characters continue to pursue riches and power. They are consumed with greed and will sacrifice others as long as it facilitates their success. Once honorable men, they became corrupted the more powerful they became.

3. Breaking Bad- A fantastic TV show, Breaking Bad tells the study of a high school chemist, Walter White, who becomes diagnosed with terminal cancer. He has no money and becomes desperate for a way to save his family for poverty after he dies. His desperation leads him to team up with a former high school student of his to cook meth. The more he gets into the meth business, the more ruthless he becomes. Macbeth would enjoy this show because it essentially chronicles the path he took to reach power. He was originally a trustworthy man who compromised his integrity a little bit at a time until he became a terrible dictator. In Breaking Bad, White was once an innocent teacher who became a drug lord as he sacrificed more and more of his integrity in the pursuit of power. The two gave up their integrity because they became so consumed by greed.

4. Sons of Anarchy- The Sons of Anarchy is a great show about a biker gang trying to avoid getting caught by the law while they pull out of their illegal businesses. Clay, one of the main characters and former leader of the gang, killed Jax Teller's father to gain control of the Sons. He fooled all the other members and even became close with Jax until he discovered the truth. Clay was very corrupt and killed Jax's father because he was so corrupted by greed. Macbeth would most likely watch this show because he shares many similarities with Clay. They both killed their former friends to gain power and slowly made more and more ethical compromises to avoid the discovery of their terrible crimes. Macbeth killed Duncan, and like Clay, killed many other people and friends to cover up his actions.

Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely

"Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely" -Lord Acton

     I am certain that Shakespeare would completely agree with this quote. Throughout many of his plays, he shows how power corrupts individuals and makes them do terrible things. In Hamlet, Hamlet's uncle kills his father, the king, in order to gain the throne. In Macbeth, his desire to be king causes him to kill King Duncan, his former friend. Shakespeare knew the danger of power and included many examples to show people how detrimental the chase of power could be. Throughout my own experience, I have seen how power can turn people bitter. One friend I have is one of the best tennis players in the state. He's put in countless hours of work and already has many scholarship offers from D1 schools. Because of his great proficiency, he has become very prideful and egotistic. Whenever he plays a tennis player who is not as proficient as he is, he does not try and shows and air of not caring at all. It is very frustrating to play him because he is not a good winner. He is not humble at all and only cares about being better than everyone else on the tennis court. This is a prime example of how power can corrupt people and cause them to look down on others. There are many other examples of power throughout history and Shakespeare learned from them as he included aspects of them within his plays. People with power need to be extremely careful not to become prideful or look down upon others. Power is a dangerous thing and can easily cause corruption in the best of individuals. Shakespeare knew this and tried to teach people lessons about power throughout many of his plays. Hopefully, we can learn from the many past examples of corruption through power and avoid being corrupted ourselves. 

Blog Post 5- Freebie!!!!!!!

FREEBIEEEEEE FREEEBBIEIEE

The Deadly Sin of Lust

Seven Deadly Sins- Lust

 Author/Photographer- Carli Hermes

Publication Source- http://dievca.wordpress.com/2014/01/25/shameless-suitsupply-and-carli-hermes-something-for-master/

Date- January 25, 2014

Denotative Examination- This text depicts a very well dressed man in an expensive apartment bending an attractive woman over the counter. It appears that she is very submissive to him and he is preparing to have sex with her. Both people in the photograph appear to be exhibiting lust and are obviously attracted to each other.

Connotative Examination- When looking at this advertisement in context, it is obvious that the author is attempting to sell the product using lust. The photograph is advertising for Suitsupply which is a men’s fashion brand based out of Amsterdam. Suitsuppy is encouraging men to buy their suits by advocating lust and implying that the men who wear the suits will be able to make love to beautiful women. The advertisement plays on men’s emotions and encourages them to purchase Suitsuppy suits so beautiful women will be attracted to them.

Intended Audience- The intended audience of this advertisement is men. Suitsuppy uses lust to draw the attention of men and encourage them to buy a suit. Suitsuppy is probably targeting wealthy men because their least expensive suits sell for around 350 dollars and the man portrayed in the Advertisement is in a nice apartment. They have the cultural experience to know that men are attracted to beautiful women, so Suitsupply is playing on this weakness. The author used a bold, sexual image to attract men to the ad and persuade them to buy the product. The surrounding colors of the apartment are dull, drawing attention to the shiny skin of the woman in the ad. The photographer took advantage of the deadly sin of lust and employed in to convince men to buy Suitsupply’s suits.

Can't bury these tales: Canterbury Tales & Jane Eyre

Question Six- How does the character's alienation reveal the surrounding society's assumptions and moral values? 

     Toward the end of the passage when the main character is alienated, the surrounding society's values are obvious. Mr. Brocklehurst is very unforgiving and views every mistake as a flaw. He called the character forward and alienated her from her peers to make her an example. His actions show that the society does not care for the girls as individuals but simply wants them to follow in line and respect the many rules and regulations set out for them. The society does not permit any sin or mistake, no matter how minuscule, to go unpunished. They believe that if the body is not set in line after it commits a sin, then the soul will be lost. The society assumes that a small mistake marks someone as being influenced by the devil. If a girl slips up and does not follow instructions to the tee, society assumes that she is filled with sin and needs to be punished. When the main character is aliened, the reader can infer that the girls are held accountable for every mistake they make and subjected to excessive punishments to serve as examples for everyone else. It is clear that the society has few morals when punishing the girls and individuals. Their moral values are the extent of the girl's acceptance of the rules laid out for them. They assume that every girl that sins must be punished or she will fall to the devil and corrupt the others. The character's alienation reveals how the society lacks to value the girls individually and pays little attention to their feelings because the society assumes that these are insignificant in the big picture and play a little role compared to the importance of obeying the rules and keeping accountability. 

What's in a name?

My name: Craig Alan DeVore

     According to the website Behind the Name, my name, Craig refers to a crag or rock or someone who lives near a crag. I completely agree with the meaning because it describes me as a person. I love rock climbing and am at home in the mountains and on a rocky wall. I have always liked my name and never really questioned how I received it. My parents did explain to me, though, that they wanted to pick a name that was not too common, but also was not too obscure. They chose a one syllable name so it would be hard for kids to make fun. Craig has always been a name that defines who I am by representing what I love, and I have always been happy with it. Craig is unique to me a describes who I am.

Being Two:

      The best example of being two is tennis. Tennis is an individual sport where you play by yourself and only rely on your own skills and emotions to beat the opponent. However, tennis played at school is not just an individual sport. When you are out on the court, you are playing an individual match against your opponent. While the match itself is only played by the individual, the whole team is relying on a win from the match to add to the count. When I play singles for the Millbrook tennis team, I am not only representing myself but the team as a whole. Often, tennis players will get frustrated and show their emotions. When they do this, they are not only poorly representing themselves as individuals but also shedding a bad light on the team. When I am part of a two, a dilemma unfolds. Not only am I representing myself, I am also representing my tennis team and Millbrook high school. My actions reflect myself, my coach, and my team mates. When I am part of a two, I have to be extra careful to make sure my actions do not shed a negative light on myself or the group I am representing.

Othering

Wing Young Huie Equality for the Undocumented- We are the Other 

     Taken by Wing Young Huie in the time between 2012 and 2013, this photo depicts a young hispanic male holding up a sign and begged for equality. His face appears to be expressionless and bleak as if he has given up hope. He is alone and no one seems to be supporting him or offering any form of encouragement. The gray colors in the photo add to the dismal expression on his face and create a sense of melancholy and disappointment. The bigger picture the photo is referring is the large influx of illegal immigrants into the United States and their poor treatment in the workforce. Many Mexicans cross the border in search of work and are offering below minimum wage jobs with poor working conditions. It appears that the hispanic teen in the photo is attempting to create awareness of this by holding up the sign. The photo publicizes the struggles that illegal immigrants have to face and begs for equal treatment.

     In this photograph, Wing Huie depicts the other by showing a minority who is all by himself. He is seated alone on the corner of a city block, implying that people are not paying attention to him at all and are just passing him by. Huie shows the other by capturing the look on the youth's face. The hispanic teens face appears bleak as if he is isolated and "othered" and has no one to help him get through hard times. Wing Young Huie also depicts othering by including a picture of a minority. Because the teen in the photo is a minority, he is oftentimes the odd man out in a country full of caucasians. As the other, the hispanic teen's emotions have been neglected his entire life, he has been taken advantage in the workplace, and he has often been discriminated because of his skin color. This photograph is a perfect representation of othering because an "other" is trying to get noticed by holding up a sign but is apparently being ignored by the pedestrians on the street and his peers because he is sitting alone. 

     Throughout The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood did an excellent job of presenting the concept of "othering." The best way she did this was through the clothing the members of Gilead were forced to wear. Each person had a role in the society that was emphasized by the uniforms they wore. This forced people apart and made them seem distant to one another. The people wearing one uniform looked at the others in different uniforms as completely strange individuals who had their own roles in the society. The people who wore uniforms tended to stick with one another and avoid interaction with those wearing different uniforms. The clothing took away everyone's individuality and created othering. Everyone wearing a different uniform than you was an other. The people in The Handmaid's Tale were not viewed by their appearance or personality but by the uniform they were forced to wear. Atwood used the clothing in the novel to portray the isolation and othering the people of Gilead had toward each other.