We made a video depicting a scene of a Hamlet but in a modern version. My group included Lilliyana Navarrete, Susel Garcia, Antonia Arredondo, Mellany Cunningham, Alec McFarland, Ephraim Rodriguez, Eric Jackson, and me. Susel and I wrote the song and sung it, Lilly filmed and edited it, Antonia and Alec played the piano, and the rest of the members were the actors (Alec included!). Here is the link to our video. Hope you enjoy it! If you have any feedback or opinion, please comment below! Thank you!
Thursday, October 30, 2014
TO BE OR NOT TO BE
Instead of us individually reciting "To be or not to be," we decided to collaborate and do the recitation as a class, but with a twist! What is the twist?? Find out!!
Friday, October 17, 2014
LITERATURE ANALYSIS # 2: A PASSAGE TO INDIA BY E.M.FORSTER
1) Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read according to elements of plot you've learned in the past courses. Explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose.
a) Introduction/Exposition: The setting of the story is Chandrapore, British India (a fictional city). The book begins with the introduction of Adela and her elder friend Mrs. Moore, coming to British India. Dr. Aziz - an Indian Muslim - is introduced. He stops by a mosque (his favorite one) and witnesses an Englishwoman and gets upset at her. It turns out to be Mrs. Moore, who shares that she respects all customs. They soon become friends by chatting. Adela meets Mr. Fielding and he invites the women to a tea part, along with Aziz. Aziz, at the party, promises the women to take them to the Marabar caves.
b) Rising Action: Aziz takes the women to the caves. Mrs. Moore becomes claustrophobic and could not handle the echo and darkness. So Aziz and Adela are the only ones continuing. Adela angers Aziz, and he goes in a cave. After a while, he comes out and finds the guide to be alone and assumes Adela is lost. He finds her talking to another Englishwoman but they leave before talking to Aziz.
c) Conflict: When Aziz gets off the train, he's accused of raping Adela.
d) Climax: During the trial Adela starts having doubt of Aziz's guilt. She finally remembers she faced the same problem Mrs. Moore did and blamed Aziz in panic. She finally admitted that Aziz did not rape her.
e) Falling Action: Ronny Heaslop breaks the engagement with Adela. She explains everything to Fielding and left India, forever.
f) Resolution: Aziz was angry at Fielding for befriending Adela, and swears to never befriend a white person. Fielding comes back to India two years later, married to Mrs. Moore's daughter. Eventually, Aziz agrees to be friends with Fielding again.
The third person omniscient point of view allows the author to prevent the audience from being biased against Adela and for Aziz, which would take away the effect of the theme that the author was hoping to convey. With the readers reading and understanding each character's perspective, they could truly analyze the story, without feeling pity or anger.
2) Succinctly describe the theme of the novel.
There are many themes throughout the story: friendship, gender, power, justice, etc. One theme that stood out to me was race. The author uses the differences between the two races to highlight the possibility of uniting them. He used the friendship of Aziz and Fielding juxtaposing the relationship of Adela and Aziz to highlight the two possibilities of the two races bonding leaving the readers to think which one they should choose.
3) Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrates your points.
Forster philosophical but neutral. He's philosophical in terms of choosing the characters and highlighting their choices throughout the story. However, he's an objective and neutral author who doesn't let his point of view towards the issue in the writing.
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.
1) Foreshadowing: "Except for the Marabar Caves - and they are twenty miles off - the city of Chandrapore presents nothing extraordinary" (Pg: 1)
2) Symbols: Flames: "The two flames approach and strive to unite, but cannot, because one of them breathes air, the other stone." (Pg: 137)
3) Imagery: "The night was still dark, but had acquired the temporary look that indicates its end." (Pg: 138)
4) Irony: It's ironic how Adela was the one who was extremely eager to meet Aziz and was curious about him but she was the one accusing him of rape.
5) Allusion: Author used allusion to Persian inscription: "And near it, under a low dome, should be his tomb, with a Persian inscription." (Pg: 17)
6) Personification: The example provided for the metaphor can be considered as personification.
7) Metaphor: "A mirror inlaid with lovely colours divides the lover, delicate stars of pink and grey interpose, exquisite nebulae, shadings fainter than the tail of a comet or the midday noon..." (Pg: 137)
8) Simile: "Immediately another flame rises in the depths of the rock and moves towards the surface like an imprisoned spirit..." (Pg: 137)
9) Characterization: Direct Characterization: "They are dark caves. Even when they open towards the sun, very little light penetrates down the entrance tunnel into the circular chamber." (Pg: 137)
10) Point of View: "Abandoning his bicycle, which fell before a servant could catch it, the young man sprang up on to the verandah." (Pg: 6) The author refers to the protagonist as "the young man," third person point of view.
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?
"They are dark caves. Even when they open towards the sun, very little light penetrates down the entrance tunnel into the circular chamber." (Pg: 137) - Direct Characterization. "'Madam, this is a mosque you have no right here at all; you should have taken off your shoes; this is a holy place for Moslems'" (Pg: 18) - Indirect Characterization. "She accepted his escort back to the club, and said at the gate that she wished she was a member, so that she could have asked him in." (Pg: 21) - Indirect Characterization. "Chandrapore appears to be a totally different place. It is a city of gardens. It is no city, but a forest sparsely scattered with huts." (Pg: 4) - Direct Characterization.
The author uses both of them to not only make the characters more realistic but also the setting of the story more realistic. Doing this, he allows the readers to connect with the story, the setting, and characters.
2) Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character? How? Example(s)?
The author's syntax and diction usually stays constant throughout the story, no matter who the character is or what the situation is. The only thing that might change is when once or twice, one of the Indian characters would talk in Hindi, the Indian national language. This allows the author to make the situation and the character in the story more realistic, more believable for the audience.
3) Is the protagonist static or dynamic? Flat or round? Explain.
The protagonist, Mr. Aziz, is a round and dynamic character. All of Aziz's beliefs, thoughts, actions were described through his actions, his dialogues, and his behavior with the other characters. Aziz is a caring, friendly, innocent doctor, who gets wrongly accused of rape by a woman whom he was showing around.
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 am an Indian myself, so reading a story related to the culture that I was most exposed to makes me feel as if I'm part of a story. Aziz fits perfectly with a "standard Indian individual." I definitely felt as if I'd met a person because the hardships that Aziz went through were extremely relatable. Everything that I learned in my history class in India was about the not getting along of Indians and British. It was nice to read that someone could and would and even did change the aspect of hating the entire British race instead of only those who were actually racists.;
a) Introduction/Exposition: The setting of the story is Chandrapore, British India (a fictional city). The book begins with the introduction of Adela and her elder friend Mrs. Moore, coming to British India. Dr. Aziz - an Indian Muslim - is introduced. He stops by a mosque (his favorite one) and witnesses an Englishwoman and gets upset at her. It turns out to be Mrs. Moore, who shares that she respects all customs. They soon become friends by chatting. Adela meets Mr. Fielding and he invites the women to a tea part, along with Aziz. Aziz, at the party, promises the women to take them to the Marabar caves.
b) Rising Action: Aziz takes the women to the caves. Mrs. Moore becomes claustrophobic and could not handle the echo and darkness. So Aziz and Adela are the only ones continuing. Adela angers Aziz, and he goes in a cave. After a while, he comes out and finds the guide to be alone and assumes Adela is lost. He finds her talking to another Englishwoman but they leave before talking to Aziz.
c) Conflict: When Aziz gets off the train, he's accused of raping Adela.
d) Climax: During the trial Adela starts having doubt of Aziz's guilt. She finally remembers she faced the same problem Mrs. Moore did and blamed Aziz in panic. She finally admitted that Aziz did not rape her.
e) Falling Action: Ronny Heaslop breaks the engagement with Adela. She explains everything to Fielding and left India, forever.
f) Resolution: Aziz was angry at Fielding for befriending Adela, and swears to never befriend a white person. Fielding comes back to India two years later, married to Mrs. Moore's daughter. Eventually, Aziz agrees to be friends with Fielding again.
The third person omniscient point of view allows the author to prevent the audience from being biased against Adela and for Aziz, which would take away the effect of the theme that the author was hoping to convey. With the readers reading and understanding each character's perspective, they could truly analyze the story, without feeling pity or anger.
2) Succinctly describe the theme of the novel.
There are many themes throughout the story: friendship, gender, power, justice, etc. One theme that stood out to me was race. The author uses the differences between the two races to highlight the possibility of uniting them. He used the friendship of Aziz and Fielding juxtaposing the relationship of Adela and Aziz to highlight the two possibilities of the two races bonding leaving the readers to think which one they should choose.
3) Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrates your points.
Forster philosophical but neutral. He's philosophical in terms of choosing the characters and highlighting their choices throughout the story. However, he's an objective and neutral author who doesn't let his point of view towards the issue in the writing.
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.
1) Foreshadowing: "Except for the Marabar Caves - and they are twenty miles off - the city of Chandrapore presents nothing extraordinary" (Pg: 1)
2) Symbols: Flames: "The two flames approach and strive to unite, but cannot, because one of them breathes air, the other stone." (Pg: 137)
3) Imagery: "The night was still dark, but had acquired the temporary look that indicates its end." (Pg: 138)
4) Irony: It's ironic how Adela was the one who was extremely eager to meet Aziz and was curious about him but she was the one accusing him of rape.
5) Allusion: Author used allusion to Persian inscription: "And near it, under a low dome, should be his tomb, with a Persian inscription." (Pg: 17)
6) Personification: The example provided for the metaphor can be considered as personification.
7) Metaphor: "A mirror inlaid with lovely colours divides the lover, delicate stars of pink and grey interpose, exquisite nebulae, shadings fainter than the tail of a comet or the midday noon..." (Pg: 137)
8) Simile: "Immediately another flame rises in the depths of the rock and moves towards the surface like an imprisoned spirit..." (Pg: 137)
9) Characterization: Direct Characterization: "They are dark caves. Even when they open towards the sun, very little light penetrates down the entrance tunnel into the circular chamber." (Pg: 137)
10) Point of View: "Abandoning his bicycle, which fell before a servant could catch it, the young man sprang up on to the verandah." (Pg: 6) The author refers to the protagonist as "the young man," third person point of view.
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?
"They are dark caves. Even when they open towards the sun, very little light penetrates down the entrance tunnel into the circular chamber." (Pg: 137) - Direct Characterization. "'Madam, this is a mosque you have no right here at all; you should have taken off your shoes; this is a holy place for Moslems'" (Pg: 18) - Indirect Characterization. "She accepted his escort back to the club, and said at the gate that she wished she was a member, so that she could have asked him in." (Pg: 21) - Indirect Characterization. "Chandrapore appears to be a totally different place. It is a city of gardens. It is no city, but a forest sparsely scattered with huts." (Pg: 4) - Direct Characterization.
The author uses both of them to not only make the characters more realistic but also the setting of the story more realistic. Doing this, he allows the readers to connect with the story, the setting, and characters.
2) Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character? How? Example(s)?
The author's syntax and diction usually stays constant throughout the story, no matter who the character is or what the situation is. The only thing that might change is when once or twice, one of the Indian characters would talk in Hindi, the Indian national language. This allows the author to make the situation and the character in the story more realistic, more believable for the audience.
3) Is the protagonist static or dynamic? Flat or round? Explain.
The protagonist, Mr. Aziz, is a round and dynamic character. All of Aziz's beliefs, thoughts, actions were described through his actions, his dialogues, and his behavior with the other characters. Aziz is a caring, friendly, innocent doctor, who gets wrongly accused of rape by a woman whom he was showing around.
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 am an Indian myself, so reading a story related to the culture that I was most exposed to makes me feel as if I'm part of a story. Aziz fits perfectly with a "standard Indian individual." I definitely felt as if I'd met a person because the hardships that Aziz went through were extremely relatable. Everything that I learned in my history class in India was about the not getting along of Indians and British. It was nice to read that someone could and would and even did change the aspect of hating the entire British race instead of only those who were actually racists.;
Thursday, October 16, 2014
LITERARY FICTION AND EMPATHY
I know I was only supposed to read the article but when I read about the research, I could not help but look it up and actually take the quiz. First of all, I had no idea humans' eyes could be so expressive. If all of our face is covered except our eyes, we can still have a legitimate and as important of a conversation as with words. My result came out to be 29 out of 36. The average result of an adult is 26 out of 36. The result also said that the light of the screen I'm using, and also the Caucasian faces could affect me because it might be hard to recognize the emotions. I like the idea of the research where they use the literary works and techniques used by both fictional and non fictional writers. I think along with society, school, and influential people - such as parents, teachers, or friends - the books that an individual reads also majorly affects or changes perspective. Since I'm reading Hamlet right now, I have a different definition of love, hate, sorrow, despair, betrayal, power, etc. and that affected me in choosing an answer. Along with that, my personal experiences going on in my life also affects the results. All in all, the exposure to the surrounding environment constantly changes a person's viewpoint.
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
HAMLET ACT II SCENE II
Class notes:
- This is the first time Hamlet was introduced.
- Hamlet is upset with his uncle and mom because they got married only after a month of King Hamlet's death.
- Claudius was "yelling" at Hamlet to grow up, be a man, and he can't go to school - he has to stay with them.
- Hamlet's first dialogue: [Aside] "A little move than kin, and less than kind.
- Hamlet is extremely smart: almost acts like an investigative officer - questioning Horatio and Bernardo about the ghost of the King.
HAMLET ACT I SCENE I
My Notes:
- Bernardo, Francisco, and Marcellus are all guards - guarding the gate of the castle.
- Horatio is a scholar, who accompanied Marcellus. He's skeptical - only believes what he sees.
- All four of them see the ghost of the king and the three of the guards urged Horatio to talk to it.
- The ghost of the king - Hamlet Sr. - walked away without replying.
- All of them decided to talk to Hamlet Jr.
Class Notes:
- Shakespeare attracts the audience's attention by keeping them in dark in terms of what the setting of the play is and how, when, and where events happened.
- The castle is in Denmark.
- The king died after acquiring land from Fortenbras.
- Fortenbras Jr. now seeks revenge to get back what was rightfully his all along.
"THE ART OF HOSTING GOOD CONVERSATIONS ONLINE" - PUT TO ACTION!
I emailed two English professors in colleges, and one high school English teacher - all teaching Hamlet at one point or another in the course of year. I'm eagerly waiting for their response to my following questions:
- What can/should I do to make my studying and learning Hamlet more effective but at the same time enjoy the struggle in understanding the deeper meaning of it?
- What purpose does Hamlet serve in students' lives currently, when the world has turned so "modern" and so "smart"?
- What is it about Shakespeare and his technique of writing that makes him so important, even after generations?
I used "The Art of Hosting Good Conversations Online" and its technique by doing the following:
- I introduced myself.
- I introduced Dr. Preston and the class.
- I explained Open Source Learning.
- I asked my question.
- And finally, I thanked the teacher/professor.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)