Thou is Quoting Words of Shakespeare!

After attempting to read Early Modern English, Shakespeare's choice of language, we all know that it is a bit troublesome.  How could Shakespeare be using this “Early Modern English” if it sounds to different than our own vernacular?!  Well, it turns out that a lot of words, expressions, and idioms we say have actually come from Shakespeare’s plays. For example, if you have been “in a pickle,” have “a heart of gold,” or have gone on “a wild goose chase,” you are using idioms from The Tempest, Henry V, and Romeo and Juliet respectively.  Besides these quirky sayings, many terms have come from Shakespeare’s writing as well, like gossip.  Gossip is a word that is commonly known and used today, and it comes from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  It is fascinating how a lot of Shakespeare’s words are still relevant today, despite his language seeming so different than our own.  I guess this really shows that his language was Early Modern English, a building block of our same language today, and NOT Old English like so many seem to assume.

A BBC article discussing Shakespeare’s effect on our modern day language says, “If the mark of a great writer is that they’re still read, then perhaps the mark of a genius is that they’re still spoken, too.”  Shakespeare really was a genius!

Shakespero

Does the character Prospero in The Tempest represent Shakespeare himself?  The  documentary that we watched in class last week brought up this very interesting idea that maybe Prospero is a self-portrait of Shakespeare.  Because The Tempest was  said to be Shakespeare's last play, it makes sense that the great playwright would leave himself behind in his work.  Some of Prospero’s references and lines in the play make this belief seem true.  For example, in the final lines of the play, Prospero asks to “set him free”  in a round of applause.  Interestingly enough, about five years after writing The Tempest, Shakespeare died.  This round of applause seemed to be one of Shakespeare’s last.  Maybe Prospero was setting him free from his career as a playwright, asking the audience to give Shakespeare himself a round of applause.  Or maybe wa this Shakespeare’s own way on leaving acting behind just as Prospero leaves his enchanted island behind?  The documentary definitely brought some interesting ideas to the table that have changed my view of The Tempest.  I cannot help but to think that Prospero is definitely Shakespeare.

The documentary definitely brought some interesting ideas to the table that have changed my view of The Tempest.  I cannot help but to think that Prospero is definitely Shakespeare.

Illusions - 10/18 Quick Write

Illusions, if kept to a reasonable standard and used appropriately, are definitely a good thing to have in life. Illusions can oftentimes take a person away from a bad situation and give him something positive and light ponder, giving that person an escape from his own personal hell. For example, in the book Bridge to Terabithia, main characters Jesse and Leslie imagine the woods near their houses as a forest full of magical creatures and powers, giving them a sense of escape and separation from the real world. In this case, the illusion of the magical forest takes Jesse’s mind off of the fact that he is viewed as underprivileged and “poor” at school, and it allows Leslie to forget about her bullying classmates that poke fun at her differences. Going to the woods, or Terabithia for Jesse and Leslie, is an appropriate illusion to make because it creates happiness for these kids who need this certain illusion to escape from hardships in their real lives.  Mild and innocent illusions, like Terabithia, that are created by the imagination of children, are completely beneficial and appropriate to have in life.

Huffington Post - Why Poetry Is Necessary

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/roger-housden/importance-of-poetry_b_884319.html

Surfing the internet this week for inspiration for my post and googling poetry, I came across an article on the Huffington Post website called “Why Poetry Is Necessary” by Roger Housden and was immediately intrigued. After doing the Poetry Circles, I can definitely reflect on the same elements of poetry as Housden does in his article.  He discusses how a person is never the same after reading a poem that speaks to their life directly, bringing a person clarity, making them feel open, and confirming a sense of truth.  This exact experience happened to me after I read Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken,” which has given me clarity and has helped me find peace and confidence in my college decision.  

Poems serve a greater purpose than to just appeal and relate to its reader.  While some poems may have no personal connection to its reader’s life, they can still have an equally meaningful effect.  Housden says, “Its (poetry) effect is to illuminate our lives and breathe new life, new seeing, new tasting into the world we thought we knew. Poetry bids us eat the apple whole.

To eat the apple of the world whole, we have to learn to pay attention; not only to the inner promptings of the imagination, but to the physical world around us.”  Before our Poetry Circles, I could not fully understand the words of Housden.  However, after I read the poem “Someone Told the Wild Geese,” I completely agree with his statement.  This poem focuses on geese sensing/being told that the seasons are changing, and the cold of winter is coming.  With the author’s use of alliteration of the “s” sound, vivid visual and olfactory imagery, and repetition of “someone,” the poem urges the reader to focus on the atmosphere in the poem, painting a picture and allowing the reader to feel a part of the poem.  Geese migrating for winter certainly does not apply directly to my life, but it does make me “breathe new life” and get a taste into different aspect of the world.

Reading the Huffington Post article by Roger Housden was a nice way for me reflect on our week of Poetry Circles and fully appreciate the existence and power of poetry!

First Impression of Jewel

The first time we see Jewel in the novel is in Darl's first chapter.  Jewel is in the barn with his horse and is seen violently beating his horse, kicking it in the stomach and punching it in the face. Right off the bat, we develop a bad first impression of this angry character. In the very next chapter, Jewel narrates for the first time and gives us an inside look as to why he is so angry.
Jewel seems to be filled with envy of his brother, Cash, and his affection for their mother. Cash's detailed carpentry when making their mother's coffin angers Jewel and causes him to become jealous. This is seen with the repetition of "One lick less," as Jewel views Cash's carpentry of the coffin as a way to draw attention to himself rather than Addie, their late mother. At this point in the book, it is unclear to the reader why Jewel is so angry and bitter. But that's makes us wonder, what is his secret and what caused him to act be like this?

Mr. Faulkner's English Class

I made it to English class on time

1. There is a new teacher in the classroom.
2. The classroom is twice the size of my classroom last year.
3. The back corner is where I will sit.  No one gets called on in the back corner.
4. In English class students are discussing literature most of the time.  So they learn how to analyze text.  Because the AP exam requires students to analyze text.
5. At home where students go to after school, the workload and stress pile up, because Mr. Faulkner’s assignments never stop.
6. Except.
7. Mr. Faulkner assigns work in the beginning of the week.
8. Budgeting time.
9. Budgeting time should alleviate stress, so the assignments and multiple choice questions are finished well before the start of English class.
10. Mr. Faulkner can tell that which students write their essays the night before they are due.
11. While in class the next day, those students who just finished their essays seem drained from analyzing text all night.
12. So I wrote mine way before English class.
13. It makes a better essay.