Final Portfolio Reflection

One of my favorite pieces from my portfolio this trimester is the fairy tale PowerPoint I did with my group on Rumplestilitskin. This one was one of my favorites because at the beginning of our group's collaboration, we had no clue what we were doing and our first few PowerPoints were basically a mess. We didn't understand what was wanted from us, and we had a hard time delving into the complexity of our pieces that we needed for our PowerPoints. But, on this last PowerPoint, we all came together and developed a decent thesis and decent topic sentences for our presentation, and we finally made something we were all proud of. Now, we got a B- on this PowerPoint but we had gotten a C on all the other ones. I enjoyed watching myself and my group improve together throughout that five-week time span.

My other favorite piece from my portfolio was the American Drama Project. Overall, this was my favorite project of the trimester, because it was so much fun to act out a play and modernize a classic play in our own way. I liked making the storyboards with my group and creating a script. It was something I was proud to call my group's project. Although we had some bumps along the way, we all came together to produce a product that was worthy of showing to our whole class.

My positive class participation this trimester mostly occurred in group projects. Throughout the first five or so PowerPoints of the trimester I felt as if I contributed ideas and opinions continuously to my group, and although they may not have always been good ideas, I helped to develop the good ideas of others in my group. I feel this is an important part of any group project. I also mobilized the members of my group and handed out tasks for everyone to complete, such as certain slides on that day's PowerPoint. Although I was very busy this past trimester, I felt as if I participated to almost my maximum ability.

To account for my negative participation, sometimes I did not have the time to contribute as much as I wanted to on certain projects, such as the creative project. I gave my group some ideas and helped them start the project, but they eventually ended up doing a lot of the work because I was unavailable. Also, I sometimes did not read our assigned poem on the days we were supposed to have them read by, which degrades my participation.

This trimester, I wanted to improve on my analysis of poetry by the end of the trimester. At the beginning, I had a lot of problems with interpreting and then analyzing any kind of poetry, as was exemplified in my AP Practice Test. But, after we have taken the AP final exam, I have realized that my analysis of poetry has improved because I got more of the poetry interpretation questions on the exam correct than I would have before, and I feel this is an important part of AP Literature.

Blog Post #8: Compare/Contrast Summer Reading Essay

Hamlet Blog 6

Blog Post #10 & #11: American Drama Project

Blog Post #9

2013. A bildungsroman, or coming-of-age novel, recounts the psychological or moral development of its protagonist from youth to maturity, when this character recognizes his or her place in the world. Select a single pivotal moment in the psychological or moral development of the protagonist of a bildungsroman. Then write a well-organized essay that analyzes how that single moment shapes the meaning of the work as a whole.

Thesis: In Life of Pi by Yann Martel, Pi, a boy stuck at sea, goes to an island that thrives by day and destroys by night. This island symbolizes Pi’s coming of age by his realization that he turned animalistic and needs to return to reality.

Essence: Morality often lingers in the decisions we make and alter one’s life path.

Summary of text: An anonymous figure explained that he had traveled from Canada to America--we soon found out this anonymous character is Pi Patel. He explains how he earned his nickname and tells his story of his childhood in Pondicherry, India. Pi’s parents decision to move to Canada was motivated by political strife in India and they set sail in a cargo ship along with many zoo animals as his father was a zoo owner. During their voyage there is a shipwreck and Pi, a hyena, an orangutan, a zebra, and a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker are all but left of the shipwreck. They are now all fighting for survival.

Wajihah, Miranda, Jessica, and Kelci

AP English

Mrs. Wilson

8 October 2013

Life of Pi Explanation

Our board game represents the different choices of morality through one’s life that can have an affect on our journey and where it takes us. Life of Pi is about how Pi must use his different personalities in order to face different kinds of situations during this coming of age story. If he is not able to use his “tiger” like personality or his courageous side during the perilous parts of his journey then he will not be able to continue onwards in his path. Martel states on page 164, “It’s the plain truth: without Richard Parker, I wouldn’t be alive today to tell you my story.” Without the courageous side of his persona, Pi would not have been able to survive. He also states, “Then Richard Parker, companion of my torment, awful, fierce thing that kept me alive, moved forward and disappeared forever from my life” (285). Richard Parker did not just help Pi survive, he helped him move onward with his journey.

Throughout our game there are two paths, one for Pi and one for Richard Parker. The path you take depends on how you answer certain morality questions. If your answers proves that you are brave, courageous, and self-preserving, then you will continue on the path of Richard Parker. If your answers prove that you are not as self-preserving, then you will continue on the path of Pi. Throughout the game, both of these paths cross which shows the Pi’s inner conflict between himself and Richard Parker. Such as when the blind Frenchman attacks Pi and Richard Parker saves Pi, Pi states,“This was the terrible cost of Richard Parker. He gave me a life, my own, but at the expense of taking one” (255). Richard Parker helped save Pi however, there was always a cost to saving Pi’s life at every situation they encountered.

Throughout the story, Pi is struggling with balancing his evil/courageous side with his weak/cowardly side--it is a constant mental struggle. Pi tried to incorporate both sides into his life by “training” Richard Parker. “I trained him to jump through a hoop I made with thin branches” (274). Pi uses this training as a metaphor to show that he is starting to train his animalistic and self-preservation persona and to control this side so that he does not lose the human aspect of himself. When Pi and Richard Parker finally land on shore, Richard Parker runs away without turning back. Pi tries his hardest to incorporate Richard Parker into his persona while they are on the boat, in the end, however, they end up going their own separate ways and will never meet again, showing that Pi has returned to his moral and human self.

At the end of the story, the reader can choose to keep faith in Pi and in the story with the animals or choose to believe in the more realistic story with humans. When Pi tells the Japanese investigators the human side of the story, they exclaim “which means he’s the tiger!” (311). At this point, the reader finally realizes the extended metaphor and can visualize the two sides of Pi: is human side and animalistic side.

Throughout the boardgame, the different morality and self-preservation issues are what decides how much each character moves forward/backward. The goal of the game is to be the first to reach the island at the end. Based on how you answer the morality questions, that decides which path you will take; Richard Parker’s or Pi’s, self-preservation or morality.

1) You and your friend are stranded on an island. Unfortunately, you are both fatally ill. It just so happens that you have an antibiotic that can cure your illness. Sadly enough, there is just enough antibiotic to save only one person. How could you and your friend choose which one of you will take the antibiotic? Do you think that either person who takes it will, or should, feel guilty for the other person dying, although if neither of you take it, you will both die?

a. take the antibiotic and live

b. give your friend the antibiotic and die

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

2) You are a Judge presiding over the trial of an alleged bank robber, who you know is innocent. However, something terrible in your life has happened: The enemies of the robber have kidnapped your 9-year-old daughter and have held her hostage. You don’t know where she is. The police have tried to locate her to no avail. The kidnappers have left you an anonymous note saying that if you convict the robber, they will set your daughter free. You fear the kidnappers could be abusing or even torturing your child. What would you do?

a. convict the robber and save your daughter

b. leave the robber innocent and lose your daughter

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

3) You are a paramedic and you have been called to help a young boy who was in a car accident. On the way to the emergency, you get in an accident with your elderly uncle, who you know and love dearly. He is knocked out, but you are able to determine that he is probably not terribly injured and is likely to survive without immediate medical attention. However, if you stop to help your uncle, or even call backup, you know for sure that the boy will die. The only way you can save the boy is if you drive away immediately. Would you:

a. Stop for your uncle or

b. Leave and help the boy.

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Pi. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Richard Parker.

4) You are speeding in your car on a one-way street, through very thick woods with a mad gunman chasing you and shooting at you from behind. Up ahead, you see a pedestrian crossing the street. You figure you have enough time to stop to let him cross, but with the thick woods, you cannot drive around him. Would you:

a. Stop to let the pedestrian cross, even though you are being shot at or

b. Hit the pedestrian and continue speeding away from the gunman.

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Pi. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Richard Parker.

5) You are stranded with thirty people on a lifeboat that is intended to hold only seven. No one can paddle this heavy boat and it is definitely going to sink, drowning everyone inside it. It occurs to you that you can save some of the people in the lifeboat by throwing all but the strongest rowers overboard. Would you:

a. Throw some people overboard and save some people

b. Let everyone drown

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

6) You are an inmate, imprisoned in a concentration camp. A guard tells you that you must choose one of your two children for him to take to the gas chamber. If you choose neither, he will take them both. What would you do?

If you chose neither, continue towards the path of Pi. If you chose one of your two children, continue towards the path of Richard Parker.

7) A trolley is going down a hill and is going to hit two workers if it continues to roll down that path. If you jump in front of it, the trolley can be stopped and you would die but the workers wouldn’t. Would you:

a. Jump in front of the trolley and save two lives

b. Save yourself and let two people die

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

8) You didn’t do homework so you could either copy off of your friends homework and receive full points or turn it in a day late for half credit.

If you chose to copy off of your friends homework, continue on towards the path of Pi. If you chose to turn in your homework a day late, continue towards the path of Richard Parker.

9) You’re walking along the road one day. You see a wallet left on the ground filled with multiple credit cards and several hundred dollar bills. Clearly, the owner of this wallet is wealthy, and you on the other hand are barely affording food. Would you:

a. Steal some of the cash/all of the cash

b. Return the wallet to its rightful owner without taking anything from it

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Pi. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Richard Parker.

10) The Box: your child has some expensive illness and a man comes to you offering you a million dollars. The only condition is that someone you don’t know will die if you accept the million dollars. Would you:

a. Take the money and let one random person die

b. Turn away from the money and let the random person live

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

12) If you cross a bridge then the entire city would blow up but you would save yourself and all of your loved ones. Would you:

a. Cross and bridge and save yourself and your loved ones but kill and entire city

b. Don’t cross the bridge and possibly save yourself and the entire city

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

13) It’s your best friend’s birthday. She got you a pretty expensive gift for your birthday and you feel the need to return the favor. Unfortunately, you’ve grown up poor and don’t have a lot of money and have been around a lot of crime, so it wouldn’t be news to your mother if you stole something. Would you:

a. Steal something nice for your best friend

b. Get her a cheap, ugly present that you know she’ll hate

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Pi. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Richard Parker.

14) You’ve been saving up for a bag that you’ve wanted for a very long time and right before you buy it, someone else buys the last one. You follow them home and find out where they live and decide you’re going to go back at night and steal it but leave the money for the bag. Would you:

a. Steal the bag but leave the money for the bag in its place

b. Just keep waiting for another bag

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

15) You are a world renowned surgeon that is about to perform an operation on the President in the upcoming weeks. You come home one day to find your children and husband bound and gagged. They tell you if--during the surgery--you kill the president, your kids will live; however if you fail to do so they will kill your family. Would you:

a. Kill the president and save your family

b. Save the president and let your family die

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

16) You are walking around town and you spot the wife of a good friend of yours. You are about to go up to her to say hi and then you spot a man. It’s not her husband; however, she is being extremely affectionate towards the man and kisses him multiple times. Would you:

a. Tell the wifes husband that she has been cheating on him

b. Stay quiet

If you chose A, continue on towards the path of Richard Parker. If you chose B, continue towards the path of Pi.

Hamlet Blog Post 3

Soliloquy Analysis

Imagery referring to the uncertainty of death: "To be, or not to be? That is the question--" (3.1.57)

Imagery referring to the negative experiences of life: "The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks" (3.1.63)

Appeals:

• Pathos: "The grunt and sweat under a weary life" (3.1.80), "Thus conscience does make cowards of us all" (8.1.86)
• Logos: "Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune." (3.1.57)

Literary Devices:

• Paradox: Paradox implies that Hamlet's conclusion about life and death is senseless
• Synecdoche: Helps to emphasis the protagonist (Hamlet)'s thoughts and emotions in the soliloquy
• Tone: The tone of the soliloquy is serious and full of despair. Hamlet isn't contemplating suicide, instead he philosophically ponders the purpose of life for a human being in general
• Diction: The choice of serious words and phrases such as 'pangs' and 'despised' in the soliloquy emphasizes the despair of the scene and also Hamlet's philosophical thoughts on the purpose of a human being's life
• Metaphor: Helps the audience make connections and understand what Hamlet is talking about and the meaning of his speech
• "Or to take arms against a sea of troubles" (3.1.60)
• "The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune" (3.1.59)

Comparisons:

• Afterlife: "But that the dread of something after death" (3.1.81)
• Life on Earth: "The undiscovered country from whose bourn no traveler  returns" (3.1.80)
• Death: "For in that sleep of death what dreams may come." (3.1.68)
• Thinking: "Must give us pause. There's the respect that make calamity of so long life" (3.1.70-71)
• Human: "Thus conscience does make cowards of us all" (3.1.86)

Eternal Philosophical Question: "To be, or not to be? That is the question--" (3.1.57) Is it nobler to be alive or dead?

Conclusion Hamlet Draws: "Thus conscience does make cowards of us all, And thus the native hue of resolution is sicklied o'er with the pith cost of thought." (3.1.84-86)

Mis En Scene Analysis

Kenneth Branagh: In Kenneth Branagh's version of Hamlet's soliloquy, the diagetic sound of the scene is just Hamlet speaking in his soliloquy, and there is no non-diagetic sound. This is done in order to ensure the audience focuses on the important speech that Hamlet is making. The setting of this scene is Hamlet in the palace talking to himself in a full-size mirror in order to draw a parallel to the two options Hamlet speaks of in his soliloquy: to be alive and suffer for no reason or to die a noble death. Hamlet's costume is a black suit. The color is black to show the gloom and despair of Hamlet's speech, as black is a color that represents darkness. The make up is done so that Hamlet's face looks dark instead of lit up. The main camera angle of this scene is a view from behind Hamlet where the audience sees the back of Hamlet's head and part of his shoulder while also seeing his reflection in the mirror, which again parallels Hamlet's two options he contemplates for human life. The camera angle also closes in and gets a closer closeup on Hamlet's face in the mirror as the scene and soliloquy intensifies, which emphasizes the intensity and importance of the second part of Hamlet's soliloquy.

Laurence Oliver: In Laurence Oliver's version of Hamlet's soliloquy, the diagetic sound is originally some creepy music and then it transfers over to Hamlet speaking in his soliloquy, and the non-diagetic sound during the soliloquy is the same gloomy, creepy music. This is done to emphasize the despair of Hamlet's words. The setting of this scene is Hamlet sitting on rock on a cliff overlooking the ocean. This is done in order to show how Hamlet is contemplating suicide in parts of the speech, and how he could jump off the cliff any second but as he contemplates he decides not to. The cliff also shows the difference between life and death. Hamlet's costume is black, again showing the gloom and despair of his soliloquy and the scene in general. The make up is done so that Hamlet's face is lighter than the rest of the scene, and this is done in order to emphasize his soliloquy. The camera angle starts off at the back of his head and the audience can see the ocean in front of his face. It then zooms in on his head, and the audience goes inside his brain as the soliloquy starts. Then, it pans out to a medium shot of a front view of Hamlet and stays there for most of the rest of the scene, with an occasional closeup of Hamlet's face. This emphasizes the intensity of the scene.

Mel Gibson: In Mel Gibson's interpretation of Hamlet's soliloquy, the diagetic sound is Hamlet speaking and there is no non-diagetic sound except for the occasional sound of Hamlet's footsteps. This is done in order to have the audience focus on the despair of Hamlet's soliloquy. The setting of this scene looks to be an underground cemetery or graveyard. Hamlet walks down the stairs during his soliloquy to a coffin that he then hugs and looks at it with a mournful expression. The scene is set here in order to emphasize the important death aspect of Hamlet's soliloquy. Hamlet's costume is a black cloak and black pants, in which the black again represents the darkness of the soliloquy. The cloak also represents the darkness because a cloak is a piece of clothing used to cover a person, and can sometimes imply hiding all of your secrets. Hamlet does not wear a lot of makeup in this scene. The main camera angles of this scene are a close up of Hamlet's face at the beginning of the soliloquy, a long shot of the coffin, and a long shot of Hamlet hugging the coffin and speaking the soliloquy to it. This is done in order to emphasize the uncertainty of death aspect of Hamlet's speech. 

Ethan Hawkes: In Ethan Hawkes' version of Hamlet's soliloquy, the diagetic sound is a voiceover of the soliloquy. The non-diagetic sound is gloomy music, Hamlet's footsteps, and the sound from the movies playing on the TV screens. The setting of the scene is a Blockbuster movie rental store. This is done to help modernize the scene as the words that Hamlet is saying are Shakespeare words that aren't modern. Hamlet's costume in this scene is kind of a frumpy hat, a black blazer, and black pants. Again, the black emphasizes the gloom and despair of the solilquoy as black represents darkness. The hat and blazer help to also modernize this version of the Hamlet's speech. The props used in this scene are a bunch of TVs that are playing a movie. Hamlet wears very little make up in this scene in order to make him appear has modern as possible. The camera angles of this version are a medium shot of Hamlet from his back, a closeup of Hamlet's face as he walks through the Blockbuster, and another medium shot of Hamlet, but looking at his front side. These medium shots are done in order to show the modern aspects of the setting of the scene as well as his costume.

The delivery that I think is the most effective is the Ethan Hawkes version because the modernization of the scene appeals to a broader audience and also helps the audience understand and connect with Hamlet more.

 

Hamlet Blog Post 2

(see previous blog post for trailer video)

"Nobody leaves and nobody visits. Ever."

In Once Upon A Time, a little boy named Henry finds Emma Swan and takes her to his home in Storybrook, Maine. Henry tells Emma she is his birth mother and that she has to help the people of Storybrooke because they are all fairytale characters trapped in a curse. Emma meets Henry's adoptive mother, the Mayor, who Henry believes is the evil queen that put the curse on all of Storybrooke. The Mayor immediately dislikes Emma just for being in Henry's life, and she often tries to revenge on Emma, usually through spying on her and telling lies to the people. Although revenge is not the focus of the TV show, it plays an important role in everything the characters do.

Once Upon A Time is a scary obsession of mine... I find the Mayor very relatable to myself, and I feel as if I am her when I watch the show, and I can easily inject myself into the setting as I view my television. One episode in particular the queen seeks revenge on Emma in which I found myself extremely engaged in. The Mayor tries to prevent Emma from talking to Henry and she does so through lying, spying, and sexual acts with some men Emma associates herself with. I easily immersed myself into the scene as the Mayor, and it gave me some ideas for my later endeavors. When Rosencratz and Guildenstern visited the castle, I told them "Your visitation shall recieve such thanks/As fit's a king's rememberance" (2.2.23) I told them this because I might as well over exaggerate what I am willing to give them, as a 'king's rememberance' is a bit far-fetched and, well, I wanted them to endure their visitation. The Mayor has inspired me to use my body as a tool to get what I want, and I feel I have done that in my life.

                                   

Hamlet Blog Post 2 (video)

http://www.youtube.com/v/Rga4rp4j5TY?version=3&autohide=1&showinfo=1&autohide=1&autoplay=1&feature=share&attribution_tag=JivBIU76Zeg4CDgQ0BUcTg