This was a journal response to the question "How do you feel about seeing the word nigger in a book/ anywhere?" we were reading "Kindred" and the word popped up a few times. I suppose a few people were offended but I wasn't and I'm African American.
Victoria Yarbrough
March 17, 2011
EnglishJournal
14
As long as the word nigger is being
used in an educational sense, I’m fine with it. Because if anything, the word
nigger doesn’t apply to me. SO when I saw it last night, it was just another
word. I’m past the whole racism thing and I refuse to get upset over the
ignorance of others.
Victoria Yarbrough
March 17, 2011
EnglishJournal
14
As long as the word nigger is being
used in an educational sense, I’m fine with it. Because if anything, the word
nigger doesn’t apply to me. SO when I saw it last night, it was just another
word. If my skin color doesn’t define who I am, then some word definitely
won’t. And further more I don’t think it is ok when people change the ending er and put an a. It
means the same thing.Anyways, I
refuse to get upset about something that doesn’t apply to me. I’m a human not a nigger.
This was a Journal response to the question "How does your environment shape the kind of person you become?". At first I didn't know how to answer the question but then I simply thought about a few of my own experiences as well as what I read form inside "Kindred".
Victoria Yarbrough
March 14, 2011
English
Journal
13
Your environment shapes the type of
person you become by it being something to observe. For example if you grow up
in a successful family with nothing but doctors, chances are that one-day
you’ll become a doctor too. However, your environment may make a person want to
be different than everybody else. Like if you grow up with an abusive dad,
seeing that may make you be the complete opposite of him. In my opinion, it
depends on the type of person you are and how you perceive things.
Victoria Yarbrough
March 14, 2011
English
Journal
13
Your environment shapes the type of
person you become by it being what you’re around which rubs off on you after a
while. In my life I know for sure that my mother has influenced the road I want
to take in life as well as the decisions I make everyday. However, it may be
different for another person, For example, if you grow up with an abusive dad,
seeing that may make you be the complete opposite of him. It depends on how
impressionable you are and how you perceive things. I think that no matter what
your environment is or looks like, that you should still be you and do the
things you want to do.
This Journal was a response to a question "Did you know someone who was popular but mean spirited?". So I decided to write about a clique of girls form my old school who were pretty faced but had ugly hearts.
Victoria Yarbrough
December 17, 2010
English
Journal
7
At my old school, there was a
clique called the “school barbies”. It was a group of pretty popular girls.
They would walk up and down the halls shouting “School Barbies!”. Every
girl-well almost every girl- wanted to be apart of their group. Although they
were pretty and grabbed the boys’ attention, they were cold hearted and not
intelligent school wise. They used to curse teachers out, get into fights, and
pick with the special ED children. I always questioned why a lot of girls
wanted to be like them. Every time I saw them I made a little mental note to
never stoop that low. If I’ve got to be a complete bitch just to get some
attention, then I’d rather be invisible. Because I know that I’m beautiful
without having to be in a group.
Victoria Yarbrough
May 19, 2011
EnglishJournal
7
When I was in middle school, there
was this clique of girls called the “School Barbies!”. Man were they loud. They
were group of semi pretty, popular, ugly girls. When I say ugly I mean
internally. They used to curse teachers out, get into fights, and pick with the
special ED children. I always questioned why a lot of girls wanted to be like
them. And yet they held the attention of so many people. Since when was it okay
to be mean? Beauty is only skin deep. Every time I saw them I made a little
mental note to never stoop that low. If I’ve got to be a complete bitch just to
get some attention, then I’d rather be invisible.
This journal was a response to the question "Is fitting in important to you? Have you ever done something to fit in?". My answer has changed from then to know. (Just a little bit).
Victoria Yarbrough
December 1, 2010
English
Journal
3
Fitting in is NOT important to me. If someone doesn’t like me, I just drop him or
her. It’s that simple. However, of course I’ve done things with groups of
people that was wrong. The reason I did it however wasn’t for acceptance but
for the rush of doing something that you wouldn’t normally do. It was
exhilarating! The way I see it, I feel that there are too many people in the
world for you not to find someone like you who likes you for you. So basically,
my life is hard enough without people and their petty opinions. SCREW their opinions because I am who I
am and there are billions of other people that probably will see the beauty in
me.
Victoria Yarbrough
May 18, 2011
English
Journal
3
Fitting in used to be important to
me, however, it just isn’t anymore. I used to think that it was good when
everyone liked you and that you were only a good person when you got along with
everyone. I look back at my younger days and have a laugh along side my experiences.
I’ve come to learn that fitting in is only an insecurity you have with your
self. In my opinion, if you feel that you need to stoop to someone else’s
standards then you are insecure about who you are. The saying “one in a
million” really hits a hard point of mine. Why? Because if you are one in a
million then statistically there are 4,369 other people just like you. So why
fit in? Of course I’ve done things that were wrong just to get someone to like
me. Heck, I’ll admit that I may have done it recently. But when it is something
considered to be wrong, the reason I did it wasn’t for acceptance, but for the
rush of doing something that you wouldn’t normally do. It was exhilarating! My
life is hard enough without people and their petty opinions. I am who I am and
I do fit in, I fit into my own group and in the end how you feel about yourself
is all that really matters.
I have the weirdest sunburn. There are burnt splotches all over my body. I look like a burn victim. It's just awful. I need to get better sunscreen. This one sucked.
What i found most challenging about this project was figuring out an idea for a picture. the first thing I did in order to get ideas for taking pictures was asking questions and looking at every detail of everything that I walked by. I also googled ideas as well. My favorite image would be the event that took place for the "Education" section because it was my capstone and it incorporated well within this project. The use of globalization in Philadelphia is very prevalent. I think it is more evident in the U.S because we started off as a country of different people from everywhere. We are a melting pot.
Life and Death is a short film, of about 7 minutes. It is about a teenage girl who gets kidnapped by her father's assistant, because her father's assistant wants more money. It is the reflection of the kidnapper after death, and shows how she has no remorse, even after dying.
What do you feel your portfolio says about you as a 9th grade English student? What are we as viewers supposed to "get"/understand about you when we see your work?
It was a great year working with Mrs. Dunn, she taught me very well. I feel as the year progressed I have become a stronger writer in the way that I can now write longer passages without complaining or telling myself I can’t do this. In my writing I think you will find my views on certain things and also my writing shows I’m not just your average 9th grade student I’m something more
What do you consider to be your strengths in English? What are your weaknesses? What would you still want to work on?
My strengths I would say that I have many stories and ideas prepared before I write which I think help me go along as I write
What is the piece you are most proud of, and why?
My quarter 3 benchmark, because It shows the writer that I’ve become throughout the year.
As
a 9th grader, I feel that my portfolio says that I have a lot of
potential when focusing on my work. To me this is a great thing, also, when I
get older and more knowledgeable, I could look back at the hard work that I was
able to do in the 9th grade and look at what I could do now. When
viewers see my work, they are supposed to “get” that my work shows that I
strive for the best and work my hardest to get the best grade possible.
I
consider my strengths in English to be spelling and comprehending. My weakness
is presenting my work, the reason why is, when all eyes are on me I sometimes
get the Tinker bellies, butterflies, stage fright there are many names for it.
I would still want to work on presenting in front of a big crowd. I really do
not like that feeling I get inside when I am presenting. I want it to go away
and the only way to get that out of me is by facing my fears and practice
presenting in front of many people.
The
experience I had when making this portfolio is, when looking at the work I did
in the beginning of the school year, I realized that I could have made certain
changes in the way I said things and the words I used. Therefore, it was just
amazing how when I looked back at what I did, since I have been learning new
words, I changed it to the words the words that I learned this school year.
The
piece I am most proud of is my Me Magazine. The reason why is, it is colorful,
beautiful, and full of what I love and me. It describes me and what I am made
of and it also shows my creativity; also because it shows how much hard work
pays off. Even if you do not read it, you can tell that I still worked hard on
it because of the designs, and pictures, and the advertisements.
Overview- Students had to read the book Macbeth in
our English class. When the reading of the book was over, there was a
project/write up being done with quote analysis. Quote analysis was the way we
found quotes and gave evidence and supported the statement. Starting off ten
quotes was chosen to also support your hypothesis.
Character Analysis (Macbeth)
Lady Macbeth’s change
during the book Macbeth was very evaluated in order to portray her growth.
She starts off as a very strong woman who knew what she wanted in the play and
by the end her strength turns into weakness.
Lady Macbeth says, “
Under my battlements. Come you spirits, that tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me
here.” In Act 1, Scene 5, Lines 39-41 the speaker is Lady Macbeth. This is one
of the first times Lady Macbeth is first introduced in the play. It shows that
she wants to be seen more than women, with more power, and maybe even seen as
something that is non-perishable or not of the human race. Lady Macbeth seems
to possibly want the power that men do in her era because they were more heard
than the women. But what does she want this strength for? She seems to be
robust but longs for recognition, longing for what her husband Macbeth has, but
she doesn’t.
“To beguile the time,
look like the time; bear welcome in your eyes, your eye, your hand, your
tongue; like th’ innocent flower.” is what Lady Macbeth spoke in that passage.
More of Lady Macbeth’s character is shown when she says” it is portrayed that
she can be very devious, slick, and sneaky. “Act 1, Scene 5, and Lines 62-64.
With this in mind, it shows that Lady Macbeth is pretty much capable of
anything, but does it so that she is not easily suspected. In this point in the
story she is hatching a fraudulent act with her husband, which is killing the
King Duncan.
“But screw your courage
to the sticking place”, Lady Macbeth stated in Act1, Scene 7, and Line 61. When
Lady Macbeth says this she is having a conversation about killing King Duncan.
This quote is revealing that at this point and time Lady Macbeth is very
serious about King Duncan’s assassination. It also makes her a person who is very
confident in her plan. When Lady Macbeth says this she is talking to her
husband, trying to boost his confident that the plan of killing Duncan will
work and that everything will go well.
In Act 1, Scene 7, and
lines 48-49 Lady Macbeth says, “That made you break this break this enterprise
to me? When you drust do it, then you were a man.” In this part of the play
Lady Macbeth and Macbeth are disputing over their plan, which was killing King
Duncan. This time it seems like Macbeth can’t come through with his part of the
deal. Lady Macbeth is very upset, which reveals a lot about her character. She
seems to be dismayed that her husband doesn’t want to go along with his part of
the deal. It also shows that Lady Macbeth has a way with words to makes try to get
her way.
In Act 2 of the play the
attempt of the death is done. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth kill Duncan. “Alack, I
am afraid they have awaked, and tis’ not done. The attempt and not the deed”
(Act 2, Scene 2, and Lines 9-10) When Lady Macbeth says it is shown that she is
a little unsure of this because she is scared that her and Macbeth will get
caught, which is why the attempt and not the deed would be done. This also
represents that she still decided to go along with killing Duncan as she
planned with her husband making her of her word. In fact when she says this
quotes she is speaking to Macbeth trying to make sure that everything goes
right, it shows her fear and worry to what will occur in the future as well.
Act 2, Scene 2, Line
9-10 is where Lady Macbeth says to Macbeth “Infirm of purpose! Give me the
daggers”. They are doing the deed, but Macbeth brought the daggers with him and
is feeling guilty. This reveals that Lady Macbeth is a little controlling. She
also seems powerful and shows her power by demanding the daggers and putting
them in their place herself. Lady Macbeth seems pretty assured that things will
go right and it also reveals that Lady Macbeth helps her husband get back on
track when he is not mentally strong.
As the play goes on Lady
Macbeth’s state of mind begins to change. Now in Act 3, Scene 2, and Lines 7-8
Lady Macbeth says, “Tis safer to be that which we destroy than by destruction
dwell in doubtful joy”. This is showing a little bit of fear, sadness, and
doubt on Lady Macbeth’s part. Basically when she says that Lady Macbeth is
saying that she is scared that one day she will be discovered. Also, it is
revealing that Lady Macbeth seems to start getting weaker as the play goes on
because now that the deed is done she is no longer as confident as before. When
Lady Macbeth says this she is having an aside/ soliloquy, which is her
basically expressing her emotions as to what is happening.
As the story is started
to end, it is visible to see where Lady Macbeth is starting to loose her
strength. This is shown where Lady Macbeth says, “What, will these hands ne’er
be clean? No more o’ that, my lord, no more o’ that” in Act 5, Scene 1, and
Lines 43-44. This means that Lady is feeling the guilt from killing King
Duncan. She feels as though she feels weak and her ways. Lady Macbeth is
showing that she is getting a little mentally unstable. When she says this
quote she is not conscious she is saying it because of the fact that she is
sleep walking out of guilt.
There is also evidence
that that Lady Macbeth is pretty unsure of herself when the gentlewomen in the
play says, “She has spoken what she should not, I am sure of that. Heaven knows
what she has known”. {Act 5, Scene 1, Line 48) In this part this is where Lady
Macbeth is sleep walking and can’t hold her guilt. This tells about her that
her weakness has taken over. Also, it tells the others now that she is possibly
capable of anything now that they know that she has leaked what she has done.
With this in mind, Lady Macbeth is now on her weakness point.
“ Here’s the smell of
the blood still. All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand”,
is what Lady Macbeth says in Act 5, Scene 1, Lines 50-51. She is most likely
turning insane with the fact that she can’t handle she has murdered a human
being. It is reveals that her motives were most likely different from before.
She was most likely thinking about the fact that she wanted to be royalty, but
the fact that she is now royalty she realizes that she was definitely power
crazed. This is before the scene ends and right before Lady Macbeth decided to
end her life.
In conclusion Lady
MacBeth went from someone who was prevailing to someone who was weak. She was
very determined to kill. Once Lady Macbeth and Macbeth killed King Duncan and
she because royalty over time she wasn’t able to cope with her decision.
Overview:“As
Life Goes On” is what my assignment was titled. The book “The House On Mango
Street” inspired this memoir vignette. The purpose was to take an important
moment or moments in our lives where we can recap details that are pretty
vivid. This moment had to be important and so that is exactly what went on in
my piece. I expressed myself, in a manner that was never thought possible,
which is the purpose of writing in general.
As Life Goes On(Memoir
Vignette)
I was
miserable when I was young. (Opener) I didn’t always live in the northeast
portion of Philadelphia. I did in fact live in North Philadelphia. My sanity
seemed to end at the age of eight when I was exposed to things I felt no one
should ever be. No child, no sinner, no parent (magic three). No one at
all.
Almost everyone was smoking, drinking and getting high.
(Magic three) People shot each other, fought over unnecessary things, and
thought it was okay to rob others just for the hell of it. (Magic three)
Most people thought that they were cool if they did those things, but for me
the word cool meant fool. As I walked alone in the dark as the shadows lurk
behind me, I didn’t feel safe. I saw other people get jumped and hoped that I
wasn’t the next victim. Everyday I was susceptible to fear every single moment
of the day. I was only eight, maybe I didn’t quite understand everything that
was going on at the time, but I knew what drugs and violence were and that they
were one of those things people should stay away from. (Imagery)
All I can possibly recall is feeling anguish, anger, and confusion.
(Magic three and vocabulary) I felt that feeling where I didn’t know how to
feel, my heart seemed to beat faster as each beat went on. It was in those
moments where I wanted to help the situation at hand, but felt helpless. Being
in a room full of people, it always seemed as though I was the only one there.
These feelings seemed to have evolved because my neighborhood in North
Philadelphia was full of gang violence and drug addicts. (Imagery)
Day after day after day (rep for effect), it seemed as though
these things just weren’t going away. I never expected that anyone in my
family would ever fall under the influence of either gang violence or drugs,
but I guess I should have expected the unexpected. My brother Raymundus (Ray)
ended up falling into the influence of both things actually. As each minute
passed I felt like my brother was slipping away from the grasp of my mother’s
hand. Of course she tried helping him, but my mother seemed to be as helpless
as I was. What my mother was trying to do just didn’t seem to amount to enough.
(Part of my realization)
So everyday I seemed to go to my room at night and just lay
under my covers. The months seemed to pass by and still no hope. In the
summer and spring I could feel the gust of the winds feeling against my walls
and slapping me in the face. (Personification & metaphor) The chills
seemed to run through my body and it was as cold as a winter’s day, but the
only thing I knew to do was pray for salvation and cry. In the winter and fall
time I felt the heat of my tears warming my face up as the tears rolled down my
cheek. I began to feel hot, angry and frustrated. (Magic three) There
was frustration that didn’t seem to leave my alone. It wasn’t something that
anyone could just brush off, but at the same time being eight it was hard to
confront. I cried and cried and cried, but that didn’t seem to help the
situation at all. (Personification, magic three and rep for effect)
As the time went by my family seemed to move up to the
Northeast portion of Philadelphia. We hoped that things would get better, since
we would be away from being in North Philadelphia, but we were wrong. That
sister and brother bond that we had before, that I seemed to see again just
never came back. Before he fell victim it was like a big happy family my
sister, brother, and I were all best friends. After drugs took over his life we
wouldn’t even say a word to each other.In fact the situation seemed to get even worse. Nothing seemed to help,
no talking to him, no leaving notes, my sister and I seemed to loose hope.
Confrontations between my mother and brother seemed to occur everyday, yelling
and screams is all that ever happened when my brother was there.
These confrontations led to my brother just walking out of the
house. He wouldn’t come back until random times in the night it could be one
o’clock and he still wasn’t home. All I could possibly do was hope that nothing
happened to him and that everything was okay. I figured that with some time
that I would possibly get used to it, but I never did. Every time I saw my
brother his eyes were red.
My brother’s body was always as bruised as a tomato, from
gang fights. (Simile) My family was never really ever to process this
considering that my brother is so intelligent, but decided to waste his talent.
My mother always seemed to lecture him about it, but it never ended well. Then
again I can’t imagine anything worst than losing a child considering I’m not
even a parent. My mother tried speaking to my brother because she knows he has
the potential and she didn’t want her child to end up in jail or in a grave
before his calling.
Ray never really seemed to understand the pain and agony that
my mother was going through and indeed it seems that we end up hurting the
people we love the most.I can
remember this situation like it was yesterday. My mother picked up the house
phone and busted out into tears. I was scared and thought my brother was dead.
I then find out that his drink had been spiked and besides that he had been
given “angel dust”, which caused him hallucinations.
In that moment I was beyond frightened; seeing my mother heart
broken always seems to make me heart broken, and feel beyond helpless. All I
knew in that moment, like always was to cry. We hopped in the car, rushed to
the hospital, and ran into the E.R. (magic three) Finally after a long wait
we got to see my brother. He was on the verge of death, his skin was beyond
pale, and besides that he was throwing up everywhere. (Magic three) The
fact that he was throwing up didn’t stop me from my first instinct so I just I
grabbed his hand, looked at him, and told him I loved him. (Magic three) It
was in that moment we connected as brother and sister; it was like we were
two chemicals whose bond could not be broken. (Simile)
Of course I knew that drugs could end someone’s life, but
never did I think it could affect a family member and my relationship with them
or with someone I love. All I could think of in that moment was how glad
I was that Ray was alive. From that day on I made a vow that I wouldn’t ever do
drugs or try to do anything that would hurt the people around me.
(Realization)
The intelligence that my brother had, never left him being
caught up with the wrong people at the wrong time is what happened. Also,
Knowing that he needed help, but was too hard headed to admit it is another
thing Ray lacked. My mother got him help one day and I recall it being the best
day of my life. It hurt to know that although my brother and I didn’t even
exchange words I wouldn’t be able to see his face everyday, though I knew it
was for the best.
My brother made a vow to change his ways, but who knew if he
would stay true to what he said. It took some time, but with time everything
fell into its place. Currently, my brother is away at a school, un addicted
to drugs (Magic 3) and striving to be the best he could possibly be. Soon
he will be in college, and realizes that his actions weren’t the smartest. Our
relationship hasn’t been the same like when we he was about 12, considering we
just starting talk again about 2 months ago. Although, everyday that we talk it
seems like its something we build up.
Overview:For this assignment in particular,
everyone had to compare two characters to each other and show how the two were
distinctive as well. With doing so, we had to have a thesis and analysis in
order to back up our thoughts towards both characters and their well-being
Odysseus vs. Everett Final
Throughout the world characteristics of leaders are
courageous, smart, and usually very tactical. There are many aspects that
define leaders beside the fact that they always do everything correctly. There
is evidence in the movie “ O Brother,
Where Art Thou? “, written by Jeff Martin and also throughout the book The
Odyssey by Homer. The main characters, and leaders, from these stories are
Everett from and Odysseus from the book, respectively. While Odysseus and
Everett are very strong men and tactical leaders that have their flaws; Everett
was more willing to not only accept the fact that he makes mistakes, but also
apologize to his crew members about said mistakes. This makes Everett a better
leader.
As heroic
leaders, Odysseus and Everett took very similar missions throughout their
voyages in order to get back home to their families and normal lives,
especially back to their wives. These two leaders had to overcome all the
obstacles that came in their way of returning home to their loved ones. For
example, throughout both stories the men had to pass the mystical and strange
Sirens, which seemed like an impossible task. Odysseus is told to tell the crew
members by Circe” But if you plead, commanding your men to set you free, then
they must last you faster, rope on rope”(Book 12, page 273, line 59) Meanwhile,
too occupied of the task trying to get to their destinations both lose men,
losing sight of reality, honesty, and concentration. Since, they are “leaders”,
they attempt to disguise their weakness and remorse in order to move on with
the situation at hand, which is where there cockiness comes into play. Everett
decides to say, “Where is my hair treatment”, while the crew is in a desperate
time of need of food and shelter, just as Odysseus did with his men by saying”
And if someone were to ask you who blinded me tell them my name is Odysseus
raider of the cities”(Book 9, page 227 line 561) and when he did this he put
the lives of his crew members at risk of not only getting home, but getting
there alive.
Odysseus ends up loosing
all his men and going home alone because he doesn’t want to tell his men his
plans, to warn them because of his pride, unlike Everett who goes home with his
two men he came. Even though Everett didn’t tell his men the ideas he knew that
his men weren’t in danger at those moments. Odysseus risks his men life when
they are near Scylla by saying “No mention of Scylla-how to fight that
nightmare?”(Book 12, page 278 line 241)
Although, both
characters take similar missions, Everett’s wife is not faithful to him &
instead of taking the time to kill the man like Odysseus did he finds the way
to get him out of both of their lives. Throughout the book Everett and Odysseus
find ways to deceive their men or make them angry, Everett unlike Odysseus realizes
that he is only human and swallows up his pride in order to apologize to his
men by saying “I know that I have made tactical mistakes”. Odysseus doesn’t
apologize, but shows grief by expressing how he felt when he saw his men die
such a terrible death. He says “I could see their hands and feet already
hoisted, falling, high, higher, over my head, look wailing down at me, comrades
riven in agony, shrieking out my name for the last time….Of all the pitiful
things I’ve had to witness”(Book 12, page 279, lines 266-280) Everett has two
other men on his side that he has to lead, but Odysseus has many men, which is
a result of him having to be more secure of himself and of his actions. For ex.
when Odysseus furls the rock at the Cyclops, it could have ended some of his
crewmembers’ lives as well just because of his pride.
Pride and selfishness are not best characteristics. Everett displays
himself as a cocky leader, while Odysseus displays himself as both selfish and
cocky. Since Everett was able to put his characteristics aside, unlike Odysseus
who never really owned up to the fact that it was his fault that his men never
made it back with him, he was able to make a better leader.
We write to express ourselves and to kind of get your ideas
and feelings down on paper. We write to influence and help teach others on our
experiences. The point of writing is to express yourself and your ideas
throughout paragraphs, poems, or songs.
If you really knew me…
If you really knew me you would know that I really care
about my family
And that I’m a great athlete
Also you would know that I try to make others live better by
making them laugh
If you really knew me you would know tat I want to be great
someday
And still haven’t planed out a route to get there
Only if you really knew me…
If you really knew me you would
know that I come from a family that strives for greatness
And for me it hard to follow in
their footsteps
If you knew me you would know I
try my best to keep up the juggle between friends, sports, and schoolwork
If you really knew me you would
know that I love music because I come from parents that also love music.
If you really knew me you would
know that my dad is my best friend, because he’s been there for me through
thick and thin.
If you really k new me you could
see that im always going to be me and none will change that.
Only if you really knew…
I feel like a person needs their
family to survive the world. Our family is there trough holidays and birthdays
and can be helpful in or life to get that advice you need. Holidays like
thanksgiving could help you because every one giving out thanks to each other
and sharing a meal and also you can experience them because you don’t see them
throughout the year.
On birthdays this is true also,
your family could give you advice about the future because
They have experienced things
throughout their lives and don’t want you to make the same mistakes.
In today’s world it is very
important to fit in with the crowd, through social networks, celebrities, and
friends influence them to become a person they are not. While being you self is
important the world is creating a new generation of followers and no one is
becoming a leader. So really the importance of fitting in is key to a social
life in today’s world.
The
book I read this semester was Monster by
Walter Dean Myers. This book has won many awards such as:
·Coretta Scott King Honor (Author)
·ALA Best Book for Young Adults
·ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers
·Kentucky Bluegrass
Award
·ALA Best Book for
Young Adults
·ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult
Readers
·New York Times Notable
Book of the Year
The
story of Monster follows the court trial of Steve
Harmon and James King, Who are being charged with the murder of drugstore
owner. The story is told as if it were a movie from Steve’s point of view. This
Murder was not Steve’s fault, but because he was near the crime scene as a
supposed look out Steve was found in the wrong place at the wrong time. As the
movie rolls on the life of Steve goes with it, seeing that when the trial end
for the day he goes back to the cell where he feels uncomfortable and doubts
himself in a way that he mite loose this trial.
The main conflict was between Steve and
him self as he dealt with the fact that he was being labeled a monster. Steve
didn’t want to believe that he was monster, but the fact he watched out as a
James took another persons life must have been hard to swallow. Even though the
conflict still is still in his head, Steve sets morals for himself to become a
better person after this trial. Unluckily, James is charged with murder and
Steve is sent out to begin his new life.
My favorite character throughout this story was Steve Harmon, he shows
the strength and courage to believe that he is not something that people label
him as, a monster. That shows that the moral of this was just that, if people
label you as something, would you let people decide who are; or will you decide
who you become? I could relate to Steve the best because he went through
something that I
Have dealt with when I was in grade
school, I was stuck in the wrong place at the wrong time.
I
would recommend this book because Walter Dean Myers is a good auther and can
relate his topic with many people.
If
I pulled off a great trick, I wouldn’t tell people who would tell the people
that the trick was pulled on. But I wouldn’t keep it to myself either. I would
probably tell 2 of my best friends and then I’d wait a little while until the
reaction to the trick had blown over or if I was far away when I played the
trick on someone, I would wait until I got home to tell people about the trick.
I would do this to ensure the people I played a trick on didn’t find out, and
to keep myself out of trouble. Also, I’d have to take into consideration what
the trick was, and who it would effect before I considered telling people about
it. I think that this all depends on who, what, when, and where.
This was about comparing the story of Everett and the story Odysseus
Roger Bracy 3/6/11
Everett vs. Odysseus
The
Odyssey and O’
Brother Where Art Thou featured two adventurers who went down similar paths
and confronted several dangers during their journey to get back home. O’
Brother Where Art Thou spotlighted Everett, a criminal who wants to get
back home to his wife and kids.He
had to take two men with him to escape the chain gang, a group of prisoners
working along side the road. Likewise, in The
Odyssey, Odysseus was a leader in the Trojan War, and was trying to get
home to his wife back in Ithaca with his crew. Even though Everett and Odysseus
had a long journey, full of anguish and battle, one crew returned intact
because of one man’s leadership skills. This great leader was Everett.
Odysseus and Everett both spotted
one-eyed creatures in both their quests. However, when they confronted the
beasts, they had different outcomes. When Odysseus first met Polyphemus, the
Cyclops was a huge obstacle that he had to conquer. Odysseus, a man of pride,
wasn’t going to let his men be trapped in the Polyphemus’s cave, so he made a
plan to get the barbarian drunk and opened up the cave so his men could be
free. “Hoisting high that olive stake with its stabbing point. Straight into
the monster’s eye they rammed it hard.” (Book 9: lines 427-428) Odysseus not
only makes the beast pass out, he outdid himself by piercing the eye of the
Cyclops, blinding him forever.
This reflects Everett’s journey where he
encountered a man of one eye, Big Dan Teague. While eating at a fancy
restaurant, Everett and Delmar are confronted by a holy man, by the name of Big
Dan Teague. He then took the men outside to eat and teach them the rules of
selling the bible, and as soon as they weren’t paying attention, Big Dan pulled
a branch off of a tree and beat the men with it. Dan took their money and car
and left them stranded, but Everett would encounter Big Dan again. He made his
second appearance when he chased and stormed after Everett and his crew while
they interrupted the Homer Stokes KKK clan. Once the men got away they cut the
rope of the burning cross the end the life of Big Dan Teague. Although Everett
and Odysseus both faced a Cyclops the after math was very different.
Everett and Odysseus’s journeys are comparable
by their Knowledge of their last obstacles. As Odysseus met his last challenge
the advice from Circe aided his quest forward and helped them reach the island
of Thrinacia. Her advice was “First you will raise the island of the sirens.”(Book
12: line 44) “Once you crew has rowed past the sirens a choice of routes is
yours.” (Book 12: lines 61-62), talking about the routes between Scylla and
Charybdis, and don’t eat the cattle, “Leave the beast unharmed, … and you may
still reach Ithaca.” (Book 12: lines 148-149) Odysseus’s knowledge of the
situation helped guide his men past the sirens and the two routes. To conclude
his task, Odysseus’s men ended up eating the cattle leaving him to return
without his crew intact.
Identical to Odysseus, Everett while at
the end of his journey remembered information that was crucial to his crew’s
survival. While facing their death, Everett and his men were going to be hung
and killed off for all the crimes they have committed. Everett stood strong, as
he knew that the dam was going to brake and flood the county by the lake. The
men were saved from their death by the knowledge of Everett and they soon
returned home. The ending of both men’s voyage was very similar as they both
got home safely, but only one of these men came home with his crew; Everett was
a better leader then Odysseus because he was able to get his crew home safely.
Furthermore Everett and Odysseus
encountered similar quests and faced identical obstacles along the way, but
only one man showed great leadership and got his men home. Everett has proven,
multiple times, that he could save his men in his passage to get home; he
wouldn’t leave his men in any situation that he wouldn’t overcome with them. As
for Odysseus, he was hesitant to save his crew throughout his Journey because
he had one task in his head; to go home. Everett and Odysseus, who come from
different centuries, both found their way back home, but one man’s journey
proved to his fellow crew that he could conquer all tasks that he was faced
with to get his men out of trouble.
This was about telling a story about our life through our eyes.
Roger Bracy1/7/11
The Ride of My Life
Forty-two stories of solid medal of stood in my way, and I wasn’t backing down from a challenge. (Interesting opener) That day at six flags changed my life; (Foreshadow) and the sign had stated “Kingda Ka”(dialogue) was my death ticket.
I was wondering why my friend had chosen this route to the other side of the park seeing that it had no outlet filled me with curiosity. Then I looked up, there stood the tallest coaster in the World, they called it “Kingda Ka.” Standing there trying to scare us on to this monstrosity was my friend Frank. Even though Frank is a loyal friend he has a way to trick you into doing things, such as, making you say stupid things, practical jokes, or things like getting on a scary ride.(magic three) As my sister and my cousin shied away from the ride I felt a little sorry for him seeing that it was the only ride that he enjoyed the most, and I gave in.
Walking through the maze of the line (metaphor) I questioned myself by saying, “Am I really going to risk my life over a friend.” Next I noticed that we were moving through this line really quickly was there absence of people. This had to be a mistake because this was the most popular ride in the park. We continued on to find that the ride had stopped temporally; this was my chance to leave. Having second thoughts about a ride made this experience even worse and frank wasn’t having it. Watching the ride load up, go up, and come down (magic 3) the ride got more and more intense.
The line finally caught up to us at the bridge, an area where the coaster was very clear. The train slowly would pull out onto a long track, STOP; shift back an inch and “CLICK” (onomatopoeia). Speakers shouting phrases of “don’t do it!” and “there’s no turning back now!” (Dialogue) The riders are consumed by terroras if they where a little kid waiting for a monster to jump out of a closet. (Simile) Like a rubber band, the coaster was ready to be released (simile) and the riders flung out at speeds of 85mph to climb the 42 stories which is known to be Kingda Ka.
As we approached the front of the line I was overwhelmed by fear buy some of the sights I was witnessing. There were foreigners, who had thick accents, they where very excited and had traveled all the way across the world to ride this giant piece of metal. Then religion started to show as I found people praying before the ride the left, right, up, and down hand motion of the cross gave some the strength to go on. Noticing that the line was beginning to congest, it was because of the exiting area, many people where exiting I guess felt a little like me.
Frank and I were next in line so kind wanted to get rid of my fear so I decided to ask people in the line some questions. I found a kid who was about my age and was very excited to go on, “what the hardest part of this ride?” I asked, (Dialogue) He answered going up this gave me the idea that if I can make it through to the top the rest would be pretty easy. Next Frank and started to count how long it takes to reach the top, it took about 14 seconds.
We were next; we hopped into our seats and waited for instructions. The worker told us to strap the harness as far as it could go down on our bodies. At this moment in time I was regretting that I had ever made fun of a fat person because they were the only people who could be held down properly on this ride as I was skinny and could shift all around the car. As we left the loading station the car slowly move us forward we stop the speakers were all around us shouting “No, No don’t do it!” and then all of the ride shot out like a cannon and we coasted our way up to the top. The ride became slower as everyone could now see that we hung over the parking lot and the view of black and white confronted us as we dropped down. It felt like an elephant was dancing on my stomach as we when down as it caved in. when it was over I was full of relief ans gave Frank a high five.
The ride ended, and I felt on top of the world and I thanked Frank for taking me on Kingda Ka. I figured that the only thing that held me back was the fact that I saw a challenge and I shy away and let my fear guide my mind. I never backed down and found that I would get through this nightmare.
This was about telling a story about our life through our eyes.
Roger Bracy1/7/11
The
Ride of My Life
Forty-two
stories of solid medal of stood in my way, and I wasn’t backing down from a
challenge. (Interesting opener) That day at six flags changed my life;
(Foreshadow) and the sign had stated “Kingda Ka”(dialogue) was my death
ticket.
I was wondering why my friend had chosen this route
to the other side of the park seeing that it had no outlet filled me with
curiosity. Then I looked up, there stood the tallest coaster in the World,
they called it “Kingda Ka.” Standing there trying to scare us on to this
monstrosity was my friend Frank. Even though Frank is a loyal friend he has a
way to trick you into doing things, such as, making you say stupid things,
practical jokes, or things like getting on a scary ride.(magic three) As my
sister and my cousin shied away from the ride I felt a little sorry for him
seeing that it was the only ride that he enjoyed the most, and I gave in.
Walking
through the maze of the line (metaphor) I questioned myself by saying, “Am
I really going to risk my life over a friend.” Next I noticed that we were
moving through this line really quickly was there absence of people. This had
to be a mistake because this was the most popular ride in the park. We
continued on to find that the ride had stopped temporally; this was my chance
to leave. Having second thoughts about a ride made this experience even worse
and frank wasn’t having it. Watching the ride load up, go up, and come down (magic 3) the ride got more and
more intense.
The
line finally caught up to us at the bridge, an area where the coaster was very
clear. The train slowly would pull out onto a long track, STOP; shift back an
inch and “CLICK” (onomatopoeia). Speakers shouting phrases of “don’t
do it!” and “there’s no turning back now!” (Dialogue) The riders are consumed
by terroras if they where a little kid waiting for a monster to jump
out of a closet. (Simile) Like a rubber band, the coaster was ready to
be released (simile) and the riders flung out at speeds of 85mph to climb
the 42 stories which is known to be Kingda Ka.
As we approached
the front of the line I was overwhelmed by fear buy some of the sights I was
witnessing. There were foreigners, who had thick accents, they where very
excited and had traveled all the way across the world to ride this giant
piece of metal. Then religion started to show as I found people praying
before the ride the left, right, up, and down hand motion of the cross gave
some the strength to go on. Noticing that the line was beginning to congest, it
was because of the exiting area, many people where exiting I guess felt a
little like me.
Frank and I were
next in line so kind wanted to get rid of my fear so I decided to ask people in
the line some questions. I found a kid who was about my age and was very
excited to go on, “what the hardest part of this ride?” I asked,
(Dialogue) He answered going up this gave me the idea that if I can make it
through to the top the rest would be pretty easy. Next Frank and started to
count how long it takes to reach the top, it took about 14 seconds.
We were next; we
hopped into our seats and waited for instructions. The worker told us to strap
the harness as far as it could go down on our bodies. At this moment in time I
was regretting that I had ever made fun of a fat person because they were the
only people who could be held down properly on this ride as I was skinny and
could shift all around the car. As we left the loading station the car slowly
move us forward we stop the speakers were all around us shouting “No, No don’t
do it!” and then all of the ride shot out like a cannon and we coasted our way
up to the top. The ride became slower as everyone could now see that we hung
over the parking lot and the view of black and white confronted us as we dropped
down. It felt like an elephant was dancing on my stomach as we when down as it
caved in. when it was over I was full of relief ans gave Frank a high five.
The ride ended,
and I felt on top of the world and I thanked Frank for taking me on Kingda Ka.
I figured that the only thing that held me back was the fact that I saw a
challenge and I shy away and let my fear guide my mind. I never backed down and
found that I would get through this nightmare.
I didn’t really feel anything when the “N word” was said to
us from the book we are reading in class. We are getting older and becoming
more mature and there are words we’ll have to encounter as we grow older. It’s
an important thing to encounter because the world isn’t always going to be rainbows
and butterflies. No one has a perfect life, and people who try to avoid these
words are avoiding the real world. In the real world there are sometimes people
who don’t think about their actions, or they’re bad and disrespectful people.
You will come across all sorts of people in your life time, And I know that isn’t
something we have any control over. People are going to use fowl language and
it is more important to know how to react, than to be angry or disappointed with
them because that isn’t always the best approach. The word is awful, but
inevitable. And in my mind words are only what you make them out to be. I also
think that it’s inappropriate because nobody should be insulted in that way but
unfortunately people will use that language.
Overview: This assignment was done in the beginning of the school
year, possibly the first couple weeks of school. For this assignment, it was
about us as well as and incorporating who we are throughout our writing. The
purpose was to be able to distinguish who we are, and what makes us unique from
others as well as seeing what we had in common with others as they presented
their interests and hobbies.
Overview: This
independent reading review project consisted of us reading a book that
interested us and righting a review on it. In the review, personal opinions
were accounted for as well as if we would recommend this book to another
person. The main purpose was to talk about the book, but mixing up some spices
without adding in the entire flavor before the meet starts to cook. In other words keeping
the reader entertained was the main purpose as well as making the book sound
interesting without giving away all the details. This is now my edited version
of the assignment, since slight adjustments had to be made.
Book Review
Jason and Kyra is a book that has been written by Dana
Davidson. The book was published in December 2005 and has reached a sales rank
of about 31,000 books. Jason and Kyra won a couple awards, which are the
Virginia’s choice award, National book award, and the Michael L. Prints award.
In Jason and Kyra the main characters are Jason and Kyra,
hence the name of the book. In the story they seem to live in totally separate
worlds, although they are both seniors at Cross High School. Jason being the
totally popular jock that everyone wants and Kyra being the quiet girl that
just doesn’t seem to stand out to many.
Their worlds seem to collide when they are both assigned to be
partners for a project, of course Kyra didn’t seem too excited since she didn’t
expect that Jason was smart. On the other side Jason looked forward to working
with Kyra. As time goes by Kyra realizes that Jason is truly smart and has such
potential when it comes to being in the classroom. They both start to gain a
small connection for each other and Jason tells Kyra things that he isn’t even
comfortable telling to his best friend.
Sooner than later, Kyra and Jason began to bond and end up
becoming boyfriend and girlfriend. Only there is one problem, since Jason was
known to be and jock and the popular one and Kyra was the silent girl that was
mainly into the books, Jason’s ex girlfriend would do anything in her power to
see them apart. Like Jason’s ex many people didn’t want them together asking
them why they were together and on top of that Jason’s ex was trying to get him
back, which many could say was hard. But Jason and Kyra found in each other
beauty, confidence, and with that they learned to love one another and get past
societies thoughts.
Throughout this story Jason was my favorite character. He was
able to live above what others thought about his relationship and smarts, and
decided that being himself was the best thing to do in his situation. Also,
another reason that Jason was my favorite character was because he was able to
thrive in his path to success and what was on him mind usually became the
prize.
With that in mind, I believe that readers will be able to take
away a lot from this book. Many can learn that confidence can lead a good path
and that sometimes other people’s negative opinions don’t matter. Also, some
people will take out of this book that in life you have to learn to be willing
to surpass those little things in life that wont better your well being.
Lastly, this book teaches you to chase after your dreams because your dreams
surely wont chase after you.
Personally, from this book I am able to relate to Jason and
Kyra because they were both confident when it came to getting what they wanted
and they seemed to be the outcast of the school, which isn’t always bad. Of course
they were known as outcasts because not many people wanted them to be together,
but the fact that they fought through it is what made their love stronger for
each other. Like Jason I wasn’t always able to speak to the people that I
thought were close to me, so that is probably what made me enjoy the book even
more.
The book to me was well written and I surely enjoyed the way
that the author portrayed the character’s feelings throughout the story, which
made me attracted to the book as a reader. Although, I feel as though the book
could have talked more about Jason’s ex girlfriend and her feelings toward
Kyra. Also, the author could have possibly written more about Jason’s ex
girlfriend and let her speak throughout the book; therefore I found that portion
too be a weakness of the piece. Even though, this book had its weakness’ like
any other book, I would definitely recommend this to other people because it
teaches others the benefits of confidence, unconditional love, and inner &
outer beauty.
Overview- Everyday
during English class there was a prompt or it said “free write” on the board.
In these 15-20 minutes of class everyone was able to have a moment where they
could write about anything they wanted whether it was something amazing or
tragic. These 6 entries that will be showcased are the work that have been
written on my part whether well done or poorly written. These entries just show
my growth in general.
Journal 1-
There has been moments throughout my life where there are things that were
difficult to get. The struggle was to find in which manner would be best to go
about pursuing what it was that was difficult to get
This often
happens to me and from personal experience, although it is difficult it is best
to pursue it directly rather than indirectly. For ex. when my friends invite me
to places and there is no doubt throughout my mind that the idea is amazing but
the problem is asking. When I really want something though, there is no doubt
in my mind that I will strive for that certain something until I get it.
Journal 2- To
fit in isn’t much important from my personal perspective. Fitting in is bland, boring
and the same old stuff. When being yourself there is room for you be who you
are; unique, creative and most importantly you. Putting yourself in a position
where you act like something you’re not, is mainly glib.
Journal 3-A
time where I have felt where I could drop my racial, cultural, or gender
identity is when people feel the need to judge me. They feel as though just
because I look a certain way I’m expected to be “ghetto” or not be as educated
as I have been so far. With that in mind, another time I wish that I could drop
my culture is when I’m beyond hungry and my best friend asks me for some of
when I’m eating.
It picks a nerve
because I want to say when people ask me for food but sometimes the words don’t
come out and even if I say no I still give in and give her some. Its all
because I can imagine my mother saying “Katherine no se le niega la comida a nadie”. In other words my
mother is saying its not good to deny others food. I mean I’m not a greedy
person, but when it comes to sharing and im starving that’s when it becomes a
problem.
When people look
at me they automatically think I am of African American descent, but they
thought wrong because I am not black I am Dominican and Puerto Rican. When
people ask me what race I am proudly I can say “I’m Dominican and Puerto
Rican”.
Journal 4- There
hasn’t even been a moment in my life where there has been an impossible task.
Although time get rough, in my mind there isn’t a situation that as a human
that is impossible to surpass. Considering that the easy way out isn’t always
the best thing to, so when doing things that are difficult it really helps to
learn more. With this characteristics that end up defining myself are
hardworking and determined.
Journal 5- Your
environment shapes who you are and who you become because you usually are
influenced by your experiences. This behavior can be influence people in a
negative or positive manner. When seeing terrible things you can either flow
with it or live above the influence. When seeing things on a daily basis, you
can assume that it isn’t terrible if you haven’t had background information on
the concept.
Journal 6-
When encountering the word “nigger” there was a pause throughout the reading.
It seemed to be insolent behavior on Rufus’ part (he’s from the book). In this
time he is a child and his father was using this word as well as many other
people in his surroundings. Therefore, from his perspective the word “nigger”
was okay to say.
Rufus didn’t seem to understand the power behind the word “nigger” . He
didn’t understand how much hatred, agony and hurt lies beneath it. Therefore, I
wondered if Rufus ever encountered his father whipping the slaves and hear
their brutal screams the way that Dana had to.