Comparing “The Taming of the Shrew” to “The Best of Me”

As Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew ” proves, parental interference has been an essential factor in courtship over the centuries. In this famous piece of literature, Baptista, the wealthy father of the ‘shrew’ Katherine and the beautiful Bianca, interferes with his daughters’ love lives most frequently. In the 2014 screen adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ the Best of Me, a young couple, Dawson Cole and Amanda Collier, is faced with extraordinary obstacles, one being Amanda’s father. While Baptista’s efforts were less brash, Collier took extreme measures to ensure a better future for his daughter. In the movie, the meddling even extends to Dawson’s non biological father figure, Tuck. Baptista, Collier and Tuck all take different approaches in their interference, but they all meddle, nonetheless. The prying was fueled by the father's’ desires to find the suitor who could provide the most stable life for their children. While, Baptista is faced with impending courtships, Tuck and Collier take on an existing one. These fictional situations are all paradigms from literature that reflect parental values in marital or love affairs. These texts prove that parental interference has been an essential factor in courtship over the centuries, proving that children have no say in whom they get to love.

"After my death, the one half of my lands, And in possession, twenty thousand crowns."

(Act 2, Scene 1, 28-29)

During this scene, Baptista was conversing with Petruchio, a possible suitor for his eldest daughter, Katherine. Katherine had a rather unflattering reputation, and Baptista asked nothing of how the suitor would love his eldest. Instead, he informed the suitor of the dowry he would provide, in turn, promising Katherine would have financial stability entering her new union. Yet, no one asked her what she would like to do, or if she could love this man.

On the other hand, instead of offering a handsome dowry to accept his daughter, Harvey Collier uses his wealth to ensure his daughter’s chosen suitor would leave her.

Towards the middle of the film, audiences are enveloped in the courtship between Dawson and Amanda. In this scene, Dawson attends an Easter celebration at Amanda’s family home. Harvey Collier, her father, escorts Dawson to his car shed after becoming acquainted with one another. They begin to discuss his rare car collection, and Dawson’s dream of attending college. He offered Dawson $80,000, for tuition and all extra expenses, to end his relationship with Amanda. He claimed that he could not have a “Cole boy” endangered his daughter or her dreams. Both Baptista and Collier interfered in their daughters’ love lives with the notion that they ensuring a better, more stable life for them. They used their wealth and status to attempt to obtain that. The difference between the two is that, Baptista succeeded in giving his daughter away, while Collier failed in trying to take his daughter back.

"Content you, gentlemen; I will compound this strife. 'Tis deeds must win the prize, and he of both That can assure my daughter greatest dower. Shall have my Bianca's love.

Say, Signior Gremio, what can you assure her?"

(Act 2, Scene 1, 361-365)

In this scene, Baptista moved from discussing his eldest daughter to discussing his youngest daughter, Bianca. He was conversing with several suitors on who could provide the best life for Bianca. Baptista even speaks of her love, yet, he did not inquire with her on who she would consider loving. He refers to his daughter as a prize, as if he was a game facilitator at a carnival. Throughout the scene, each man began to list all of their wealth and holdings, Baptista listened intently. He was yet again interfering with his child’s future, without caring to ask who she could see herself loving. Baptista was making the decision for her, just as he did with Katherine.

Tuck, Dawson’s father figure, did not offer money, but words to ensure Dawson and Amanda would rekindle their love for one another.

Throughout the movie, the creators use flashbacks and flash-forwards to tell the story of Dawson and Amanda’s love. In this particular scene, audiences witness a flash-forward. Amanda and Dawson are pulled back to their hometowns to fulfill wishes made by Tuck in his final will and testament. Amanda is reading the letter he had written to her, just before passing. In it, he wrote that he did not want either of them to miss out on true happiness. Inferring that, their true happiness came from being together. Unlike Baptista or Collier, Tuck was not blood, but he was still family. While the other fathers took to using their wealth, Tuck used his words and connection to the characters to ensure his message. The best future for his son and Amanda was for them to be together. While Tuck may not have used the same tactics, he meddled by making it seem as if he knew what was best for them. He did not leave it for them to decide.

Some movies are set in neighborhoods to portray certain hoods like Compton, Queens, the Bronx, Detroit. Some documentaries try to delve into the dynamics of living in the hood, the systems, rivalries, etc. The portrayals and the footage of the busted houses, bullet holes in signs, expensive cars with special suspensions to rock with down the block, thugs giving you side eye. Most of these aren’t the reality in my hood. Southwest Philadelphia isn’t home to any Bloods or Crips, most of the crew's’ names don’t exist. We don’t have cars rolling down the block at 5 m.p.h., bumping to the bass of any N.W.A or Tupac song. We do have busted houses, bullet holes in signs up and down Elmwood Ave, and people throwing out looks that would make you cry. It isn’t all bad though.

My neighborhood affected me in ways I had never realized until this question was posed to me, what is the relationship between the self and a changing world? It raised me, especially the people in my neighborhood. My neighbors may not have always been the most law abiding citizens, they were pretty dangerous. But they are my second family. They helped me with my throwing arm, protected me, teased me like any big brothers and sisters would. More than anything, they taught me about the world and how people work. I learned how to physically and mentally protect myself. They did not have to say anything to me for me to learn. I would watch.

I was a pretty observant child. I would pay attention to all the conversations I wasn’t supposed to, their body language, everything. Just by watching the world around me, I became a very complex person. My neighbors and even my parents were very quiet but loud. I know that sounds kind of stupid. How can you be quiet and loud? They were quiet about relevant details to stories, what was going on with them and their lives. They were loud about things that did not matter, and what made them mad, etc. I never seen any person or adult around me growing up, back down from a fight or a problem. In turn, I was taught how to defend myself with words and my hands. I was taught that my voice and my opinion mattered, and anyone who said differently could get shut up. I was taught to not be a wimp.

Everyone in their life probably has a bullying story, I have a few of my own. My elementary school was very interesting, and I stuck out a lot. I was very intelligent for my age, I was small and thin, basically an easy target. I started to hate myself then. Yet, I never let anyone get away with it. I learned that you never had to put your hands on someone to hurt them. The problems at school got really bad, but I never let anyone see. I never told my parents or my neighbors, or teachers. I would go off, start firing insults back. I can not really remember the things I would say, but I was eight so I doubt any were worth remembering.

I got to middle school and I was the new kid, but I didn’t really care. I had built up this new person I would be, like most new kids do. I became open about anything, but I caused a lot of problems for myself. Everyone is a mess in middle school, no doubt. No one can look back on those years and say, “Wow, those were some fun times.” I got into a lot of arguments. A lot. The new school, new me attitude had a really strong personality. Anytime I felt disrespected, I popped off. I am still really surprised I never got in a fist fight in my life.

I started to be disliked a lot, just because I didn’t take shit from anyone. With losing friends each year, I never lost my love of learning. So I engulfed myself in school even more. Yet, by the end of middle school, I only had two or three close friends. Which was fine with me, because they were loyal and I am still friends with two of them to this day.

If there was anything I learned from growing up in the hood, it was that you only need two or three people to rock with. Telling your business gets complicated and messy, and nobody deserves to know any part of who makes you who you are. If people aren’t worth it, then you cut them off. Of course in southwest people cut other people off in an entirely different way! Even in this paper, I am not opening up in detail about everything. It is permanently etched in my brain to not give a lot of myself or what I go through up.

In turn, everything I went through in middle school tore me up inside. I never showed it, until one mental breakdown in the hallway in 8th grade. After that incident and graduation, that summer became one of the hardest of my life. I had so much going on and a lot of the problems were all inside of my own head. But just as my hood taught me, you do not let people see. So, I breezed through my freshman and sophomore years as smoothly as I could. And I never got to work out so many things about myself.

I have always known I was a good person, that was never a question. But I had so much to get over. So, I did. A lot of people who have major insecurities and self esteem issues deal with it outwardly and even harm themselves. I never hurt myself, but I took my insecurities out on other people. When I got mad, I was furious, because I had so many emotions going on. I would hone in on something that made me mad other than myself, and feed off of it. It is easier to hurt other people than hurt yourself.

A lot of my neighbors and people I grew up with started to get in trouble. A lot of people who were a big part of my life, got locked up. A lot of my close family friends and family started to die. Not from the streets, but losing them nonetheless. This closed me off even more. I felt as though I did not fit in anywhere. Just as the characters in the novel, “The Yellow Birds,” their worlds were changing everyday, and they felt so closed off from society.

There is this Evergreen tree at the end of my street. If you have ever seen any hood movies, or live in the hood, there are not always a lot of other trees than plain oaks. So an Evergreen is almost impossible to come by. I am mesmerized by it every time I am walking home. It is so out of place. The tree is never bare, but it is magnificent and beautiful. Captivating if you stare for more than a beat. I am that Evergreen. I always have my armour on to protect me from the outside world, I stick out in places, but I am magnificent and beautiful. It may have taken me a long time to grow, but I am not going anywhere anytime soon. I thank my hood for everything it has taught me, my home.

  Student Athletes are Still Students

The sports industry brings in one of the largest revenues in the country. College level sports are growing in revenue, now that it consists of the rounds playoff games. This means more ticket sales, merchandise sales, more opportunities for making money. Yet, fans forget these athletes are also students. They advertise their athletic statistics, but what about their grades? College student athletes, particularly those who play football, are given unfair advantages over those who do not play sports because of the revenue the institutions receive from their programs.

Student athletes receiving special treatment from educational institutions has been an issue for well over 30 years. The non-athlete students are not the only people being affected by the disadvantages.  In the mid-1980s, a female professor, at the University of Georgia was fired because she noticed a student’s grade was changed in one of her classes. He was a football player. The professor later filed a lawsuit; the institution claimed to have changed the player’s grade so he was able to compete in a game. An attorney representing the University of Georgia had agreed with Mrs.Kemp’s focus of the suit, that athletes get special treatment. According to a quote taken from his opening statement, he said, ''We may not make a university student out of him, but if we can teach him to read and write, maybe he can work at the post office rather than as a garbage man when he gets through with his athletic career.” There is evidence that the academic institution is more concerned with how the student athletes will make more money after their college career, than how well his education is furthered. Thus, if their athletes go on to be professional players, that may entail that they will possibly donate back to the school that helped reach that career goal. College football programs make up to tens of millions of dollars in donations each year. The number one, top ranked football program, the University of Alabama, made $123,769, 841. The lowest ranked team, the University of Arkansas, made $8,392,852. (ESPN)

Most high school students in their academic career think at least once about college and whether all that money and debt is worth it in the end. With scholarship and financial aid opportunities dwindling, they also wonder could they actually pay for their education. While athletes already have zero debt, and no money coming out of their own pockets for their education and athletic expenses, they are also getting paid for being there. According to reports done by both CBS Sports and Forbes, the universities actually want to pay their football players even more; some universities already pay their players up to $125,000 a year. This includes the cost of their tuition, their room and board fees, their meals, and their coaching/training expenses. This is all considered “payment,” and with major universities with successful football programs considering to play their player even more, this could mean further disadvantages for their other athletic and educational programs. By contrast, most research done in university programs by students are funded by grants. These grants are usually from non-profit organizations wrestling the same cause, alumni from their specific field, etc. While students are struggling to find money to fund their research, education, and tuition, football players are receiving up to six figure salaries. For instance, the University of Michigan receives over 1,000,000 dollars from outside resources for students research; only about $100,000 comes from businesses, non-profits, etc. While, the university can afford to pay the new coach’s $40 million dollar salary, the player’s equipment fees, etc.

Friday Night Lights, the infamous movie and television series, was based on a nonfiction book that  follow a high school football coach in Texas, and his team as they all struggle with their performance in the games and in their lives. Buzz Bissinger, the author of the book, continues to put forth his opinion about the sport of football. Most recently, he wrote an article for the Wall Street Journal commenting on how banning football would allow academic institutions to thrive more. He highlighted an example from the University of Maryland. “The president [of the university], Wallace D. Loh, late last year announced that eight varsity programs would be cut in order to produce a leaner athletic budget, a kindly way of saying that the school would rather save struggling football and basketball programs than keep varsity sports such as track and swimming, in which the vast majority of participants graduate.” This is just further proof of the treatment college level football players receive. So much that, the university is willing to cancel other varsity sports. This could potentially mean that these athletes will lose their athletic full or partial scholarships, if they received one. Therefore, other student athletes from other sports are being affected and cut off, just to fund football players.

College institutions have always posed physical, emotional, and academic challenges to their students. Yet, student athletes who play football only overcome their physical performance obstacles. With their grades being changed by coaches, up to six figure salaries, varsity sports getting cut to fund their program even more, it is clear that there is no limit to the special treatment these student athletes receive. Yet, throughout all of this we can look up their on the field statistics, but what about their off the field statistics from their classes? Student athletes are still students, but to major universities they are only money bags.

Works Cited:

ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.

<http://espn.go.com/ncaa/revenue>.

"Players about to Get Paid as Money Changes Game in College Athletics." CBSSports.com. Web. 20 Sept. 2015. <http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/writer/dennis-dodd/25083726/players-about-to-get-paid-as-money-changes-game-in-college-athletics>.

Forbes. Forbes Magazine. Web. 20 Sept. 2015. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/leighsteinberg/2013/09/06/time-to-treat-college-athletes-fairly/>.

Forbes. Forbes Magazine. Web. 20 Sept. 2015. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffreydorfman/2013/08/29/pay-college-athletes-theyre-already-paid-up-to-125000year/>.

Forbes. Forbes Magazine. Web. 21 Sept. 2015. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/chrissmith/2012/05/07/would-banning-college-football-actually-help-academics/>.

"8 Things You Should Know about Sports Scholarships." CBSNews. CBS Interactive. Web. 21 Sept. 2015. <http://www.cbsnews.com/news/8-things-you-should-know-about-sports-scholarships/>.

"Why College Football Should Be Banned." WSJ. Web. 21 Sept. 2015. <http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304743704577382292376194220>.

 "The 50 Colleges Spending the Most on Research & Development in 2015." Best Colleges. Web. 7 Nov. 2015.  <http://www.bestcolleges.com/features/colleges-with-highest-research-and-development-expenditures/  >

Schmidt, William. "BENDING THE RULES FOR STUDENT ATHLETES." The New York Times. The New York Times, 13 Jan. 1986. Web. 7 Nov. 2015. <http://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/14/science/education-bending-the-rules-for-student-athletes.html>

David Levithan’s, Two Boys Kissing, is centered around two male peers attempting to break a Guinness World Record, by kissing each other for 32 hours straight. They were not to sit down, or break away at anytime; they were a couple at one point, but now they are just peers. They were taking a stand for those who could not stand for themselves. The more interesting aspect of the novel, is it is told from the perspective of a chorus of deceased men who passed due to AIDs; with this unorthodox narrative technique, Levithan creates a dynamic, relatable, heart-wrenching, and eye-opening powerhouse experience for the reader.

To begin with, two friends, Craig’s and Harry’s, along with others’, stories are being told by the chorus of deceased men. A chorus of men means that the immense group of narrators are all speaking in unison. In the novel, the various characters were being introduced, and parallels were being drawn between their story and the men's’ stories. On page 6, Levithan wrote, “We did not have the internet, but we had a network. We did not have websites, but we had sites where we wove our web. You could see it most in the cities. . . Spots in the park, and the bookstores where Wilde, Whitman and Baldwin reigned as bastard kings. These were are safe harbors, even when we feared that being too open meant we were opening ourselves up to attack. Our happiness had defiance, and our happiness had fear. . .” Here is an example of how the author creates the relatable aspect of the novel. They speak about the current state of gay people in society in comparison to when it was their time. The reader gets a sense of how intertwined we are with social media, and how they searched for a place to be accepted or created safe havens for themselves to get away. When the reading the last two sentences of this quote, the reader must immerse themselves in the words written. Levithan centralized the idea that gay people in the past had rarely any place to feel recognized as an equal, and how while they were free, they did not feel whole. The author centralized an exceptionally shocking truth that most readers may not have fully acknowledged until coming across this novel, and it makes their heart ache from seeing such hardships.

Secondly, on the first page of the novel the chorus of narrators introduce themselves, without stating exactly who they are. They invasively explain how they are the reader’s old family members or family friends, how they are everyone in a sense. The following quote stems from the invasive introduction. Levithan writes, on page on, “We are a spirit-burden you carry. . . We try to make it as light a burden as possible. At the same time, when we see you, we cannot help but think of ourselves. . . We were once the ones who were living, and then we were the ones who were dying. We sewed ourselves, a thread’s width, into your history.” Here, the reader is immediately launched into the unorthodox writing technique. Levithan could have just written the novel with multiple perspectives of the actual characters. Yet, by using the narrators as unique as these outside perspectives, sounding as one, the reader’s mind is more open to ideas from the beginning of the novel. Therefore, as the person keeps reading they are immersed in the ideas, such as the quote brings into view, and they will tear through the novel. The men’s wisdom and preachings capture the reader. The quote establishes how once they were us and then they were nothing; this can’t help but make the reader’s think of what comes next for them. In the next few pages, Levithan brings up the following point, “We wish we could offer you a creation myth, an exact reason why you are the way you are, why when you read this sentence, you will know it is about you. But we don’t know how it began. We barely understood the time we knew. We gather the things we learned, and they nearly add up to fill the space of life.” These quotes resonate with the reader. It creates a tugging feeling in their chest, and explosions of thoughts in their minds. This occurs, because they sound incredibly similar and perceptive to most of the reader’s lives, if not all. People desire for anyone to give them all the answers to their questions. Therefore, these are more examples of the realizations and the points Levithan brings into question by using this particular technique. Thus, creating points presented for the reader to remember and to acknowledge, just by using this specific, unique technique.

Lastly, Meredith Goldstein of the Boston Globe, writes for the Book section. She wrote a piece on two up and coming novels, being recognized for possible awards. One of them being, Two Boys Kissing. She writes, “. . .The story is an unexpected nail-biter; you’ll find yourself gasping when it seems that Craig and Harry might pass out before making their 32-hour goal. And you’ll fall in love with the supporting players in their orbit, such as their all-knowing friend Smita and the characters who watch them commit the act from afar, like Neil and Peter, a young couple in love who consider their own romance while watching the kiss online. . . In the beginning, the Greek Chorus feels heavy-handed — or maybe too dramatic — but soon it becomes clear that the tone is just right, because Craig and Harry are, in fact, changing the world.  Some younger readers might miss out on the cultural references, especially more subtle allusions to the AIDS epidemic. Like the best young adult books, this one should be discussed with grown-ups and read more than once.” This excerpt from her review correlates with the central idea of my thesis. Yet, also plays devil’s advocate to the writing technique Levithan chose. It also hones in on the focal point of the novel. Which is the two boys kissing for the lengthy amount of time, to make a statement and to take a stand for the gay community. It presents a synopsis of the characters’ stories focused on in the novel. Goldstein, while tearing the technique to pieces with love, eventually comes to the conclusion it sets the novel apart and creates a unique, note-worthy experience for readers.

To conclude, the narrators really set the tone and harmony of the entire book. And is what has the reader tare through each chapter. If there were to be any difference in the narrative perspectives, it brings into question how the reader could be interested without that unique aspect. Levithan chose to shape his story outside of the box. Thus, created a novel that stands on its own, and has readers captured and engulfed in every word the narrators preach, and immersed in every emotion felt.

Here we go again.

Yet another day of scorching sun rays beaming down off my chipped paint.  Burning whoever gets stuck with me in the middle of the day. Glitter faded, spokes rolling along the beaten and bruised boardwalk. But I am beaten and bruised. No one cares, no one sees what I go through.

Do you know how many times I have had ice cream drip, drip, drip and DRIP onto me.  It is unimaginable the amount of times the shop owner, Greg, had to scrap off the funnel cake powder stuck to my handlebars.

An endless cycle of being dragged out of the shop day in and day out. Wiped clean of the dust and grime left over from yesterday’s customers. No amount of polish or wax can shine over my dents and scratches; battle scars still indented in my spokes and frame, seat torn from endless butts chafing against the pleather exterior of my seat.

They just ride, and ride, and ride, until there is nothing left. Only then do people care, when you are wearing down; when you can’t do what they expected of you or wanted you to do.

It was not always so bad. I was once shiny, new, inviting. I was always the first one picked, and I would have so many customers each day. Some would ask to buy me; some would keep me from sun up to sun down. I was the most rented in the county for two years running, even though that does not really matter anymore.  

I remember the day it all went wrong.

It was a perfect day on August 31, 2012. I had not been rented in awhile so Greg took me out of the shack extra early to give me a bright polish; I was feeling damn good. But I just sat out in the sun all day, waiting and waiting (beat) and waiting!

It was close to sunset when a seemingly nice teenage kid rented me. I was all ready to go. He was not peddling too hard, or screeching the breaks, or spilling drinks all over me. But, then he took a sharp left turn, and before I realized what was happening we were in a back alley with kids spraying graffiti and smoking pot. It’s not like I could scream out for help; I am a bike for God’s sake.

Next thing I know we are at a convenience store, and the kid basically throws me to the ground and jumps off in one quick motion, then him and his friends go in. There is shouting and cussing.

The kids all come running out, masks over their heads with money and food in their hands. The kid who rented me tripped over my front tire, his head hitting the pavement with a crack, and he just layed there. His friends kept running.

The police officers revved in a few moments later, with an ambulance right behind him. The store owner, despite getting robbed, helped my renter and tried to stop the blood. And since I was evidence, I got stuck sitting in an old musty police garage for two weeks, before Greg came and picked me up.

I got pretty bruised from those kids riding me, and the officers weren’t exactly gentle. Greg still got me none the less; took me back to the shack and tried to do his best to fix me up enough to be displayed. Everyone still knew that I was “that bike.” It was not my fault though; I got roughed up that day, too. But no cared. No one cried for me.

Now everyday it’s the same story. There is some overweight dad or super hyper-active soccer mom peddling me extremely hard up and down the boardwalk for hours. Screeching my brakes. . .repeatedly! So many years of these dreaded days filled salt water breezes and the endless splats of seagull shit.

That’s always people’s problems. They use each other without realizing the damage they do each and every time. Just chipping, chipping and chipping pieces of me until I am rubbed raw to the frame, to the core of the metal rods that hold me together somehow.

But I am just a boardwalk bike, what do I know?

Evolution of the White Dove’s Whispers

By: Shaina-Nicole Keenan

Pure. Fine. Untainted.

I was born and raised in southwest Philadelphia. The majority race in the region was and still is African-American. There are handfuls of Asian and Hispanic families, and a very sparse amount of white families. I am apart of one of those very few families.

I attended the elementary school in my neighborhood from Kindergarten to Fourth grade. I was one of three Caucasian students in the entire school. When I was five years old, starting school for the first time with larger classes, I spoke properly and clear. I never used slang. Up until I was in third grade, I never let people tamper with my dialect. I was a fine dove, with pure feathers. I flew my own path and sung my own song.

Inside and outside of school, I spoke impressively for an elementary school student. My family has many friends, and I was introducing myself to new people constantly. I was also a true “chatty kathy”, I loved to talk. Here’s an example of a typical scene with stranger and I:

“Hi cutie, what is your name?”

“Hi, my name is Shaina-Nicole Margaret Keenan,”

“You have the prettiest eyes, sweetie.”

“Thank you so much. They are from my daddy,”

Reading impacted my language and dialect incredibly when I was younger. I always had a book in my hand. This is how I learned to speak and use proper grammar. Adults were amazed whenever I opened my mouth and let the words fly out. Yet, my peers were not always so intrigued.

As I gained more and more friends, my original dialect and vocabulary was tampered with. My feathers were starting to get dirty, and ruffled. As one of two white girls in the school that is centered in a neighborhood where language was a dying cause, it was hard not to be manipulated into speaking like my peers.  

There was an unrealistic difference in my dialect in the span of three and a half years. My language evolved along with my personality. I was blind to fact I was growing up in a time where kids everywhere had no sense of language. By the fourth grade, I was someone else. Here’s an example of a typical scene with a friend and I:

“Yo, dat teacha is so f***** irkin’.”

“Right yo, she was really drawlin’ the otha day,” I would say.

“I was finna pop her in her ugly mouf.”

Once I graduated from my neighborhood school, I went to a prestigious school in Center City. The population of students was very diverse. There were a lot of African-American students in my class from neighborhoods just like mine. So although I tried to escape bad language, it followed me.

Before I started at my new school, I thought about why I truly spoke the way I did, and the person I had become. I tried to find a common ground between my old dialect and the dialect I wanted. No matter where I went, Southwest would always be a language I felt comfortable with. Despite feeling at home with the improper dialect, I wanted to start fresh at my new school. I did not completely abandon my old dialect, I migrated it with my original dialect to feel most comfortable talking to new people.

James Baldwin once wrote, “People evolve a language in order to describe and thus control their circumstances, or in order not to be submerged by a reality they cannot articulate.” This relates to my situation incredibly. My language changed so much over the course of many years; I continuously evolved it. I felt like I had to describe my struggles with language with people who would criticize me, it needed attention. Since I was constantly obsessing over how I would sound to certain people, I let my language overshadow my life and personality. My reality was muffled and lost. Submerged by the circumstances of my undecided languages, this quote resonates and encompasses my struggle perfectly.

I kept that constant new dialect throughout middle school. Yet, language is always evolving. As we grow older, day by day, year by year, we are always changing. Our language and dialect is shifting along with us as humans.

I will never be the pure white dove I was. My feathers will never be as bright of a white as they once were. I am okay with that. I am still soaring, and although my feathers are ruffled, wrinkled, and a little

dingy, they are mine. I sing the song of my ever evolving language. My language is my own. The whispers of my white dove’s songs are my past, my present and my future; I am always soaring high, singing my broken song that I am proud to claim!

Esta es una foto de mis amigas. Sus nombres son Ameena, Ashlye y Cassie. Son extrañas y inteligentes. Ameena y Ashlye son por eso que todos los días ayudan en las casas. Todos las chicas cantan y comen. Nunca son serias. Chicas y yo siempre trabajamos. Participación de Cassie es un pueqito. Cassie es hija única pero Ameena y Ashlye no son hijas únicas. Van a compras todo la hora en el centro comerical. Nunca de las chicas les gustan van al museo y las montañas. Todos las chicas siempre hacer la tarea. También, todos las chicas les gustan van a la playa.

Español Ensayo-¡Mi encanta mi escuela!

By: Shaina Keenan

Me llamo Shaina-Nicole “ShuggaShuggaNayNay” Keenan. Tengo quince años. Soy estudiante de Academia del Liderazgo en las Ciencias. Está en Filadelfia. Está cerca del río Schuylkill. Es extraña y divertida. Además la escuela es bien alga y duro.  Hay cuatrocientos veinticinco estudiantes. Hay cuatro pisos. Tenemos mucho computadoras con muy estudiantes inteligentes. Es requerido una bata de laboratorio y una computadora. Tenemos baloncesto y béisbol. Participó en poesía porque por lo general es interesante. Y como si fuera poco los fines de semana, tenemos mucho tarea.

Algunos de mis clases son español uno, inglés, bioquímica y historia. Las clases que más me gustan son álgebra, ingles, y español uno. Mi favorita es álgebra porque es fascinante y importante. No me gusta mucho bioquímica porque muy aburrida y terrible. No me gusta mucho historia porque horrible. En bioquímica y historia leemos, hablamos. En inglés y español uno mucho escribimos. Para tener éxito en esta clase bioquimica y historia tenemos que una computadora y ser responsable. En español uno y álgebra necesitamos una carpeta y trabajar duro. Para tener éxito en esta clase ingles necesitamos unas lápices y participar activamente.

La Señorita Thompson enseña álgebra. Ella es un poquito loca pero algo habladora. Es seria, muy inteligente y rubia. Le gusta lata y bicicleta. Saco malas notas en esta clase. Aprendemos mucho. Enseña muy bien. La Señorita Dunda enseña bioquímica. No me interesa mucho. Ella es rubia, boba y amable. Su cumpleaños es quince de enero. Una profesora bien. Siguiente, el Señor Kay bastante divertida y cómico. Es tranquilo. Además leemos, escribimos y tenemos pláticas. Enseña bien.

SLA es mi casa porque acogedor y siempre loca. Tenemos que estar preparada, ser responsable. Lo que más me gusta de SLA es la comunidad. No me gusta nada hacer toda la tarea, porque depende del dia es demasiado. ¡SLA es mi casa; es divertida, muy trabajadora y siempre acogedor!