Analyzing Turning 10

In this poem Billy Collins is talking about how oblivious to the negatives in life you are at young ages as well as how much more magical it is because you have more imagination and don't know as many facts about the world. He captures his growing up by going through ages and what he believed or acted like at each age in his life. I think what makes this poem effective is the last paragraph when it talks about how he used to believe if he was cut he would shine light, but now he scrapes his knees and bleeds. That shows the sad change from the happy imagination of a younh kid to realizing the sad realities of the world. This poem fits into my life experience a bit because I remember each time I learned or experienced something troubling in life for the first time and felt disappointment and sadness to know that things aren't like fantasy movies or that Santa Claus ect. aren't real.

Definition essay questions

Are there any fresh ideas enlisted in this definition? How would you have defined this idea? Are there ideas similar to it that you could choose to define?
I think the definition of the Yankee overall was a fresh idea to me because I had never heard that before. If I defined it I would have thought just a big American patriot type person, or the baseball team. I can't think of any similar ideas I could choose to define because im not very knowledgable in that subject.

There are allusions here: (1) to the musical Damn Yankees!, (2) to the Bible (the parable of the Good Samaritan), and (3) to a poem by Robert Frost. Do these allusions add anything to the essay or to your understanding of things? What if you didn't "get" the allusions?
I understood third allusion because it has a direct explantion of the connection and what he was adding it in for. But the first one didn;t really have a purpose other than maybe to be comical or just, explain that maybe people would think of that musical as the most famous yankee thing. I dont understand the bible allusion at all probably because I'm not religious at all and havnt heard bible related things since I really young.

What techniques of development does the essay use in the process of definition? Do you think the writer dwelt too long on what a Yankee is not before moving on to what a Yankee is? I think the writer started out more loosely talking and being vague then moved towards a specific story and closer definition of a Yankee. I dont think he stuck too long because saying what somebody is not can sometimes define as well or better what someone is.

Can you point to (write down) one sentence that functions as thesis statement in this essay?
To most Americans, though, the word Yankee means either the pin-striped New York baseball team or the Northern forces in the American Civil War, the soldiers from north of the Mason-Dixon Line. In time, though, the idea that the word Yankee suggests has shrunk geographically until it is on the verge of extinction.



spring break:
I went to Puerto Rico for a week with my parents and my girlfriend. We stayed out in Dorado which is 20 minutes from san juan. Everything there is legal at 18 haha so it was really fun and eventful. Saw lots of beaches and nice restaurants

A modest proposal questions

1. “A Modest Proposal” is an ironic essay: the author deliberately writes what he does not mean. What is the real thesis? Is there more than one?
I think he was saying how difficult life is for the lower class, and cruel the rich can be. It was not very clear though, because he did a decent job at backing up his horrible points. This writing was very confusing for me.

2. Look closely at paragraphs 4, 6, and 7, and study how the appeals to logic are put in mathematical and economic terms. Underline those words and phrases.
"I have always found them grossly mistaken in the computation. It is true, a child just dropped from its dam may be supported by her milk for a solar year, with little other nourishment; at most not above the value of 2s., "
"this being granted, there will remain an hundred and seventy thousand breeders. "

3. When does the reader begin to realize that the essay is ironic? Before or after the actual proposal is made in paragraph 10?
I believe it is made apparent a bit before paragraph 10 because it starts to get more ridiculous and extreme.

4. Which groups of people are singled out as special targets for Swifts’ attack? Are the Irish presented completely as victims, or are they also to blame?
The rich and middle upper class, he seems to also imply the irish people who are more rich.

5. Does the essay merely function as a satirical attack? Does Swift ever present any serious proposals for improving conditions? If so, where?
I dont think it is purely an attack because he also kind of makes points out of his crazy statements throughout and then at the end he does have realistic statements and meaning for what he actually wants.

6. What is the purpose of the last paragraph?
To blatently place his real views and show his intetions and clear up any doubt that this was a satire.


7. The character proposing the measure uses various techniques to convince. These include statistics and appeals to the authority of prominent figures. Can you spot any others? Have you done any sort of "labor" job? Did you resist your employer and, if you did, what forms did your resistance take? Is there a strong link between humor, anger, or other emotional states and resistance? Can you give examples of things you did to vent frustration (particularly if they were funny?)
I think he has a very strong link between his emotions and humor because its funny to read but also a very negative and on serious and harsh topics. You can tell its not just lighthearted. When mad or frustarated sometimes I will begin to laugh from frustration or like walk away and keep coming back and go semi crazy for a little bit haha.


8. If you were, conversely, given the job of marketing babies, do you think it could be done, and how? We have a tradition, in English, of keeping the French names for the meats of animals eaten primarily by the rich. Would the first step be calling baby meat something French? Would it be by processing the baby to the point of non-recognition?
I dont think it could actually be done because the rich are all about image and being all civilized and cannabilism is the opposite, the main market would more likely be the people that couldnt pay for it. But yes, to make it more likely it would need to be named something misleading and have no correlation to a human child in appearance to the people being sold it.

Why I want a wife questions

1. Does this essay have an explicitly stated thesis? If so, what is it? If you believe the thesis is implied, paraphrase it in your own words.
I believe that the thesis is more implied and it is that wives do so much and deal with so much and are kind of negected but still are great, so who wouldnt want someone to do so much for them with little or nothing in return.


2. Throughout the essay, Brady repeats the words “I want a wife.” What is the effect of this repetition?
To emphasize and repeat the point that, of course everyone would want someone who would do all this for them.

3. Do you think Brady really wants the kind of wife she describes—does this ideal spouse actually exist? Explain why you think Brady wrote this essay.
I think she really wants someone like that like in imagination but obviously is into guys and knows that this is not actually realistic to how most if any wives are but more stereotypes made by men and/or society for how wives should be.

4. How does Brady define what it means to be a “wife”? How does she organize the many services a wife provides her husband and family? What do you think of Brady’s characterization of a wife and her responsibilities? How do you think she wants her readers to respond to this characterization? Why?
she pretty much defines it as this super mom super wife slave of sorts. She organized the services starting out somewhat normal then getting more extreme and unrealistic. I think her characterization is dramatic and more something that youd think of hearing back in the 1930s or something, im guessing she wanted readers to be somewhat offended and maybe humored because its sexist and extreme.


5. Write a letter to Brady responding to “I Want a Wife.” Let her know what you admire or don’t admire about the essay and the extent to which you consider it effective and/or persuasive.
Dear Brady,
I enjoyed your reading and thought it was enlightening about a lot of stereotypes and crazy beliefs that people have about how a wife should be and act with her family. At first it wasnt obvious about the message that I got but became more pronounced as I read on. I think it is effective to get the point across and make you step back and realize how crazy some views are. I feel like some people may not get the message that I got though and I wonder if what I got is for sure what you meant. Maybe some extra clarity at the end would help its effect on readers.

Responses to Thurber Satire

"The Little Girl and the Wolf"
This story started out extremely similar to Little Red Riding Hood. I then made fun of how obvious it would be that a wolf was dressed as your grandmother. It was also funny that then the girl pulls out a gun from her basket and shoots the wolf. This was a much more realistic aproach to the situation if it happened (other than the talking wolf and young girl with the gun).

"The Bear"
I didn't see any connection to other fables or stories but I thought this was very funny. I was not expecting the ending. It seems that this author tends to have very comically harsh and blunt endings to his story that aren't a "happy ever after".

"The Princess And The Tin Box; A Fable For Our Time"
This story tricked me probably because I'm so used to typical fairytales laid out like this. It had a funny moral at the end and made you feel dumb for thinking shed choose the tin box. I feel like I remember a story very similar to this but dont remmeber too well. This was funny and I also liked how he went into such ridiculous depth on how extavegant of a life she has.

Fables And Fairytailes

"Androcles"

Summary: A slave escapes and runs to forest where he helps a lion with a thorn in its paw then the lion takes him back to his cave and feeds him and they become friends. They are later captured and the slave is threatened to be eaten by the lion. Once the lion is let loose it recognizes his friend and then licks him. The slave and lion are both set free.
Moral: Helping people (or animals) will almost always pay off and is the right thing to do.

"Avaricious and Envious"
Two neighbors get granted wishes by Jupiter, under the condition that the opposing neighbor gets twice what they wish for. The first man wishes for a room full of gold, so the other neighbor gets two rooms full. The second man wishes for one of his eyes out, so the other neighbor gets both out so he is blind.

moral: vices are there own punishment

" Belling the Cat"
A bunch of mice try to figure out how to deal with the cats. After getting nowhere a young mouse says they should tie a bell to the cats neck so they know where it is. Then an old mouse asks who will go to put it on the cat. Nobody responds.
moral: It is easy to think up solutions but difficult to actually go and do them.

" Hercules and the Waggoner "
A man driving a waggon gets his wheel stuck in mud and the more the horses pull the deep it gets. He prays to Hercules to help him and Hercules appears and just tells him to put his shoulder into it and push.
Moral: That you should try to fix your problems yourself before begging for help from others.

"The Ant and the Grasshopper "
An ant was bringing food to its nest to stock for winter and a grasshopper was just playing and said it didn't need to worry because there was plenty of food at the moment. Once Winter came, the ants had plenty of food and the grasshopper was starving.
Moral: It is important to prepare for the future

"The Ass and the Lapdog"
A man had both a donkey and a lapdog and after the lapdog jumped into the mans lap the donkey noticed and wanted to do the same so it attempted to prance and put its hooves on his shoulders in attempt to get on his lap, the servants ran up to get it off of him.
Moral: Do not try to be what you are not.

"The Old Man and Death "
An old man has troubles carrying sticks and cries out for death to take him. Death appears and then asked why he called him. The man asks him to help him with the pile of sticks.
Moral: You don't always really want what you may wish for

"The Two Crabs"
While a Mother crab and child crab are walking, the mother criticizes it on how he's walking. The young one then tells her that if she does it then he will follow how she does.
Moral: Example is the best way to teach

"The Mishcievious Dog"
A dog becomes known for being very quick and sneaking up quickly to people and biting there ankles. Eventually the master ties a bell to him and a clog to slow him down. He wears it around proudly then an old dog asks why he wears it proudly when it is a disgrace.
Moral: Infame can be mistaken for positive fame.

"The Camel and the Arab"
A master of a camel asks if he would prefer to go uphill or downhill. It replies that he doesnt know why he'd ask and if the level way is closed"
Moral: Dont ask obvious questions.


2 Grimm Summaries.
"Hansel and Gretel"
Hansel and Gretel have a stepmother with there father, a wood cutter in the forest. The stepmother keeps getting the father to lead the kids out to the woods and abandon them, the first time the boy lays a trail of pebbles to get home but the second is crumbs and birds eat it all. They come to a candy house and it turns out to have a witch living there who tries to fatten them up to eat them but she ends up getting locked in the oven by the kids. They take her gold then wander home to see their father crying saying they can come back because the stepmother has died.

"Little Red Riding Hood"
A little girl is to deliver a basket of food to her sick grandma in the forest. Shes told not to go off the path but she gets distracted and goes off and encounters a wolf which asks what shes doing then leaves with the intent to eat both her and her grandmother. The wolf acts as the girl at the grandmothers house and eats her. Then it acts as the grandmother when the girl comes and eats her too. A man had been hunting the wolf and stopped at the house to get refreshment but through the window he sees the wolf. He shoots it in the head then cuts out Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother, and they are both safe.

fairy tale poem thing

"The Lion and the Mouse"

I thought I was unstoppable and that no other creature could beat me.
But then I got am lesson of my life when what I would typically eat saved my life.

"beauty and the beast"

When I first saw her I knew shed never see me for anything but a monster.
But as time went on i finally realized she was different and could see into what a person really is.

"mermaid"

When i first saw he swimming to save me I thought that I had died and an angel was coming for me. As it turned out it was a real mermaid who had whisked me up to the surface to save my life.

"grasshopper and ants"

I was only playing my music for myself, nobody ever seemed to appreciate it. But then I looked up and realized I had a large audience of ants and I became filled with pride.

"cinderalla"

I had hated my life, always being treated like a slave and never aloud to do anything. It was the most amazing thing in the world when i was granted this fairy godmother to change my life forever and resque me from this hell.

"red riding hood"

When I walk to my grandmothers house I always get a scared feeling, like im being watched. I tend to hurry both ways to find safety from the unknown forest.

"alice and wonderland"

I dont understand this girl at all, she seems so rushed and doesnt understand out simple ways of life.
All we want to do is celebrate our un-birthday which is a big deal to us.
She just asks silly questions and ignores our kind gestures without trust.
But she should understand what we're doing is not unjust.
We drink lots of tea and have fun all the time.
but we also are good people and will help at the drop of a dime.
She has an obsession with the rabbit with a clock.
I dont see why she wont just catch him, itd be a short walk.
Soon she grows frustarated and gets out of her chair.
We yell after her telling her to watch out for the bears.

"Princess and the Pea"

I was quite confused about why I must sleep on such a ridiculously high bed. I thought it might be for comfort but when I laid down it was the most uncomfortable bed ive ever slept in.

"Snow White"

In the forest I just feel at peace with everything. People always seem to want to cause trouble but the animals remain true friends.

shakesperian sonnet

Mark Norman
Senior Comp
February 14, 2012


I woke up tardy and hustled down stairs.

I shouted in fright and made to turn back.

A fallen figure with long fuzzy hairs.

an outstretched arm with long fingers all black.


The puppies ran round it and moaned very sad,

Sniffed it and licked it and howled to the moon.

The oddest morning I’d recently had.

I looked at my clock and saw it was noon.


Could this be Grandma, I wondered aloud.

Why would she be here; I thought she was home.

I’ll solve the riddle, I silently vowed.

Turning it over, I witnessed a gnome.


Laughing, my sister appeared in the hall.

“You are the stupidest brother of all!”

Responses to ThisIBelieve.org

"I Will Take My Voice Back"
I think that this essay is really powerful and has a good meaning behind it. The author conveys his desperation for being free from addiction and how much he wants to have his career as a writer and performer to blossom. You can really feel his hatred for the drug he is addicted to, and also the strong love for his talent. I wish it was a little longer though because it could have gone deeper into background.

"There Is No God"
This essay was extremely interesting and made me think a lot. I am agnostic and generally have a belief that there is some form of God but I dont know for certain or what he/she/it is like, but he is an atheist and made very valid points for how healthy and actually beneficial his belief in there being no God can be for yourself and potentially the world. He says how it allows him to fully appreciate things that are granted in his life by luck and his own doing instead of believing it was given by the "imaginary friend" that he references. It also says how by believeing that bad things are the doing of people and the world instead of god(s) will set us up so we can act and fix more things and better the world instead of sitting back and thinking its out of control.

"Love Is Stronger Than Death"
This essay was good at showing the authors emotions and giving sensory details towards memories of her dead husband and his scent on the jacket she kept. I also liked how she wrote it progressing through her life after his death and how she came to find contentment by seeing him in her children and grandchildren. It seemed like she put all her emotion into the writing.


"To Be the Best Humans We Can Be"
I think that this essay was interesting and lets you feel sort of what it'd be like to have a family and be a police officer, very aware that you could be killed in your job. It also has a good message that although nobody is perfect and you will do things you will not be proud of, you should try your best to be the best person you can. He also had a good image set up when he was describing his locker and where the letter was, I had a clear picture in my head.

Reflection on presentation

Reflection on Assembly
Senior Comp

I missed a big part of this assembly but from what I did see and was told about it was very powerful and a good message to the students at Thomas. I think seeing real prisoners and hearing directly from them really makes people take in the messages they have, instead of the white noise of DARE officers or teachers just saying “drugs are bad”. I watch shows on TV from time to time about prison life but I feel like they just shoot it for the entertaining parts, while this presentation showed me the pain and difficulties from real people right in front of me. I could see the pain on one of the guys who was in either the Aryan Brotherhood or Skinheads when he spoke about how he was good friends with one of the black members of the group but in the lunchroom would have to sit across the room and not say a word because of how bad race segregation is among prisoners. The raw unedited dialogue from them also made it more powerful and serious because it was like they were talking to real people and had passion behind it, instead of being child friendly and softening up what they want to say. My only dislike was that the lady who was standing up there with them kept cutting them off and became quite annoying. One of the men presenting would be telling some serious stuff and in a story and she would just chime in something stupid and disrupt what was being said. I could tell she bothered those presenting along with us watching. I also wish there was more time because, even though I missed a good portion, I heard that a lot of the guys didn’t even get to talk and the ones who I saw didn’t get to give their full story and it seemed kind of rushed. I wish I would’ve seen the skit because I heard it was very powerful and non of our class was laughing or being rude which must have meant it was powerful because our class has been known to be rude and immature about a lot of presentations we have.

Word story (forgot to upload on here)

The man calmly walked out of the building onto the pavement leading to his the parking lot. His ostentatious car often caught looks from women and envious men. He was the CEO of a large corporation and did not give any effort to keep his financial success a secret. The Mercedes was a future model, with only a few existing on the planet. It didn’t stop at that though; it was then customized exactly to his liking after purchase. He wanted on the best things for himself, the best cars, house, electronics, even women. He lived a lavished and splendid life, and nothing in this world was going to stop him from doing so. This man had everything he could ever imagine and possibly want yet there was still something missing in his life and he couldn’t put his finger on it until that fateful day, when he was hit dead in the face with a board. He woke up three days later with a huge concussion, all he could remember was the new in and out list from the show funkeyziet mit Bruno. He knew what he needed to do. He knew fungus was out so he had to get all of it out from between his putrid toes. He remembered that clocks were now in. The man rushed to the clock store and purchased the most expensive clock. The man also bought a glistening chain, and fastened the clock to the chain and placed upon his neck. Upon arrival at his house, he noticed a smudge on his brand new clock so he rushed to the pantry to grab a washcloth to wash the smudge off. While in the kitchen he caught a whiff of something scrumptious. Mmmmm…it was blueberry cobbler! His maid lumbered out of the kitchen, wiping her slightly sweaty brow with her apron. “That better be for me,” he condescendingly affronted her, slapping her across the rump. “One moment sir, I forgot to sprinkle the sugar on top,” Joanna replied, sauntering back into the kitchen. She let the wooden door shut behind her, then spit into the cobbler, her saliva covering it like a wet dew in the morning grass. She was sick and tired of being harassed and downtrodden by this man who thought he could rule the world with his money, an Ebenezer Scrooge (prior to his ghostly visits) in his humanity. He ate the cobbler all up when brought out to him. The all of a sudden his face squeezed into a tight spasm and he began to scream a shrill ear shredding sound “FANTASTIC!!!!!”

Re-writing sentences in a more active way

"I could still remember when my brother and sister were little and I would have to take care of them all the time."
- I could clearely recall the weight on my back of caring for my younger brother and sister, seemingly unstopping when we were kids.

" It even had a pleasant baby powder smell."
- You could smell that strong baby powder smell reaking off of it to your nose.

"My friends came over, and we all piled into the car."
- When my friends came over, we all squeezed into the car like circus clowns into a little VW beetle.

1. What are the strengths of your partner’s essay? Why?
She was able to build up the tensity of the story very well, and really have you feel the emotion she felt during the experience. There were lots of desrcriptive sayings for emotions and pull you in so you want to know what happens.

2. What areas could use improvements? In other words, what suggestions can you give
your partner that will help his/her paper improve?
I cant really think of much more, there were a few sentences that needed to be changed a bit and then spelling errors but that's it.

3. What is your favorite literary device used in your partner’s essay?
She used very descriptive words to give imagaery about emotions and even the weather outside.
4. What is the part of the paper that stands out as the most "catchy" or important?
When she talks about the emotions felt upon waking up and waiting to begin the dance

Empathy questions

- Do you recall sights, sounds, smells, tactile feelings, and tastes? Use actual or re-created dialogue? Give actual names of people and places.
I described the place I went when i first got there but I could be more descriptive, I also need more detail in how things tasted and the smell of eveyone haha.

- Do you grow from change? Is there a conflict between characters? Is there a contrast between the past and the present?
Yeah I grew a lot during this experience and time period. There was plenty of conflict between me and my parents. And there is extreme contrast between past and present because I have changed so much from before this experience to now.

How relevant is the event today? How relevant will it be in your future?
It is not too relevant now because it's been two years and i'm 18 so I'm in control of myself, and I think it will just get less relevant as time goes on and I get more and more independent and detached from my family.

makes a point, communicates a main idea or dominant impression.
Your details, specific scenes, accounts of changes or conflicts, and connections between past and present should point to a single main idea or dominant impression for your paper as a whole. While not stating a flat "moral" of the story, the importance of your memory must be clear to your reader.
I think my story shows my memory pretty clearly with good detail, I might have stated moral to bluntly at the end and can change that.

Helen Keller writing questions

1. What did you think of this narrative? I thought that it was interesting and really gave you a feel for how she thought and the process to understand things.

2. What was most interesting or engaging about it? when she finally understood "water" and then the happiness made her feel upset for breaking her doll earlier.

3. What surprised you? To learn that she had not lost her sight and sound until she was 2.

4. Did this change your outlook on Helen Keller at all? Why or why not? A little bit because it reinforced even more how difficult it must have been to try to understand things and the confusion she must have always been in growing up.

5. Copy and paste three examples of vivid detail and imagery that helped enhance the story
"attracted by the fragrance of the honeysuckle with which it was covered."
"As the cool stream gushed over one hand... "
"I knew I was going out into the warm sunshine."

6. How can a narrative be more engaging than something like a biography? Why is it important to get someone's personal perspective? Because it is coming directly from the author so you can read exactly how they felt and have it be told without change from a different person. It is important because that is were you typically get the most discriptive and unchanged story.

7. Make a bulltted lists of some things you could write a narrative about
-learning to ride a bike
-getting in trouble with cops
-braking my foot and spraining wrist
-getting sent away
-going to sweden

Survey

1. Do
you enjoy English classes? Why or why
not?
yes, I mostly do because reading and writing is my strongest part of school but sometimes I dont if like the type of books or subjects.
2.
What type of writing do you enjoy?
Short story
Comic Strip
Lists
Notes to friends
Letters
Directions
Non-Fiction


3.
What types of things do you like to read? Write all that apply:
Short stories
Comic Strip
Notes from friends
Letters
Science Fiction
Autobiographies (Sometimes)
Interviews
Magazines
News Papers ­­­­­­­­­
4.
Are there any assignments that you’ve done in the past that you really despise?
I really dont like single very large projects, or projects that dont have much option so you might be pushed into doing things that arent comfortable for you to present or do.


5.
Which of these remarks comes closest to the way you feel about reading?

b.
“Reading is something you do if someone makes you, but I don’t
enjoy it.”

6.
Do you enjoy classroom discussions? If its a topic I know a lot about and if im comfortable with the class
What about them do you enjoy/not enjoy?
getting your view out and seeing other peoples and maybe picking up things you didnt catch.

7. When there is a class discussion, do you
usually lead the discussion, contribute, silently listen, wish you didn’t have
to sit through it, or something else?
I usually contribute sporadically

8.
What do you do outside of the school day? Do you have a job? Extracurricular? Taking care of siblings? I like to lift and have fun doing whatever with friends, parties. And do odd jobs to make money.
9.
Please
tell me what you did over the weekend.
Where did you go? Was it
fun? Did you fight with someone? Did you meet someone new? Did you try something different? Please be descriptive.
I hung out with my girlfriend and friends and just did whatever we could find to do (there wasnt much) I worked out a couple times and one night just chilled at home with a couple friends. I didnt fight or meet anyone new that I remember.
10. Is there anything I need to know
about you in order to better teach you or consider you when making
assignments/discussions? Anything you
say here will be confidential.
I am usually shy when I'm not close with many or any people in a class but usually warm up eventually. I sometimes shut down if I'm not in a good mood and dont like or understand assignments, but can pull out of it pretty easy but i usually dont ask for help.

11.
Please feel free to ask any questions you have about me or the
class. I will answer all
questions tomorrow.

Where I'm From

I'm from travel and snowboarding
where my legs turned to jelly and
my face and hands would go numb

I'm from dedication to commitments
always finish work before fun

From trips to Cedar Point as a kid
each summer, and out on Oklahoma
to visit my Uncle where I'd zip over
hills on a four-wheeler

From giant family reunions where I
know only a few names, to the long
evenings before Christmas where my
sisters would insist to play board games.