Masterpiece: The Next Step

Describe your topic.
My topic is reading. Any and all types of reading. It also includes getting others interested in reading. In a way I want to link my previous ideas to this one. Communication: all reading materials attempt to communicate a message, and idea, a story. Learning about animal cruelty: get my hands on articles, understand the concepts thoroughly, get involved somehow.  

Explain how you came to be interested in your topic and why you care about it so much.

Reading has always been something immense in my life. As a child, my mom would always read me a bed time story, I basically asked and forced her to read to me until I could do it on my own. Reading was literally my life. (Past tense because I no longer have the liberty to read as much as I would like.) I could read a Harry Potter book in one sitting, I sped through that series, and eagerly searched for others like it, getting a hold of texts such as The Series of Unfortunate Events, or the Inkheart, Inkspell, Inkdeath series, and the list goes on and on, and continues to grow. Reading has always been an interest, hindered only by the "free" time I have available.
My other two sub-topics came about because I have always had an interest in helping. Communication, mostly an interest in sign language came about when I was unable to understand a woman asking me and my friend bus times. My mind searched for a way to understand but I couldn't , but my inability led me to my first attempt to learn ASL. As mentioned in a previous post, I have failed multiple times, second and third attempts being sparked by the TV show "Switched at Birth." The fourth attempt was sparked by this class, although I have failed again. I care because I want to be able to understand, I want to be able to help, and in some way I want to make it up to that woman who probably missed the bus that day.
My second sub-topic is learning about animal cruelty and finding a way to help, I care about this because of the fact that I had an odd pet at age 11. At this age I was given the responsibility of caring for a Dorking chicken that I named Katalina. (I have no idea why I chose this name.) I don't exactly remember what I was searching for online, but I came across undercover, factory farming, animal cruelty videos. Well, my love for my chicken led me to keep searching, but my love for one animal soon turned to a love for all animals that are simply meant to be eaten, or that are used for some other product.

Predict how learning about this topic will enrich your life and provide value for learners and others in your community who read/see what you do.
How doesn't reading enrich my life? It builds vocabulary, it allows the reader to exercise the brain, it aids the reader in reading and comprehending faster. Not reading hinders the brain and its capacities. Reading has already enriched my life, it aided my learning of a second language, English, and it continued to help me in learning. I honestly don't know what my project completely is, all I know is that I want to read. And I also know that one of my goals has always been to start a reading program at my local library, getting kids into reading at a young age, encouraging them to read more difficult, larger, and more intellectual books.
My other two topics would show the value about learning or reading up on something. If I continue to attempt to learn sign language, I could possibly show its value through work that I do. Sign language would allow us to tear down another barrier. Doing research and posting information about animal cruelty will aid in educating my fellow classmates and others in what really occurs in farms, even the so-called free range farms. But the information I post is not to force or gross people out into being vegetarian or even vegan, rather for them to truly look at the company they purchase their meat, eggs, etc. from.

List the academic disciplines and/or skills the topic requires (for example, game development requires an understanding of psychology, math, coding, literature, music, history/social studies, and many others).
Skills required: Reading does not require any skills except for the desire to read and the ability to understand and follow a story line. All other knowledge and skills will only come in useful, for example, music (rhythm for poetry), historical/social studies (historical allusions, also valuable when reading articles), psychology (understanding character thoughts/actions).


Map out how you will begin learning about your topic (it's OK if you don't have a formal plan yet-- in fact, learning how to make a plan in this area may well be your first step).
I wanted to start off with a book that Dr. Preston recommended, being unable to get ahold of the book I began to simply read - so far I have only read three books, The Fault in Our Stars, and Water for Elephants, and Angela's Ashes. Regarding the second part of my masterpiece, I hope to speak to the librarian at my local library to see whether I could start a Saturday reading program or something similar. Maybe throughout this process a book club could be started. Maybe this will include writing as well or tutoring small children (I kind of just want to aid my community in educating our children and younger generations.)
Regarding my other two topics: Communication (sign language) - pick up where I left off and continue to learn, try to get my friend or someone to learn with me.
Learning about animal cruelty (meat, poultry, food items) - Look for recent news, articles, videos on the topic, cover the entire topic, post on it.
*find a way to combine and bring all this together in one presentation type of thing


Describe the resources you will need (wave the magic wand I just handed you and imagine for a moment that time, money and access are not obstacles. Who do you want to meet?  What materials do you need?  What types of experiences will you seek?).
Materials that I need are books, articles, poems, reading material meant to be intellectual, materials meant to entertain, materials meant to stir one emotion from the reader, I need a variety of reading materials. But for that I have the public library and other such resources. The experience I seek the most is just being able to immerse myself in the world of reading as I once did as a kid. I want to create those same experiences for other children, show them the wonders of a novel and the messages hidden in a poem..
I will attempt to seek only positive experiences, but I would also like to experience anything negative that comes along with any of my topics. In example, if I could, I would convey my own research or undercover investigation regarding animals, which would not be a pleasant experience.
Who I want to meet - anyone related to any of my topics, ex: anti-animal cruelty spokesman, authors (I met four authors once, not any I knew, but I met them at an "Author Go Round"), sign language teachers (contact the ones at Righetti and others not from Righetti), etc.

Consider which tools you will use to tell your story.  Will you continue posting on your course blog?  Will you start a new blog, and if you do, will it be on Blogger, or WordPress, or Tumblr, or another platform?  Will you use other media and collaborative tools to curate, remix, and share your learning?  Do you have ideas about what would be cool but you're not sure what's out there? 
Course blog. It seems like the most sensible choice. I don't really know how I will present what I am doing, but I am going to be reading a lot, hopefully, and it will be knowledge I want to share with my classmates without having them look somewhere other than the blog I already have. It seems easier to continue on my current blog and keep a tab (like I already do) for my masterpiece work. Although I do hope that I can create a remix of some sort, I will figure out a way to include images, videos, etc. to show my thoughts and share my story with reading.
It is also much simpler to post my findings and information on animal cruelty and such on my course blog.
For the sub-topic of communication + sign language, I hope to post videos of my progress onto this here same course blog. Videos of songs in sign language, videos of me giving lessons, videos of SIGN LANGUAGE.


I kind of rambled on these questions and seemed to go off-topic a lot, but I expressed my thoughts and ideas, and that was the point, right?

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays/Happy Winter Break!

One year ago I was engulfed in happiness. One year ago, my two week stay in Mexico was almost over. One year ago, I despised the idea that time could move so quickly, and that the phrase "Time flies when you're having fun," or rather when you're immensely happy could be true. This year I came face to face with reality, I wasn't able to go to the one place where I felt completely welcomed, where I was loved unconditionally and more than I could ever imagine, the one place where I was ecstatic and overjoyed 24/7. Because although I was sick for 1/3 of my stay in Mexico, and even though I was sick on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I had the time of my life.

This year, I got to spend Christmas Eve/Christmas Day with my siblings, with my parents, with my boyfriend, and with a mix of strangers because of the posada. (A posada is done for 9 days before Christmas, it consists of praying, singing, singing + walking, knocking on doors + singing, and of course, FOOD.) I'm just glad that this year I have some of the people I love the most around. To celebrate with, to laugh with, to eat with, and to create a lovely Christmas memory with. I love the holidays, and all the family time that comes along with it!

Happy Holidays from my family to yours. (:

(I am holding air in the bottom picture.)

A final idea?

After Thursday's buffet and questioning by Dr. Preston, I have come to realize that in its entirety classroom 608 is not just a small gathering of people with nearly nothing in common, but a small family. All of my classmates coincide. We all want to see diversity, individuality, a spread of culture, and overall acceptance and peace.

And so when I shared my simple idea of (learning about) animal cruelty and/or communication stuff as a masterpiece out loud, I was already quite unsure. After everything was said and done, I realized that this isn't a separate project, it isn't something I have to see as a burden or an extra activity. Dr. Preston keeps saying "It's something you've always wanted to learn about, something you've always wanted to do in a classroom," and such other similar comments. So then I thought "What's the only thing I love to do, the thing I have always loved?" Well that's an easy question, READING.
The one thing I have always disliked about school is that it takes away any free time that used to be available. Especially this year I have found myself with a lack of free time, with AP classes, college apps, weekly (or twice a week) church reunions, and attempting to maintain a slight social life and human interaction. However, especially this year, I have tried extra hard to create "free" time for reading.

I'll just end this post and say that reading is my top choice for a masterpiece. Reading and not books because that limits my scope, reading includes articles, novels (of all genres), poems, journals, etc. etc.

If you are reading this Preston, I rather much like when you speak to us, and not necessarily at us.

Major Choices

As a kid, I always had the idea that I would be a teacher. Throughout elementary school and the beginning of Jr. High I constantly had that goal and that specific path in mind. However, when my mom had a miscarriage I quickly shied away and turned to nursing. I didn't realize until now, how much of an influence that event had on me. I immediately turned to a child prone job (pediatric nursing), as well as beginning to volunteer with CHILDREN. As a matter of fact, in my year of major transition, the point where I still wanted to be a teacher, I went from Jr. High teacher, to preschool or elementary teacher. It wasn't until Mrs. Karamitsos asked me "Why nursing?" in order to fill out my Supplamental application for UCLA, that I realized this. 

P.S. I was accepted to San Francisco State today. (: 

"Everything is Going to be Alright" ~ Poem Remix/Video

 

 

 

Group: Yesenia, Jisu, Millicent, Edgar, Sophia and Lupita

Literature Analysis #3 ~ The House on Mango Street

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read according to the elements of plot you've learned in past courses (exposition, inciting incident, etc.).  Explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).

Exposition: The first four vignettes show-case Esperanza, her family, and Mango Street. The first story speaks about the family and how they ended up at Mango, after moving several times, in a run-down, less-than-perfect home, a house they hadn't imagined would be theirs. The story 'Hairs' talks about the families type of hair, yet it is much deeper than that, actually identifying each person's personality with their hair type. The third story tells about the clear separation between boys and girls, which will later turn into a large hiatus between men and women. Esperanza then introduces her name, herself, as wanting to be like her grandmother, a wild-horse, but she would never let a man carry her off and make her miserable. Esperanza also depicts the difficulties being stuck between two cultures, in one she is hope, in the other sadness, waiting, and bad luck.

Inciting Incident: Moving to the less than beautiful house on Mango Street. Their very own house, but not the house they imagined, not the ideal house, not the house their parents always promised.

Rising Action: Esperanza begins to grow up. The book takes a big shift, from talking about hips and jumping rope, to Esperanza getting her first job to pay for private school, to comforting the man of the house, her papa, but overall she feels as though she cannot handle adulthood. She sees everything that is wrong in her neighborhood.

Conflict: Esperanza notices the struggle of women on Mango Street. Some of her women neighbors being abused, some getting pregnant and then abandoned, others being locked up by overprotective husbands, and her friend Sally being beaten by her father for being 'too beautiful.' The struggle of the  women is rooted within Esperanza, being raped (suggested by the vignette 'Red Clowns') while waiting for Sally at a carnival.

Climax: Sally gets married young and early to escape one prison, but enters another. Esperanza wants her freedom though. At a funeral Esperanza meets three women, las comadres, and they read her palm and tell her to make a wish. The woman, as if reading her mind, reassure her that one day she will leave Mango Street, but only if she promises to return and help the others. The comadres tell her that she must complete the circle, not forget who she is, not forget where she came from.

Falling Action: Esperanza accepts that her 'home' is Mango Street, Alicia makes her realize that she is Mango Street, just like Alicia will always be Guadalajara. Esperanza once again gets told that she must return and help the others, she must help Mango get better.

Resolution: Esperanza hopes that she will soon packs up her things and build a career in writing, but she will always remember to return to Mango Street and help those who cannot escape.

2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.
The theme of the novel is growing, growing into adulthood, maturing, and leaving the negative of life behind and creating or evolving into something better.

3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).
The tone of the book is hopeful. Their is always hope in Esperanza's heart that she will leave Mango street for good one day. There is also hope for the rest of the inhabitants of Mango Street, Esperanza promises she will return and aid the others. The book always remains hopeful that Esperanza will be one of the few to get out of Mango, to escape the chains of the typical women's role, and the ignorance that surrounds her.

• "She does not hold me with both arms. She sets me free. One day I will pack my bags of books and paper. One day I will say goodbye to Mango. I am too strong for her to keep me forever. One day I will go away. ...They will not know I have gone away to come back. For the ones I left behind. For the ones who cannot."
• "When I am too sad and too skinny to keep keeping, when I am a tiny thing against so many bricks, then it is I look at the trees. When there is nothing left to look at on this street. Four who grew despite concrete. Four who reach and do not forget to reach. Four whose only reason is to be and be."
• "In English my name means hope."

4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers. (Please include edition and page numbers for easy reference.)

1. Flashback: "We didn't always live on Mango Street. Before that we lived on Loomis on the third floor, and before that we lived on Keeler. Before Keeler it was Paulina, and before that I cant remember. But what I remember most is moving a lot." Pg 3
2. Personification: "It's small and red with tight steps in front and windows so small you'd think they were holding there breath." Pg 4 OR "I think diseases have no eyes. They pick with a dizzy finger anyone, just anyone." Pg 59
3. Repetition: "Where do you live? she asked. There, I said pointing up to the third floor. You live there? There. I had to look to where she pointed- the third floor, the paint peeling, wooden bars Papa had nailed on the windows so we wouldn't fall out. You live there? The way she said it made me feel like nothing. There. I lived there. I nodded." Pg 5
4. Characterization: "But my mother's hair, my mother's hair, like little rosettes, like candy circles all curly and pretty because she pinned it in pin curls all day, sweet to put your nose into when she is holding you, holding you and you feel safe, is the warm smell of bread before you bake it, is the smell when she makes room for you on her side of the bed still warm with her skin, and you sleep near her..." Pg 6
5. Metaphor: "Until then I am a red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor." Pg 9
6. Alliteration: "Cathy who is queen of cats has cats and cats and cats. Baby cats, big cats, skinny cats, sick cats. Cats asleep like little donuts. Cats on top of the refrigerator. Cats taking a walk on the dinner table. Her house is like cat heaven." Pg 13
7. Simile: "It's like drops of water. Or like marimbas only with a funny little plucked sound to it like if you were running your fingers across the teeth of a metal comb." Pg 20
8. Hyperbole: "The Eskimos got thirty different kinds of snow, I say. I read it in a book. ... There are a million zillion kinds, says Nenny. No two are exactly alike." Pg 35
9. Synesthesia: "The yellow pillow, the yellow smell, the bottles and the spoons. Her head thrown back like a thirsty lady. My aunt, the swimmer." Pg 58
10. Allusion: "I took my library books to her house. I read her stories. I liked the book The Waterbabies. She liked it too." Pg 60
11. Symbol: "When I am too sad and too skinny to keep keeping, when I am a tiny thing against so many bricks, then it is I look at the trees. When there is nothing left to look at on this street. Four who grew despite concrete. Four who reach and do not forget to reach. Four whose only reason is to be and be."

 CHARACTERIZATION

1. Describe two examples of direct characterization and two examples of indirect characterization.  Why does the author use both approaches, and to what end (i.e., what is your lasting impression of the character as a result)?
INDIRECT

1. "I want to be like the waves on the sea, like the clouds in the wind, but I'm me. One day I'll jump out of my skin. I'll shake the sky like a hundred violins." (Esperanza's poem)
2. "That's right, I add before Lucy or Rachel can make fun of her. She is stupid alright, but she is my sister."
3. "Shame is a bad thing, you know. It keeps you down. You want to know why I quit school? Because I didn't have nice clothes. No clothes, but  had brains. Yup, she says disgusted, stirring again. I was a smart cookie then." (Esperanza's mother)
4. "...but I have decided not to grow up tame like the others who lay their necks on the threshold waiting for the ball and chain. ...I have begun my own quiet war. Simple. Sure. I am one who leaves the table like a man, without putting back the chair or picking up the plate."

DIRECT

1. "Her name was Guadalupe and she was pretty like my mother. Dark. Good to look at. In her Joan Crawford dress and swimmer's legs. Aunt Lupe of the photographs."
2. "Sally is the girl with eyes like Egypt and nylons the color of smoke. The boys think she's beautiful because her hair is shiny black like raven feathers and when she laughs, she flicks her hair back like a satin shawl over her shoulder and laughs."
3. "Ruthie, tall skinny lady with red lipstick and blue babushka, one blue sock and one green because she forgot, is the only grown-up we know who likes to play."

2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character?  How?  Example(s)?
Diction changes when a child is speaking, the vocabulary is not extensive and smaller, sillier phrases are used. The diction when an adult is speaking is slightly different, often times opening a window to their past, or to their feelings.
 

3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.
Esperanza is dynamic and round. Esperanza, despite all the things against her, defeats the negatives and aspires to become a great author, not to be stuck by some abusive man, not be limited by gender, race, or class. Throughout the book we see her constant growth, she goes from a playful and cheerful child, to an unsure adolescent, to a mature and wishful young lady. Through the stories we also witness Esperanza's full character, she depicts emotion, anger, fear, isolation, etc., as well as the thoughts and characteristics of a child growing up.
 

4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character?  Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction. 

The person seemed real, Esperanza completely encased all the emotions and turns of growing up. At the beginning we see her skipping rope, playing games, then we see the awkward transition of puberty, wanting the physical aspect but not yet being able to stop playing with the children. Esperanza then eases into maturity, wanting to better herself, coming to peace with where she comes from, and aspiring to be an author. Esperanza has goals, she has ambition. She also reminds me of many of the kids I grew up with, and those that I continue to grow with, which made her seem very real.

Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot

QUESTIONS FOR US TO CONSIDER:
1. What is the role of Time in this poem?
The role of time is to show how quickly life goes, how quickly life can end, how easily we forget that we do not have forever, that we must do all we can ASAP, not wait and keep putting things off. At the beginning, the narrator kept saying "there will be time, there will be time," but by the end he wonders where all the time went, he questions his decision to measure out his life "with coffee spoons." It also seems to say, "Oh, a minute is time," but that minute may not be enough for revisions, decisions, or to wonder "if you dare."  

 2. What is the significance of Eliot's allusions to Hamlet and the "eternal Footman"?
The importance lies in that Prufrock is like Hamlet, Prufrock faces an inability to act or make decisions. "No, I am not Prince Hamlet!," is an ironic line, meant to show his indecision, as he promptly returns to questioning what he will do in his old age. The "eternal Footman," represent just that, death. An allusion is made to death to show Prufrock's fear at dying without accomplishing much in his name.

 3. Choose a moment in which Eliot uses figurative language and:

• interpret the image
• explain how the image and its meaning contribute to your understanding of the theme of the poem

"I have seen them riding seaward on the waves

Combing the white hair of the waves blown back

When the wind blows the water white and black.

We have lingered in the chambers of the sea

By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown

Till human voices wake us, and we drown."

 

The image that comes to mind is Prufrock, wallowing in sin and desperation, his inability to

make choices leading him to follow the voice of others, or the sea-girls, which can also be

identified as temptation. Human voices represent reality, Prufrock is forced to awaken and

realize that he drowns in a wasted existence. This contributes to my understanding of time

because it took Prufrock so long to realize that his entire life he spent questioning himself,

never acting, considering what he would do every minute of every day but never actually

achieving anything.

Intro to the poem from Dante's Inferno
"If I believed that my reply was
A person who never returned to the world,
This flame staria no longer shock.
But because of this never end
I do not return alive any, s'i'odo true,
Without fear of infamy I answer."


Questions: 

Why is there a description of how he looks at an older age? 

"So how should I presume?" What does this line mean? 

Why is there a repetition of "And I have known..." (Evenings, mornings, eyes, arms) 

Why does he mention that he is no prophet? 

What do the mermaids represent? Why does he believe they won't sing to him in particular? 

Poem Essay

Write an essay in which you compare your poem with one of the others on the adoption list.

The structure, the style, the devices used in two poems may not be identical, yet they may still be able to transmit the same message. The poems 'Working Together' and 'Everything is Going to be Alright,' are not composed in the same way, but they give off a message of hope, of optimism, and of working together to accomplish great things. There are obvious differences within the two, but both authors speak about bettering ourselves, bettering our world, and bettering our perspective.

'Everything is Going to be Alright' written by Derek Mahon emits the message of hope, even when things get difficult and dark. It transmits the idea that obstacles should not impede brighter days. This poem asks one to forget the bad, to focus purely on the good and move forward. This poem tells us that "the sun rises in spite of everything," it tells us that we should rise as well, that we should look for the bit of good in all the bad, and that we should always have hope. The sun always rises, therefore hope must never cease to exist. The poem continually delivers the message that one should "lie here in a riot of sunlight," letting the sun shine into every crevice of our life, allow the good to be the main prospect of life, allow happiness to prevail, no matter the circumstances.

Working together and having hope for a better world and a better 'us' are the main themes depicted in the poem 'Working Together' by David Whyte. We must work for the common cause of creating and finding our individuality. The poem hopes that we will find the "true shape of our own self." The poem states the optimism in one day stopping the cycle of individuals conforming to the world, then being shaped once again by the world. The optimistic perspective goes as far as to hope that every person will be formed, regardless of the shaping going on around them.

(To be continued...)

Remix of a Poem

Our remix can be found here. We all contributed pictures for the post, and the song (Bob Marley- Three Little Birds) was agreed upon during class.

Group: Yesenia, Jisu, Millicent, Edgar, Sophia and Lupita Pliego

Introduction to Poetry

Everything's Going to be Alright - Derek Mahon

 How should I not be glad to contemplate
the clouds clearing beyond the dormer window
and a high tide reflected on the ceiling?
There will be dying, there will be dying,
but there is no need to go into that.
The poems flow from the hand unbidden
and the hidden source is the watchful heart;
the sun rises in spite of everything
and the far cities are beautiful and bright.
I lie here in a riot of sunlight
watching the day break and the clouds flying.
Everything is going to be all right.

 

 

 

Questions:

1. What is the significance of the title? The title explains what the entire poem is going to be about, speaks for itself. The title is partially the poem's theme. 
2. What is the tone of the poem? The tone is happy, optimistic, prosperous even.
3. What is your mood as you read it? Gives a sense of calm, motivation to keep going, hopeful.
4. Is there a Shift?  Where?  From what to what? Yes, there is a shift found in these lines: "There will be dying, there will be dying,/but there is no need to go into that." Before this point the poem is questioning, unsure, but after these two lines, the poem seems confident that things will be okay.
5. What is the theme of the poem? Everything's going to be alright. Facing reality in a positive way, with a positive perspective. 

Group: Yesenia, Jisu, Millicent, Edgar, and Sophia