Poem Analysis

I Felt a Funeral, In My Brain by Emily Dickinson

TPCASTT:  Poem Analysis Method:

Title of poem means: 
The title of the poem refers to the death of one's interior which includes the intellectual and the emotional. 

Paraphrase parts of the Poem:

The character feels a funeral in their brain, they see the mourners coming, and being put into a box. The character/narrator feels completely alone, but then he begins to reason and begins to spiral out of control. And he hit a world, reality, and finished knowing. 

Connotation of some of the words – changing literal meaning to implied or associated values: 

Mourners - sadness, crying, accepting the loss of

Treading - walking without a route, not knowing what should come next

Numb - absence (of feeling or life)

Box - trapped, enclosure, or the casket, suffocating

Space - infinite, without limits, darkness, fear

Heavens - purity, angels, white, God

Solidarity - silence, despair, sadness

Finished - death

Attitude What is the attitude of the author, characters or yourself?:
The attitude of the author and the character is hopeless. They have given up on trying, they are depressed, and the story has a gloominess to it, which makes sense because of the funeral setting. The readers are also put into this mood that things are over and that nothing can be done to return to a state of happiness, or to recuperate what has been lost in intellectual or emotional matter. 

Shift At first we think or feel one way – then there is a shift:  identify the shifts and explain them: 
The shift comes in the last stanza, where the character seems to be broken out of their trance and spirals out of the little control they had left, coming face to face with reality. 

Title revisited Any new insights on meaning or significance of title?: 
The poem is not written in the present tense, either the person has given up completely, or they have removed themselves from this type of thinking. 
Theme: 
All humans eventually feel like they have reached their max, or that they have spiraled out of control, the hard part is working up the courage to help ones own self.

Literature Analysis #6 ~ The Perks of Being a Wallflower

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: Charlie is a HS freshman with no friends, his best friend Michael died and Susan no longer speaks to him. He is ultimately a loner. Charlie does have a reputation of being weird, as well as being known for the one fight he won because of the moves his brother showed him. Charlie is a smart kid and gets the attention of his English teacher, Bill. Bill gives him special books and helps Charlie improve his writing. Charlie also thinks about his Aunt Helen a lot, she passed away on his 7th Birthday, Christmas Eve.

Inciting Incident: Patrick decides to go to a football game where he recognizes a guy from shop class, Nothing otherwise known as Patrick. Patrick introduces him to his sister, Sam. They keep hanging out and create a good friendship. Charlie also has a sister who has an abusive boyfriend. 

Rising action: Patrick and Sam take Charlie to many parties, one being were he finds out Patrick is gay and fooling around with Brad. Eventually Charlie begins to date Mary Elizabeth, Sam's best friend. However, he despises that she never gives him a moment to speak. One day at a different party, when they were all drunk, Charlie is dared to kiss the prettiest girl and kisses Sam instead of his girlfriend, this did not go down well at all. Charlie is told to stay away. 

Conflict: Charlies isn't allowed to hang out with the group anymore, he returns to being a loner. This causes him to return to some dark places, he begins to get angry and gloomy, he smokes a lot of pot and cigarettes and ditches school. But one day he defends Patrick from being beat up by Brad's friends, and that gains him all his friendships back. Charlie would soon realize that his friends will be gone once again, they will all be leaving to college, Sam leaving the soonest.

Climax: Charlie is invited over to Sam's house to help her pack for college. She asks him why he doesn't try making a move on her, he is confused, she tells him to do what he feels. They begin to fool around, but when Sam reaches for Charlie's privates, Charlie begins to freak out and cry. The next day when Sam departs, Charlie still feels horrible, he can't help having dreams where his Aunt Helen attempts to touch his privates. 

Falling action: Charlie is sent to a psychiatric hospital were he realizes that his Aunt Helen abused him physically when he was younger. While in the hospital he receives letters from his friends and family, which makes him feel better. 

Resolution: He gets out of the hospital and writes one last letter to the anonymous person. He tells the person to no longer worry about him, that his letters will stop coming and he will not bother him anymore. And he ends the letter by wishing the person a nice life. 

 2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.
Multiple themes can be found in this novel, most dealing with teenagers and the coming of age signified through drugs, sex, love, family issues, and realizations.

 3. Describe the author's tone.

"Then I started crying again. I really am a roller-coaster sometimes."

The tone changes with every situation. In this novel the tone changes as much as Charlie's feelings do, whenever he is with Sam and Patrick he is happy, whenever he is a loner he becomes gloomy, serious, and angry. 

 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. Motif: "We accept the love we think we deserve." 
2. Metaphor: "He's a wallflower." pg 37
3. Paradox: "First, I am very interested and fascinated by how everyone loves each other, but no one really likes each other." pg 56
4. Juxtaposition: "And I felt good that those were the first two words I ever typed on my old new typewriter that Sam gave me." pg 69
5. Epiphany: "I want to make sure that the first person you kiss loves you."  The information before the kiss makes Charlie sad enough to cry ~ Sam had been abused by her dad's friend and only recently had she let Patrick and Mary Elizabeth know > this also hints at one of the roots of Charlie's problems, abuse, the abuse that occurred to Aunt Helen).
6. Personification: "And my mind played hopscotch." pg 98
7. Paradox: " Or how everything was a deafening whisper, when they said that maybe I should start seeing a psychiatrist again." pg 99
8. Allusion: "I said maybe it was in This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald.... He talks about his "restless generation" and things like that. And he says something like, "This is not a time for heroes because nobody will let that happen." pg 105
9. Repetition: "Not thinking anything. Not feeling anything. Not hearing the record." pg 137
10. Irony: TITLE - The main characters constantly describe themselves as wallflowers, but we never see many perks. We only see things like Patrick being unable to be with the guy that "loves" him in public, or Sam and her extremely low self-esteem, or even Charlie.

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)?

DIRECT:

1. "Incidentally, Sam had brown hair and very very pretty green eyes. The kind of green that doesn't make a big deal about itself." 
2. ""You see things. You keep quiet about them. And you understand.""

INDIRECT:

1. "And this guy got really red-faced. And he looked at me. Then, he looked at her. And he wound up and hit her hard across the face. I mean hard. I just froze because I couldn't believe he did it. It was not like him at all to hit anybody. He was the boy that made mix tapes with themes and hand-colored covers until he hit my sister and stopped crying."
2. "When Mr. Callahan found Nothing doing this near the belt sander, he actually laughed because Nothing wasn't doing the impersonation mean or anything. I wish you could've been there because it was the hardest I've laughed since my brother left."
3. "I feel ashamed, though, because that night, I had a weird dream. I was with Sam. And we were both naked. And her legs were spread over the sides of the couch. And I woke up. And I had never felt that good in my life. But I also felt bad because I saw her naked without her permission." 

Both approaches are used in order to show physical attributes as well as internal characterization of the characters. Indirect characterization concerning actions or things said reveal more about a character, their intentions, their morals, than appearance does. My lasting impression of a character like Charlie, after seeing both forms of characterization in the book are that he is a genuine guy who needs a friend and doesn't want to harm anybody; but the book does lack a description of his looks.

2. Does the author's syntax and/or diction change when s/he focuses on character?  How?  Example(s)?

The authors syntax and diction do not change. The book is presented in letters written by a teenage boy who doesn't necessarily change his way of writing when describing a person. The only thing "Charlie" does is add details when writing about people. 

3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.

Charlie is as dynamic as the situation he finds himself in. If his life is hectic, his mind follows suit and cannot maintain control. Throughout the book it easy to see how Charlie becomes increasingly angry, how he seems to be spiraling out of control, starting from the point where he losses all his friends. But we also see how he manages to get better, how going to a hospital helped him, and how he no longer needs to write letters because he knows he will be okay.

4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character?  

After reading the novel I do feel like I met a real person, like I'm reading the recounting of events from a real teenage boy. In high school Charlie comes across frequently faced problems such as loneliness or a loss of friends, at home he faces problems such as physical abuse and more average problems such as having Christmas dinner at an aunts house. In life Charlie faces things like death, and he experiences the normal emotions, sadness, and questioning at if other students miss them, too. Charlie experiences multiple events that one does not wish to go through but that occur on a daily basis, like physical abuse, and he has trauma like any real person would.  

RHS Class of 2015: Masterpiece Blog

This is the first of my masterpiece ideas that I have actually started to work on. I have only accomplished the first three to four steps but that is more than I can say for any of my other ideas. The first thing I did was obtain the list of seniors, the second develop some questions, the third get some helpers (still need some if anyone is interested), and the final thing I have done is actually make the blog where my masterpiece will be showcased.

The only thing I regret was not starting this sooner, there are over 450 seniors in our class. It will be a huge task to actually get through all of them by the time masterpiece presentations start, but my group of friends and I will do our best.

The link to my masterpiece blog (currently post-less, but soon to get going): http://rhsclassof2015.blogspot.com/

Be sure to check it out and get to know the people you are graduating with, there are parts of each other we do not know about. This project is meant to serve that purpose, because at most we each only really know about 15-30 people of our graduating class.

TOBERMORY ENDING QUOTE: EXPLAINED

The ending quote is said in a comedic, satirical, kind of sarcastic tone. Clovis was speaking of Mr. Cornelius, the man that trained Tobermory to speak, and how it served him right to die if  he was attempting to teach the elephant "German irregular verbs." Themes found in this short story are secrecy and fear of revealing true thoughts. After all, the only way to people(cats) can keep a secret is if one of them is dead.

Progress: The Masterpiece & passions

I got the list of seniors and I am currently developing questions. If anyone has any question suggestions please comment down below, THANKS! The thing I have received is help from the heavens. I have had multiple students be interested in my project, Edgar offered his aid in any way, as well as Yesenia and my best friend, and many of my classmates have offered good suggestions concerning questions and ways of organizing this.

I haven't necessarily found any one thing I am passionate about, in a sense I am passionate about trying many different things, having new experiences, and just going out and conquering the world. Simply in my lifetime I want to be a nurse with minors in psychology and education, a cosmetologist, a teacher, and I have always wanted to be in the Marines. Another goal of mine is to travel, live in different places, experience different areas and cultures, etc. I just want to accomplish as much as I can in this life time. And I want to help as many people as I can in this life.

Brave New World ~ Essay

Prompt

Inward questioning without actions does nothing to create change. Bernard Marx from the novel Brave New World depicts that inward attacks accomplish nothing in real time, not even expression of those thought is enough, actions must be made. The entire novel revolves around the idea that although some people are against the World State nothing changes unless the "outward existence" does not conform. Both the inward and outward have to be in line, or else change in a human-less, robotic world cannot occur. Aldous Huxley clearly identifies the two choices that are available in this heartless world, the first being lunacy from contradicting yet attempting to live in this world, the second being simply conforming, living a normal life which will eventually lead to death. Huxley's novel is a revolutionary piece that speaks volumes through various generations, as we reach our final stages before this type of environment and world.

Huxley's greatest message, expressed through the character of Bernard, is the need to be an individual, to essentially be one's own person and not simply a copy, a replica, a clone, etc. Bernard's outward conformity comes from the need to be similar to everyone else, the need to be well-liked by his peers, and to "fit in." Conformity similar to Bernard's is what we see in today's society, a need to follow trends or what is popular. People are constantly attempting to fight the outside with the 'contradictory' or different ideas that inhabit the inside, or the personality that contradicts the entire population. Bernard is a prime example of internal questioning with external conformity, and the issues that may arise. Throughout the entirety of the book we see Bernard, whether conforming or revolting through expression, attempt to impress someone. He never lives for himself. This is a main concept that Huxley instills in his readers, in a world controlled by the State, a person never lives for themselves.

The character of Bernard inhibits a great portion of tension within himself, as well as with other characters. We constantly see him struggle whether he should, or if he shouldn't express himself. In the world that Huxley presents most of his characters are unconscious to the state of the world, to the state of their lives. Bernard often finds himself having trouble connecting with others, or of speaking his true opinions to someone, and that creates a bigger internal struggle. He hinders his ability to create himself, to become an individual, with his fear of being judged and in a sense, excommunicated. His struggle to speak up contributes to the meaning of the work because most people often face this similar struggle.

Questioning internally is the same as not having questioned anything at all. It has no value. If the idea or question is not acted upon then it simply was never a threat. Huxley is calling the world to attention, he is saying that one cannot just sit around and think and then do nothing. Because a thought without an action is not only wasted time, but a wasted opportunity.



*I had a lot of trouble with this topic/prompt. I honestly had problems answering the question and staying on topic. I tried my best but as I reread it it sounds as though I said few things in many words, repeatedly.*

SEEKING MENTOR

My expert mentor would have to teach me how to approach people, how to be welcoming, how to make people feel comfortable, and ultimately how to get people to open up. I would also probably need help with the interrogation portion of my masterpiece, such as staying on topic, jumping from topic to topic or change of topic, etc. I would also need a mentor that is straight up and tells me when I am wrong or right, that lets me know when I need to work harder, and that pushes me when I do not push myself. My mentor would also have to teach me how to keep a schedule that works around other people's schedules, yet still get my work completed on time.

Questions to choose a mentor:

1. What is your personal experience with projects like this?
2. What is your interest in these projects?
3. Have you completed the entire process by yourself?
4. Did you have a mentor? How prepared do you think you are to be a mentor?
5. What would you describe your "people-skills" as?
6. Would you describe yourself as "authentic, empathetic, creative and honest?"
7. To what capability do you think you can aid me?
8. In what way(s) do you plan on mentoring me?

Questions to ask a mentor:

1. How must one approach a stranger that one knows nothing about?
2. What sort of questions would make people think and give a genuine response?
3. What does one do if the student responds negatively or disagreeably?
4. What do I do if the student is not taking me or my project seriously? (This is an inclusive project so I don't want to exclude anyone for being rude/childish.)
5. Should all the questions be the same for all people? Should questions be different based on the person? Or would different questions throughout make it more interesting?

Masterpiece - Change of Plans

Dr. Preston may not know this, YET, but I did plan on changing my masterpiece one last time. I didn't feel my last project was realistic, or that it would in any way keep going if I were to leave it, so I panicked and gave up on it. I now feel that I have no time to start that last project so let's just leave it in the past. My new masterpiece idea may still be somewhat book related in it's final form. The idea is to document a small part of every senior, to write down a small portion of their story, to actually get to know who I am graduating with. This entire idea came about when I was walking to class with my friend, Brandi Anderson. I always ask her the randomest questions, as I do with many people, which is why I did NOT believe when Preston said that on average people only ask 5 questions a day or something like that. But anyway, that day I commented on how we pass so many people daily in the school hallways, and how I don't know half the people on campus, and how they could be facing so many difficulties or moments of grandeur and we wouldn't even know it! Crazy, right?! So I asked her if she knew most of the kids we were graduating with, the answer was no, not very well. But Brandi, being the ridiculously awesome person she is said, "Wouldn't it be cool if we could meet every senior?" *Or something along those lines, my memory tends to betray me. But that is how the idea came about, now it is just up to me to make it a reality.

Some steps Brandi & Yesi helped me come up with in the past few days: 

1. Get a list of all the students in the Class of 2015 
2. Think of some good & thoughtful questions
3. Begin talking to people in my classes
4. Begin to talk to friends of friends of friends, etc. etc

*Must get at least 5-7 kids per day 

 

Some issues: 

• If the final format is meant to be a book, how will others see it if they are interested? 
• Where would I get the money for printing this book? 
• Should all the stories be posted on a blog instead? Maybe both

 

For the third Literary Analysis assignment I decided to read The Perks of Being a Wallflower, as it has a lot to do with traveling the "uncharted territory of high school," which could tie into my masterpiece, and it has also been on my bucket list for awhile. 

3rd Annual Latinos Unidos Conference - We Are Multicultural

"Join us at the 3rd Annual Latinos Unidos Conference! This year's theme is "We Are Multicultural" and everybody, including parents, are invited to our event! We will explore various cultures around the world through workshops, speakers, and artistic performances! We will also promote the pursuit of post-secondary education through our cultural enlightenment. Free entry, breakfast, lunch, and T-shirt provided! Buses will go to Guadalupe (Mary Buren Elementary) and Santa Maria (Santa Maria High/Pioneer Valley High) for free transportation. This day will be remarkable! You'll never forget the amazing experience you'll have and people you meet at our conference. See you there! Please spread the word about our event!

Be apart of the movement Saturday, March 21st, 2015 from 9 AM to 5 PM at Righetti High School"

-Edgar Rodriguez, President of Latinos Unidos

fear of eye contact

fear of eye contact
 

This article explains the meaning of eye contact through various cultures. It means an entirely different thing in Latin American culture, than in the US, or in Japan. It is easy to understand why eye contact can be misinterpreted, especially between two different cultures. 

This is the age of easily accessible information

Happy World Book Day!

Sadly, Jo was kidding. 

Buuuut Happy World Book Day, a celebration of authors, illustrators, books, and READING. According to the website below, 14 million children under the age of 18 are given vouchers, these vouchers will then turn into books at any local bookstore. The children are allowed to pick one of ten choices. It is just a way of getting children into new content and new authors, it allows them to explore and divulge into different reading categories, it gives them a free book, and hence, a new world to explore. 

http://worldbookday.com/about/ 

Brave New World - Chapter 6

• Restatement: "Odd, odd, odd, was Lenina's verdict on Bernard Marx."
• Dogmatic: teachings through hypnopadia > '"A gramme in time saves nine," said Lenina, producing a bright treasure of sleep-taught wisdom."
• Personification: Bernard wanting to walk and talk, his need to check out the storm, his need to feel more human and more "me" > "the black foam-flecked water heaving beneath them, by the pale face of the moon, so haggard and distracted among the hastening clouds."
• Characterization: (of Bernard) > "More on my own, not so completely a part of something else. Not just a cell in a social body. ... what would it be like if I could, if I were free - not enslaved by my conditioning."
• Characterization: (of Lenina) > '"It's horrible, it's horrible," she kept repeating. "And how can you talk like that about not wanting to be a part of the social body? After all, every one works for every one else. We can't do without any one. Even Epsilons . . ."'
• Anecdote: story the Director relates to Bernard about losing and searching for the girl at the New Mexican Reservation
• Personification: "...the fence marched on and on..."
•   "...they're perfectly tame; savages wont do you any harm."

Brave New World Interview Essayito

We are not currently in what Aldous Huxley calls a brave new world. However, we are quickly heading in that direction. The society he depicts in his novel is one where the individual does not exist, a world where you belong to everyone and everyone to you. Huxley says in this interview that the first sign, or the first limiting force is overpopulation. It can be easily seen that we are heading in this direction. We are putting so much pressure on limited resources, attempting to maintain our population alive, we want to keep an unlimited amount of humans alive with limited resources. Overpopulation can easily be seen in the novel, 96 IDENTICAL TWINS. 

Technology is another huge issue that Huxley hits on in the interview. He goes on to explain that technology can aid us, but it can also CONTROL us. The idea of technological advances controlling us can already be seen, in a sense. If you look around our world, this generation, and all those under this generation, cannot live without a phone, a computer, a television constantly on in their presence. Innovation associated with technology is also associated with power, Huxley believes technology will not be used in correct or even moral ways in the near future. Even now we are constantly pushed to "try this new product" or "choose this over that," who's to say it won't eventually lead to political or social propaganda, a way to control the public and to brainwash the people. Technology can also be used to distract the people from what truly occurs in the world, from all the corruption, injustice, and immoral actions of those who are in power. Technology works to make our lives easier, to ease our minds of petty problems, and in the process eliminates our ability to think for ourselves.

Organization, or over organization, also limits the amount of freedom and individuality we hold. Once something is organized, once it is set to be done a certain way, it becomes a routine, once it becomes a routine we lose all emotion, and all freedom associated with the task. We must get things done efficiently and correctly, we must be organized, the system must have "stability."