A Year in Reflection

   The junior year of high school has been hectic and stressful and completely exhausting. Do these teachers ever know when to say "No homework tonight!"? 

   Thankfully, APLAC has been my saving grace when it comes to high school courses. This year in English has been one to treasure forever. Corny, but true. I've never had a morning class that woke me up rather than cause me to doze off. It's been a true adventure from parody news articles to murders in Kansas to a mysterious wealthy man pining over his "true love" in the West Egg. I have loved every moment of this course and will miss it next year!

   Where to begin on this reflection?

    Well, for one thing, the AP test was not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Although, the multiple choice section was still filled with second guessing and the Synthesis essay was tightly structured. The synthesis essay was probably the most difficult and my least favorite essay to write because you have to not only incorporate data into your essay, but also stick to that data for all of your argument. There's no freedom to your thoughts!

   That brings me to the Argumentation essay portion of the test. Now that's the most interesting essay to compose mainly because it consists of  your own thoughts on the topic. This time you do have freedom to speak your mind and not be confined to tight structure and data! This essay allows for a debate through words that will stay with this world and be spread through paper and not lost in the air through speech. 

 

 
 Other than the AP test, our English class consisted of the typical school enforced reading list. Usually I find the school's course reading lists to be a bore, but this year I actually wanted to read the books. At the beginning of the year we read The Crucible which was not my favorite read out of the year, but was one of the most interesting ones. A play written during the 1950s with commentary on the Red Scare through the Salem witch trials. Yea. It was pretty awesome. 

   Recently, we've been reading The Great Gatsby. Now, this is my new favorite school enforced book to read because of the way Fitzgerald writes and the mass amounts of commentary on the United States after WWI in general. Totally puts the new view point on the power behind wealth and true "fun" to be had at parties. I love novels that comment on the ideals of the modern world. It makes everything so interesting. 

   So, in a whole, this English course has become my favorite high school course ever. When embarrassing moments and estranged celebrities help you successfully relate and learn the topic at hand, then you have to say bravo to the teacher. It's been a fantastic year with ups and downs that have made my junior year the best hectic year of them all. I feel prepared for any English related challenge or life event that involves the use of true common sense and knowledge of the views on the modern world compared to that of the old.

  Thank you Mr. Thomas!

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I Carry Five Things

  As I walk down the road that is my life,
       I carry five things.
One, I hold dear to my heart.
Another, I can never run away from.
Two, make up who I am.
And the other keeps me walking down this sometimes bumpy path.

   The sun's rays sparkle across my hand.
         A ring, given by my grandmother,
Contains the memories and love that will stay on this Earth when its giver
         Ventures to another.
A birthday gift that was once lost and is now found.
   A piece I cannot walk without.

    My eyes drift to sparkling dew on Spring blooms, shimmering Summer waters, the changes of Fall, and the coziness of Winter.
 Yet, I dart from thunder storms to dangers of the urban jungle to disappointment in the dry, decaying soil.
 I carry my memories much like nature carries wind.
     The times he liked me and my family laughed till they were blue.
     The times when they purposely ignored me or I did not fit in.
They change like the direction of the wind.
   I can never run away from the wind that chases me as I walk, but it continues to push me forward with or without a smile on my face.

   Now the sun is shining in my eyes.
         Searching for me and
   My grand stubbornness,
   Hidden strong will,
   And shy beauty.
The rays shimmer amongst my high expectations for myself, friends, and family.
    They linger on my want to be care free
    And the goody two shoes I am.
To them,
    I am a tree with different branches of thinking and believing.
They create different opportunities for me as forks in the road.
    I just have to choose who I am.

    I look up and see my dreams soar
Higher
       And higher
                   Into the sky.
    I look to moving pictures and colorful canvasses.
A stable and wonderful living with a beautiful family and the perfect man.
    I chase these dreams because I want them to come true.
    They soar higher, so I run faster.
My dreams are my guides on this road I walk.

   My heart beats with the energy of my heroes.
My mother, father, and sisters.
Spielberg, Disney, and Hughes.
   Each have their own meaning and purpose in helping me to achieve my goals.
Be it a life, guidance, laughter, comfort, or challenge.
   Their inspiration flows through my veins and into my heart.
They keep me alive on this road.
I can never falter from step as long as I have my heroes at my side.

    I carry five things as I walk.
One, I hold dear to my heart.
Another, I can never run away from.
Two, make up who I am.
And the other keeps me walking down this road that is my life.

Honor Thy Culture

How Culture Passes Through the Generations

   Family heritage is celebrated and continued in many different ways through kids. For some, they follow in their parent's footsteps and grow the same roots. Others, believe their culture isn't enough and they look to find their own roots. But, there is a third group that does look to continue life like their parents while adding their own flare to their roots. 

 

 
  Within this third group, kids follow in their parents footsteps because it's how they've been taught to go about the world. Different cultures have different opinions that flow through generations. In this third group, the kids will follow and change those ideas. For example, my parents went to high school in the 80s, so they have different opinions in music, culture, style, and art. I grew up listening and loving the songs and movies they did because it's what I was introduced to. However, school opened the doors to mass media and shifted my opinions to my own. I still loved everything my parents shared with me, but I also added new flare to those ideas. This clarifies how there is a third group that exists in many of us. We still love the classics, but also enjoy the future. 

   In all three groups, kids honor their parent's culture in their own ways.  The kids who follow their parents completely will live every aspect and tradition of their culture how their parents did. They honor the culture as their life and the very essence of who they are. The kids who break apart from their parent's culture to discover their own still hold that background, but honor it when it pleases them. They honor their culture as a place or story of how they got to where they are today. Then therer are the kids who follow and break apart from their parent's culture.  They honor their parent's culture by continuing to follow aspects of the culture, but by adding their own flare to it as a result to their generation's influences. It all comes down to who you are as a person and how you feel about the past. Is it something worth keeping?

   Personally, I relate with the third group. I grew up knowing the lyrics to Bohemian Rhapsody and every Beatles hit. I knew who Howard Keel was and watched the original Justice League. As I have grown older, I've still held onto those likes and dislikes while experiencing my generation's own cultural shifts in mass media. I also come from a mixed Cuban and American background. I've grown up with different traditions that I look forward to sharing with my own kids. Overall, I honor my parent's culture in my own way with a little new generation tweaks.

                           

   Culture is passed down through kids who will then either accept it or deny it or even change it to fit their own beliefs. New generations bring new ideas and opinions with each advancement that change the past and its impact on the future. After all, it is an ever changing world.

Photo 1:http://www.nndb.com/people/688/000052532/keel4-fix.jpg
Photo 2:http://www.worldtransformation.com/files/6213/6686/7868/Cultural-Unification.jpg
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Haunt Like A Poe

Creating A Horror Story With Edgar Allen Poe

 

   
   Horror. One word immediately generates dark settings, a midnight raven, pale ghosts, and even sparkling vampires (not really though). Edgar Allen Poe's Fall of the House of Usher successfully horrifies readers and viewers through his use of an incestuous relationship, a dark and mysterious setting, the question of insane or sane, a mysterious disease, and the reuniting of old acquaintances. In order to capture a horror story on the level of Poe's today, a writer or film maker would need to look to these small details and elements. 

   Incestuous relationship. It's horrifying to the ear because  has been taught as socially and morally wrong. A horror story consists of anything that goes against morals and  disgusts or frightens the audience. Incest is a morally wrong situation in societies then and now.  It scares and disturbs the audience while producing the very feeling needed.  Repulsion. The very idea repels the audience, but also intrigues them to delve further into the story. Today's horror stories include slasher flicks as remakes of classic stories. A slashed jugular is repelling to the eye, but keeps the audience connected to the story and wanting more. 

  Dark and mysterious. The very essence of the setting in a horror story. The introduction of an empty house on the gloomy English moors where the winds sounds like a banshee cry and the villagers dwell far from creates a sense of eeriness and intrigue. What happens to the house? Who lived there? Why is it feared? These questions rattle through the audience's minds and push them to find out more. The setting creates the story and captures a readers attention. A horror story needs an eerie and horrifyingly creepy setting  otherwise the story is not believable and the audience is bored. Dark and mysterious will scare an audience not flowery meadows or sunny skies. 

   Insane or sane? The plot of a horror story is filled with many different twists and turns in order to continue to intrigue the audience. These twists in the story also generate the question of what to believe. Who is the sane one in the story? Is it the narrator? Poe writes with an air that shrouds the truth of the story and prevents the audience from figuring out who is the sane one in the house or if the house even existed in the first place. This overall question pulls the audience into the story and, in all honesty, blows their minds. 

   The unnamed disease. Already the reader grapples with the idea of the safety of the situation. Should the narrator even be in the house? Will he get the disease too? By not making the disease clear to the audience,  the mystery behind the story and it's context grows. A horror story needs mystery in order to shroud it's truth and the fate of its ending. The unnamed disease is just one of the many details that add to the base of the horror. A disease that might be spreading around scares people, and an unnamed disease makes the fear worse. 

    Reuniting old acquaintances. A man reunites with an old acquaintance who is increasingly different in every way than he remembers. The narrator doesn't know him any more than the last person since their relationship only goes so far. Plus, the reasons behind their sudden meeting is rather odd and mysterious. As yet another small, but needed detail, the idea of reuniting two people who don't know what to expect from the other adds to the mystery of the story. Who is this person? How have they changed? Why are we meeting now? A distant relationship puts a block in the road of discovering the true fate of the plot. Their relationship can be strained easily which gives conflict and action to the story. The audience is intrigued by the information that could resurface or be discovered out of the conflicts that could happen. A story needs a plot with intrigue and a growth of information. A horror story needs that information to grow with the mystery and suspense of its plot. It needs these small details. 

   Horror stories intrigue audiences from their context to their small details that build their mystery. Edgar Allen Poe successfully captures the genre of horror by using the elements of incest, dark setting, an unnamed disease, the question of sanity, and distant relationships. These elements are key to writing or filming a horror story that will capture the audience and keep them wanting more.

Photo:http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/b4/37/29/b437294caee83055497c3490e2255bcd.jpg

Video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXpYKCAEOQc

Supernatural Sensations

A Look into the Occult Fascinations of Society Through Television

  The ideas of the "occult" and it's supernatural "dark forces" have been alive for centuries in different countries, religions, and teachings. Today's pop culture furthers the growing fascination and obsession in the "occult" beliefs through television shows such as Supernatural.  Supernatural encompasses the full fascination and obsession with the "occult" and it's "dark forces" through its story and context.

   Supernatural's story furthers the growth of occult fascinations and obsessions. In the show, two brothers battle "dark forces" from occult beliefs in order to save the good. These "dark forces" include demons, witches, ghosts, vampires, and werewolves, all of which pertain to the superstitions towards occult beliefs. The show generates the fascination of these occult beings with their history, religious meanings, and position within the story. The audience begins to wonder about and obsess over these "dark forces" and the good and bad sides to them. In some cases, the "bad" character turns out to be a resourceful ally such as Ruby, a witch turned demon. In other cases, the "good" and "bad" beings stick to their stereotypical sides. Overall the show creates a growing fascination and obsession for the "occult" world.

  Supernatural's "dark forces" appease both sides of the "occult" beliefs and debate. Throughout the entire show, the characters question where their faith truly lies based on their experiences with these "dark forces". Just like Nathaniel Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown character, the brothers are surprised, challenged, and tempted to follow the "occult". This continues to strengthen the fascination and obsession of the occult and why their "dark forces" have been feared throughout the centuries. More people want to know which side is the "right" side to belief in when it comes to their own personal beliefs. The show's story and context provides the push to delve further into the subject and decide. The show ultimately popularizes the growing essence of fascination and obsession with the "occult".

   Supernatural's portrayal of the "occult" and its "dark forces" are very influential to the beliefs of people. By showing the two sides to the occult debate, they also influence people's beliefs based on their depictions. This shows how influential America's culture is to changes in thought due to pop culture beliefs. Although the show may challenge the personal beliefs of many people, it dissuades from conflicts between these beliefs due it's equal depiction of both sides of the story. In turn, this provides more popularity and views for the show and ultimately reveals the very essence of American pop culture,what the people believe and want.
 

   The television show, Supernatural, provides the very heart of the fascination and obsession for the "occult" and its" dark forces". Today's pop culture alters superstitions into fascination and obsession in order to generate more popularity for the ideas of  the "occult".  America's culture will forever be influenced by the many changes created by its pop culture and beliefs.

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The Anti-Hero Comparison

In literature: Ichabod Crane from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving 

On T.V.: Sherlock Holmes from BBC Sherlock

  

   Anti-heroes are the protagonists of their stories who lack the typical hero qualities such as good morality.Washington Irving's Ichabod Crane is one of the most successfully written anti-heroes in literature. BBC's Sherlock Holmes is a popular anti-hero on T.V.. Both Ichabod Crane and Sherlock Holmes are manipulative, narcissistic, and have shallow emotions rather than the typical hero qualities.

   Ichabod Crane and Sherlock Holmes are manipulative in their actions towards their communities. In The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Ichabod Crane uses his charms and relations with his students and the women of Sleepy Hollow in order to obtain good, hearty home-cooked meals. In BBC Sherlock, Sherlock Holmes uses his acquaintances around London and his credibility in order to gain access to the police department, morgue, and any other crime solving necessity. Both Crane and Holmes use themselves and their surroundings as a "push" to get the best of what they want when they want.

   Crane and Holmes are also highly narcissistic. Ichabod Crane looks to marry Katrina Van Tassel only for her father's wealth and interesting land with her beauty being an added bonus. Sherlock Holmes searches for criminal cases that will appease his crime solving interests fully. Crane and Holmes only think of themselves when it comes to how they get what they want. Crane wants the land he dreams of in order to live happily and wealthy without taking into account what Katrina wishes. Holmes looks for cases that only he will thoroughly enjoy while his colleagues and the victims are merely there when he needs their help. Both Crane and Holmes are selfish when it comes to getting what they want out of life.

   Ichabod Crane and Sherlock Holmes have shallow emotions towards their societies and acquaintances. Crane's love for Katrina is a mask over his true love of her father's wealth and land. Holmes shows his "friendly" side or nicely gives in to negotiations with his colleagues and acquaintances  when it's important. Neither men show true love or warmth towards their subjects, but a lie that deceives them into believing they are sincere and not manipulative. Both Crane and Holmes show these shallow emotions in order to obtain what they want whether it's a wealthy estate or enticing information. 

     Ichabod Crane and Sherlock Holmes are both manipulative, narcissistic, and have shallow emotions. Washington Irving's Ichabod Crane of Sleepy Hollow and BBC's Sherlock Holmes of Sherlock are the most successfully and popular anti-heroes of literature and T.V. respectfully. Anti-heroes are the protagonists of stories that go against the ideal norm.

Photo 1: http://static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120722090422/disney/images/e/ef/Ichabod_Crane.jpg

   Photo 2: http://www.bbcamerica.com/anglophenia/2013/07/how-to-dress-like-sherlock/

   Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9Cca7Nq2Zs