Blog Post #18: Final Portfolio Reflection

My persuasive essay about the idea of one’s “home” being a permanent part of them is one of the two assignments that I am most proud of. Having not taken AP Comp, it was my first, real AP style paper, and I scored much higher than I ever thought I could have. I did not expect to score a 7, or A-, or to even be able to write a paper as well as I did on that essay. If there is a topic I am passionate about, I can easily write about it, but Angela’s Ashes was not one of those topics. I completely surprised myself on that paper, considering it was an example of my writing skills truly being put to the test. However, the weakness of that paper was I believe I spent much more time on it than a normal AP essay would have allowed. I remember hearing the time limit of these essays should not exceed an hour, and I worked on that assignment for at least two, if not three hours. Writing with a time constraint is something that I have never been good at. My best work comes when I can spread it out and really have time to think without pressure, which is not a situation that will occur on the AP exam.

            The second assignment that I am most proud of was the American Drama project. From the start I knew this project would serve my group and I well. Our group consisted of three guys and a girl who is very talented with video making and editing skills, which is how I knew American Buffalo would be a great fit for us. After reading the play I felt as thought I completely understand the themes and the plot, and having an interest in classic movies and what makes them “great,” I was able to bring some of that to light while writing the script and realizing when to portray the most dramatic scenes/how to portray them. It was a chance for me to flex my creative muscle in picking the song choice, as music is something I will always have a passion for. While it was stressful in the end, the project was definitely the most fun and easiest for me to help create.

            I believe that I participated adequately in the class. I did my best to answer questions that I knew the answer to when we were asked in class, even though there were not many. I also did my best to complete the homework and stay up to date on the assigned readings. I put all possible effort into all of the assigned papers and projects, putting as much thought as I could into the given time. I also used my time in class effectively, never using lab time to work on other homework unless I was entirely finished with the work assigned in this class, which happened rarely, if ever.

I will admit that during the first half of the tri, when most work was centered on the group presentations, my participation did falter. I had cross-country practice every day after school except Wednesday, immediately followed by coaching martial arts. This left me unavailable until 7 or 8 PM most nights, by which time my group had already completed almost all of the presentation. There were opportunities for me to get started on the project immediately after school on occasion, and I took advantage of those moments when it was possible. While I did still participate, my contribution to the overall presentation tended to be pretty slim, which I am completely aware of.

I believe I successfully completed all of my goals that I set for myself earlier in the year. First and foremost, my goal was to enjoy the class, which happened once we stopped continuously doing presentations every day. Once that was coming along it was much easier for me to work on my other goals, the most ambitious of which was improving my essay writing and multiple-choice test taking skills. There was plenty of in class practice that allowed me to do so but I also had to set time aside for it at home. Studying the glossary of the 5 Steps To A 5 was my main way of improving/learning the terms and literary devices necessary to pass the tests and become a more proficient writer.

My methods did end up helping me more than I could ever have imagined. I went from an extremely low test score on the first multiple choice test to a high B on the final, much of which was based on setting aside legitimate time and effort for this class. My writing ability also changed fairly dramatically, increasing from the a few low B/high C papers in the beginning to eventually earning an A- on one of the final papers, something that I was quite proud of. I was skeptical of exactly how easily obtainable my goals were, but they proved to be much more in reach than I expected.

            

Blog Post #17: Hamlet Blog 6

Prompt: Works of literature often depict acts of betrayal. Friends and even family may betray a protagonist; main characters may likewise be guilty of treachery or may betray their own values. Select a novel or play that includes such acts of betrayal. Then, in a well-written essay, analyze the nature of the betrayal and show how it contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole.

I have read and understand the sections in the Student Handbook regarding Mason High School's Honesty/Cheating Policy. By affixing this statement to the title page of my paper, I am certifying that I have not cheated or plagiarized in the process of completing this assignment. If it is found that cheating and/or plagiarism did take place in the writing of this paper, I understand the possible consequences of the act, which could include a "0" on the paper, as well as an "F" as a final grade in the course. Digital signature: John Howard

 Betrayal: Hamlet Literary Analysis

 Whether it was Marcus Brutus over 2000 years ago or brother Fredo in The Godfather Part II, betrayal is a common theme in some of the most famous classic texts. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, King Claudius betrays his kingdom by killing his brother to gain access to the throne. This one single act of betrayal by the King gives the entire play its plot and meaning by plunging Prince Hamlet into madness. The exposition of the play gives the betrayal an even greater effect. The story begins with Bernardo, a castle guard, questioning another guard named Francisco about his post. Bernardo’s question of “Who’s there?” (1.1.1) demonstrates the lack of trust that is already pervading Denmark. A castle guard would not question a fellow castle guard if the circumstances were normal. In addition to the lack of trust, at this time the King has just been killed, neighboring army is preparing to invade, and Hamlet’s father has returned as a ghost. It is when Hamlet Sr.’s ghost returns to Hamlet that the effect of the betrayal can truly be seen. After Horatio sees the ghost and reports his experience to Hamlet, the ghost beckons Hamlet and explains to him what has occurred. Hamlet Sr. explains that Hamlet is to “revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (1.2.25), going on share how “that incestuous, adulterate beast [King Claudius]” (1.2.42) has committed the act of betrayal by poisoning and subsequently murdering Hamlet Sr. The explanation of his murder is the catalyst that will eventually drive Hamlet’s descent into madness. Hamlet’s famous “to be or not to be” soliloquy is the first glimpse we get into our protagonist’s descent into madness after the betrayal takes its toll on him. He goes as far as to mention “for in that sleep of death what dreams may come when we have shuffled off this mortal coil,” (3.1.66-67), explaining his thoughts about potential suicide. However, he opts out of that option and instead decides to plan a scheme in which he will trick Claudius into revealing his act of murder. The betrayal advances the plot by influencing Hamlet into making decisions beyond the point of rationality. The betrayal advances the tragedy’s plot up until the final lines, with Hamlet becoming more irrational in his decision making until the resolution arrives with the death of just about every major character. Without Claudius’s betrayal the play would have had essentially no plot. Just as Claudius poisons his brother’s blood to gain the throne, Claudius also symbolically poisons Hamlet’s blood as well, filling him with rage and a desire for revenge that ends in tragedy.

Blog Post #15: Hamlet Blog 3: Mis En Scene

The primary focal point of the Kenneth Branaugh version of Hamlet’s soliloquy is Hamlet’s battle with himself on deciding whether or not to act. The mis en scene of this version of Hamlet does a particularly good job of portraying that aspect of the soliloquy. While speaking, Hamlet is staring at himself in the mirror, which gives the audience a picture of two Hamlets, one possibly representing the Hamlet before he decides take action, with the other representing the Hamlet that desires to take action and justice. He is also alone in the scene, which takes place in a gigantic room of the castle. The room could symbolize Hamlet’s mind and dialogue with himself in the mirror representing the argument going on inside it. There is a small amount of music playing in the background, just loud enough that the audience can hear it, which gives Hamlet’s dialogue a more epic feel, especially when he puts emphasis on certain lines. Overall, the mis en scene gives this particular take on the soliloquy a very authentic feel.

The Laurence Olivier version does not start off very effectively. Perhaps I need to realize that the film is over 60 years old, but by today’s standards, honestly it seems a bit cheesy. The opening starts off with a cliché piece of dramatic music, which in my opinion has much too fast of a tempo, rendering it ineffective.  The quick and chaotic music paired with the rapid shots of the camera “climbing” the staircase are a bit too dramatic. They may have been made to foreshadow the chaotic craziness that Hamlet will soon be going through, but regardless it doesn’t have quite the same interpretation that I got from reading the play. Things are made worse by Hamlet’s awfully overdramatic attempt at slouching over after almost stabbing himself, which looks nothing but comical. The scene ends with slightly “evil” music playing and Hamlet walking off down the staircase. Overall, this scene is just too laughable to take seriously.

The Mel Gibson version begins with Hamlet walking down into a tomb from an unknown, well-lit room. This is immediately seen as symbolic: as this scene is the beginning of Hamlet’s journey into madness, it makes sense that he is literally moving from light into dark. The tomb, being a place where the dead rest, foreshadows the eventual tragedy that is the story’s plot. There is no sound in the background, which adds focus to Hamlet’s dialogue. Without any other background sounds, the audience has nothing interfering with the speech, making this version the most effective in terms of dialogue. Like the other interpretations, Hamlet is alone, which is necessary because it is Hamlet’s internal battle with himself that is the soliloquy’s purpose.

Ethan Hawke plays a modernized version of Hamlet in the 2000 adaptation. This is immediately apparent as Hawke is dressed in modern clothing and is in a Blockbuster movie store, which was modern at the time the film was made. However, the director chose to keep Shakespeare’s words in the film. No attempt at modernizing the speech was made, which contradicts the choice of placing the film in a contemporary setting. Because of this, it was hard for me to take the scene seriously. There is one detail that caught my eye, which is Hamlet walking through the “action” section of the movie rental store, which I thought was a nice touch.

Of the four, I believe Mel Gibson’s portrayal of Hamlet’s soliloquy is most effective. His acting is the most believable, without being overly dramatic, and as I am Hamlet’s closest friend I would say I know him best. The addition of Hamlet being in a tomb is a very nice touch, adding a bit of darkness to the play and foreshadowing the tragedy that is to come. The audience can focus completely on Hamlet because there is no background music that takes away from Gibson’s performance.

There are many things I would do differently than the choices made in the other three films. For the Kenneth Branaugh version, I would’ve chosen to take the music out and also told the actor to have taken his role more seriously. In the Laurence Olivier film, I would’ve scrapped the music, skipped the shot of the staircase, and stopped Olivier from making that awful attempt at falling down. I would not have messed with the Mel Gibson version, as I believe it was done well. In Ethan Hawke’s version, I would have modernized the soliloquy’s diction.  

Blog Post #14: Hamlet Blog 2: Revenge? Or Lack Thereof?

"My parents deserve justice, and I cannot let that pass...but justice is about more than revenge."

In Batman Begins, young Bruce Wayne's parents are murdered right before his eyes by a criminal named Joe Chill. Chill's act of violence changes Wayne's life forever and sets his journey to become Batman in motion. However, when given the opportunity for revenge, Wayne chooses to forgo the chance at vengeance. After physically beating Chill for what he did, Wayne does not kill him, as it goes against his devotion to justice.

If only Hamlet were more like this "Batman" I've been hearing about. Batman has every right to fight for revenge, but instead he choses not to...an honorable man by all means, he seems "truly incorruptible." (Nolan 2008). Hamlet had quite a lengthy speech about the King, calling him a "remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindless villain," (2.2.509), followed by describing himself as "prompted to revenge by heaven and hell," (2.2.512), none of which can be good. I suspect he will continue on his quest to "catch the conscience of the King" (2.2.534). What Hamlet does not realize is that this revenge is corrupting him...as he becomes more bent on the idea of revenge, the moral ground beneath his actions continues to erode. The supposed murder of Hamlet Sr. was unjust, yes, but does Hamlet realize he will not be any "better" than Claudius if he continues to pursue this course of action? I'm afraid he does not. If Hamlet does prove that Claudius was the villain during his proposed scheme, what purpose will killing him serve? If Hamlet truly believes that killing Claudius will make himself better than the old King, he is mistaken. He will be brought back down to the same level as the King. Again I say, if only Hamlet had the morals of the Batman. Hamlet considers himself to be a "rogue and peasant slave" (2.2.475), which is very similar to the situation Bruce Wayne was in when he decided to devote himself to justice as the Batman. However, Hamlet seems to be doing the opposite...rather than using his drive for vengeance to fuel his desire for justice, his desire for revenge consumes him. I fear that "The spirit [Hamlet] has seen may be the devil" (2.2.527), and "that [the] impossible anger [will] strangle [his] grief, until the memory of [his] loved ones is just poison in [his] veins" (Nolan 2005), and soon afterwards, all will be lost in our Prince.

Batman Begins Trailer

Blog Post #13: Hamlet Blog 1: What's The Deal With Denmark?

This is just truly absurd. Ghosts at midnight, guards questioning guards, young Fortinbras planning to invade, the incestuous marriage of Claudius and Gertrude following the death of Hamlet Sr...these are the times that try men's souls, I guess. I can only imagine the affect all of this is having on poor Hamlet. It seems to be driving him crazy. I overheard him talking to himself in the castle yesterday, going on and on about "how weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable" (1.2.133). My best friend, if I do say so myself, is going nuts. But who can blame him? Polonius recently shared me his thoughts about Hamlet and Ophelia regarding how "when the blood burns, how prodigal the soul lends the tongue vows" (1.2.116-117), all of which he is correct about. Ah, young love! Passionate, but fleeting.

Blog Post #11: American Drama Project

Blog Post #10: American Buffalo - AP Lit Style

Blog Post #9: Creative Project Explanation

Text: The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes

Essence: No matter how we see the past on the outside, whether it be clear, with attitudes and emotions that differ over time, or with some events completely forgotten, the past itself is constant and does not change.

Summary of text: The novel follows Anthony Webster and his life. The novel is split into two sections. Part One deals with his reflections of his early years, and Part Two is his rediscovery of his past as parts of it reconnect with him.

Prompt: 1977. A character’s attempt to recapture the past is important in many plays, novels, and poems. Choose a literary work in which a character views the past with such feelings as reverence, bitterness, or longing. Show with clear evidence from the work how the character’s view of the past is used to develop a theme in the work. You may base your essay on a work by one of the following authors, or you may choose a work of another author of comparable literary excellence.

Thesis: In Julian Barnes’s The Sense of an Ending, Tony Webster’s rediscovery of his past acts as an important reminder that no matter much we wish to change it, in due time our past becomes an unchangeable part of who we are.

Explanation: From the very beginning of Julian Barnes’s The Sense of an Ending, Tony Webster, the narrator, recalls the events of his past. The opening line is “I remember, in no particular order: - a shiny, inner wrist; steam rising from a wet sink as a hot frying pan is laughingly tossed into it; a river running nonsensically upstream, its wave and awe lit by a half a dozen chasing torchbeams…” (Barnes, 3), which is Webster first introducing us to a few moments in his past that will become much more meaningful later on in the novel. He then goes on to explaining his feelings towards time, which are that “there is an eventual point when [time] really does go missing, never to return” (Barnes, 4). Webster’s first explanation of his concept of time and its effects on memories and the past are what inspired me to make my project into what it is.
Throughout the novel, the philosophy and beliefs of Adrian Finn, a friend of Webster’s, are mentioned, most specifically a quote by Patrick Lagrange explaining that “history is that certainty produced at the moment where the imperfections of memory meet the inadequacies of documentation” (Barnes, 18). Later on, Webster stresses that “this [the recalling of his past] is my reading now of what happened then. Or rather, my memory now of my reading then of what was happening at the time” (Barnes, 45). This foreshadows the self analysis and questioning of the memories of his past in Part Two.
The entire novel is a recollection and analysis of Webster’s life. While he tells it chronologically, it is him telling the reader his memories of the past. Part One brings us up to speed on the beginning of his life as a young adult and continues up until Part Two, which is him describing events closer to the present moment. This is worth mentioning because the events that Webster recalls in Part Two are the same as that in Part One. This ties into his sense of the meaning of “time” because as he describes it, there is a sense of individual, personal time, which is “the true time, measured in your relationship to memory” (Barnes, 133). His idea of true time and its relationship to memories is also supported by his theory on emotions related to past events. Webster states that “our attitudes and opinions change, we develop new habits and eccentricities, but these are something different, more like decoration” (Barnes, 113). As time goes by, Webster has realized that while attitudes and emotions change, and even though those attitudes and emotions can change our views on our past, our past itself does not change.
I decided to make a physical representation of Tony and also the general idea of the past. Tony and the past are represented by a Rolling Stones record that has various aspects to it. The outside is an actual album cover from an old Rolling Stones vinyl. This represents the outside of Tony, items that are simply interests to him, but are still part of his history and past. He mentions the Stones three times in the novel, two of which involve their song “Time Is On My Side,” and the other describing his record collection. The physical record is protected by two layers: one being tissue paper and the other being a collage of images that are associated with Tony’s past.
The tissue paper represents the parts of his past that have been shrouded off in some way, events that have been obscured from the way they originally occurred whether it’s because of his emotions or attitudes towards them. The second cover, the collage of images, represents certain parts of his past that either played a huge part in the novel, were underlying themes throughout, or were mentioned in the very end of the novel: events that appeared and disappeared from Tony’s memory. The final portion of the product is the vinyl record. This represents the past itself. No matter what protective covering is placed over the past, no matter what shrouds of emotion of attitude obscure it from us, the past is the past. It will not change. This “record” of events is constant. For an added bonus, the vinyl itself contains the song “Time Is On My Side,” which is the song mentioned by Tony. However, I believe it also has a deeper meaning, because in the end, Tony realizes that time is in fact on his side, as it helps him remember and come to terms with the events of his past. He realizes that no matter what happens to his thought process, the song remains the same. The events of his life are set in stone.

Blog Post #8: Comparison/Contrast Summer Reading Paper

Blog Post #7: Fairy Tale Powerpoint

Blog Post #6: Mythology Powerpoint

Blog Post #5: Literary Theory Powerpoint

Blog Post #4: Literary Period Powerpoint

Blog Post #4A: Group Identity Powerpoint

Blog Post #3

When it comes to group work, I would say that I am a combination of a diagnostician and an energizer, also an initiator/contributor. I pretty quick to gauge how everyone's opinion can connect together or not work together, after which I advise my own course of action, which is what the group agrees on a lot of the time. This is can be related to the character Michael Corleone from Mario Puzo's The Godfather saga. Originally, Michael is the child in the family who does not want to get involved in the family's mob business, but after a significant plot scene, he changes into the man who will eventually take his father's place as the Godfather of the Corleone empire. He expresses his opinions, indicates what the problems are, and solves them using his intelligence, which eventually leads his followers and clients into trusting his decisions. He isn't afraid to take risks, provided that the payoff will be high if they work out. I certainly am not as dignified, or as cool, as he is, and while I've never left a gun in order to take a cannoli, but when I offer up ideas in the group, I think it's safe to say I can make people an offer they can't refuse.
I would also say that I have a bit of the feeling expresser in me. This reminds me a lot of Hermione in Harry Potter, as she is always the first one to express her discomfort with the various shenanigans that Harry and Ron suggest that the three of them try. This can be seen in just about every novel in the series, with too many results to list. The most memorable for me is at the end of the last book where Ron and Hermione had a relationship that briefly ended for a few chapters after Ron's jealousy made things difficult. Anyway, I'd say this represents me because I am very good at reading people and understanding how they or their opinions relate to other's opinions in the group, which I can bring up and discuss with the group in order to make things run more smoothly.

Blog Post #2

My score on the practice AP multiple choice exam was not very impressive. It was a 64%. I wasn't sure how I would do on it, I expected a low grade simply because I wasn't as prepared for it as I should have been. A long weekend without much sleep really took a toll on my test taking abilities, but I don't think that was the main problem. I've never had any experience with any type of AP English testing or reading because I haven't taken AP Comp. I'm not sure exactly how much that would've affected my score if I had taken Comp, but I feel like my abilities to understand literature and even just the way AP English tests are written would be much better with the comp exposure. 

I actually enjoyed the chapter one reading. This surprised me because it was a textbook, and the standard textbook isn't exactly a comic book if you were to rate it in terms of entertainment. But it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, or even close. I think that had a lot to do with the intro, the whole idea of books being considered cultural artifacts, because back when I was younger I loved to read and would read at every opportunity I had, and the whole idea of having a book, something tangible, versus an E-book, has always appealed to me. Something about having a copy of the book you're reading always made it a lot easier for me to connect with the story. The chapter also had a great way of mixing up genres of literature. There were a lot of poems, but none of the poems were hard to understand or analyze, which made a lot of sense to me and also made me confident in my analyzing abilities. 

The chapter also had a pretty accurate foreshadowing of what my weaknesses would be on the practice AP exam. My patience was very low with the exam. I wasn't confident on my answer to the first question, and even though I shouldn't have judged the entire test based on the first question, the fact that I didn't get it right was pretty upsetting. Also, my mind wandered a lot during the test; I couldn't focus and I was losing concentration in the middle of the pieces, which made analyzing them pretty hard. My attentiveness was also pretty low, which tied into why I couldn't concentrate and made answering the questions hard because I had to look back at the text quite a few times. So, to sum it up, the book was completely accurate  in what it advised me to focus on.

It seems pretty obvious that given my low score on the test and my weaknesses, that I should do exactly what chapter one said. My first goal is to increase my stamina when it comes to analyzing literature. I plan to do this by slowly increasing the time I spend focusing on my AP Lit homework every night. It won't happen all at once, because that's not how increasing tolerance works, but eventually I'll get there. My second goal is to use my imagination and creativity more when it comes to analyzing literature. There is rarely one meaning or one symbol, and since a text can be interpreted in many ways, I need to think outside the box and work on interpreting the text in different ways. Finally, I need to realize that I won't necessarily enjoy every text that I have to interpret. I just need to accept what I have been given and work with it to the best of my ability. Hopefully a combination of reaching these three goals will help me improve my 64%.

Blog Post #1

Every project or design will involve type or text in some way, which makes the font choice very important. Certain fonts deliver certain moods and tones, which will affect the way your project is viewed and understood. The purpose of your project also has impact because there are certain fonts that lend themselves to different purposes, such as artsy, classical, or modern fonts. If the font is not the main focus, for example if your project is emphasizing a photo in the background, the font choice should be kept simple so that the viewer's attention is on the photograph and not the font style. The color of the font also makes a difference, as color can dramatically effect mood and emotion, and there is research showing that some light may even have a therapeutic effect. My template mainly focuses on darker blues and some whites, with the blues evoking a calming mood and the whites being readable without standing out too much.