Lit Analysis #2

Frankenstein

GENERAL

1. Well, this story is basically a story within a story. A sailor named Walton meets a stranger in the North Pole named Victor Frankenstein. Victor goes on to tell the story of his life. He has to marry his adopted sister in the future. He goes away to study, and learns how to create a body with corpse body parts and bring it to life. He then spins a tale of how his creation gets out of control, killing his younger brother because he was angry with the way the world treated him. His creation wanted a mate, so Victor makes him one, but decides to destroy after he's done, thinking that the two monsters will try to destroy things together. The first monster, having seen this, seeks revenge on Victor, and ended up killing his wife (sister) on their wedding night, which caused the death of his father. Victor then seeks revenge on the monster, and then chases him all over, until he meets Walton. THEN he dies. The monster came and saw this, realized he had nothing to live for, and then walked away to die. :(
2. I believe secrecy and revenge are too main themes in this story. A lot of the accidents and deaths that happened were caused by the withholding of the truth. Victor kept the truth of his younger brother's death which ended in the execution of an innocent servant. He also did not let anyone know about his monster, which caused the monster to hide from society. Victor and the monster are also seeking revenge on each other quite a lot, each doing terrible things to the things or people they cared for.
3. There was quite a lot of emotional stuff going on in this story. A lot of death and a lot of sadness coming from quite a few characters gave it a somber tone. Frankenstein's monster said emotional things like “I shall die, and what I now feel be no longer felt….” and  “Cursed, cursed creator!...my feeling of those of rage and revenge.”
4. Shelley uses techniques such as imagery (talking about things look e.g the moon), foreshadowing (Walton saying he needed a friend. Whoa  here comes a man on a sled!), and the constant change of points of view (Walton's, Victor's and the monster's) to make the story interesting to the reader.

CHARACTERIZATION

1. Two examples of direct characterization is when Victor is describing his creation. He is saying that he is a ruthless monster. Another example is when the author tells that he is consumes by the idea and creation of life and that is all the Victor can think of. Two examples of indirect characterization happen twice the the monster he has created. Once it happened when he asked victor if he could make him a companion and here the readers realize that he indeed has feelings. Then second time is after Victor dies the monster decides to go and kill himself because he creator has died. In this instant the readers also see that he is not just a ruthless monster but a caring one. The author uses both of these approaches I think so that the reader can see if the monster really is one of if he is like many other people.
2. The author uses diction because you can see the language change when he has Victor speak and the monster speak. For example you can tell the Victor is way more proper when he speaks and the monster is not. I think he uses this to show that Victor is more educated and the monster is not.
3. If views came that Victor was the protagonist I do believe that he is a dynamic character because his whole life after his creation was made was consumed of fear and wanting revenge. If the protagonist was considered the monster I would say he is also dynamic because throughout the story he was very confused. Then Victor decided to kill his partner I think brought the monster to be overwhelmed by grief and wanting revenge. I believe Victor is a round character because his character changes after his creation and after the death of his wife. I would consider the Monster a flat character because he stays the same pretty much throughout the story.  He is created knowing only a few things and does not really know anything else except for what he feels and what he thinks is ugly or wrong.
4. I felt that I came away actually knowing a person. The monster was the one I feel I came away knowing because you were able to see his true feelings and the end of the story when his creator died.

Tools That Change the Way We Think

    All this internet/media/technology has changed my way of thinking by helping think for me. I've thought about how easy it is for me to just Google an answer to a question I know, rather than spend a few minutes trying to brainstorm how to solve it. I used to believe that I couldn't possibly depend on the internet or my technology for everything, but lately I can use it for things I never would have dreamed of using it for, like math problems! It is so much different from middle school, where you could spend hours on one problem. Now if it's giving you too much trouble, you can just type in some phrase for help and it gives you the solution! Insane. This isn't always as helpful as it can be though. All the internet and technology has to offer can be just as distracting, and you can waste plenty of your free time sitting in front of your computer screen or scrolling through your smart phone instead of doing something productive. Even thought the use of all this technology can be helpful and/or hurtful it still kind of scares me that I've become to dependent on it. There won't go a day without me checking my phone at least once or turning on my computer.  It has changed not only my way of thinking but my way of life as well. 

Notes on Hamlet

    Well I'm definitely thinking Hamlet has changed from the person he was in Act I. I find myself trying to figure out when and where Hamlet will kill Claudius, clinging to the edge of my seat in anticipation. I also find myself thinking quite a lot more about Ophelia too. At first she was kind of that annoying bug in my ear, and I had this "why is she even here?" attitude towards her. But as you can see from my remix, I put myself kind of in her shoes and began feeling much more empathetic towards her and her situation. I'm kind of wondering about the ghost king though.. Why couldn't the queen see him?? He is really there, right? I know Hamlet is just pretending to insane, right? Just a question.. I do see that things are probably going to go downhill from now on. He's just killed Polonius in front of his mother, and she didn't seem really thrilled with that. I just hope there aren't anymore unnecessary murders in the story. HA what am I saying, I hope there are! They would make the story very exciting. :)

Who Was Shakespeare?

    Shakespeare is one of the most important writers in history,whose playwrights are read and performed to this day; but what do we know about this man? Who was Shakespeare?

    Well, there are a few things that historians don't quite know. For starters, his exact birth date is unknown. They know the year was 1564, but the only exact date they found from that year was his baptism (April 26, 1954). He did get married to Anne Hathaway at age 18, and had three children with her. The start of his career is, again, not known exactly, but supposedly it started mid-1580s. His career got its first boost with the playing company The Lord Chamberlain's Men performing Shakespeare's plays. In this period of time, from the mid 1580s to early 1600s, Shakespeare wrote 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other works of different genres such as tragedies and comedies.

    Shakespeare is a name that almost every junior high and high school student knows. I know that he is not particularly popular with a lot of these students because initially his works of literature are difficult to comprehend. I am one of those students. But I'm slowly coming to realize how clever these works are and how clever of a write Shakespeare really is. Lots of literary elements I've missed as a younger student are more easy to spot, and I can actually understand what he's trying to convey through his characters' dialogue (still working on it though). I still do struggle with the style his playwrights are written in though (curse you, Old English!) Hopefully, before I'm too old, I'll be able to fully grasp the greatness that Shakespeare has provided for us from so long ago.

To Facebook or Not to Facebook?

    Oh Facebook. Such a wonderful thing, but at the same time quite irritating. I remember first hearing about everyone going insane over this new website that was just like Myspace but BETTER of course. This was upsetting to me, since I had barely created my own Myspace page and started getting the hang of social networking. Now here comes this whole new trend that I'd have to switch over to eventually, wonderful. After putting off the inevitable for a few months, the day for me to try out this newfangled website and see what all the fuss is about. I was initially impressed and a little overcome with how simple and actually kind of cool it actually was. It reminded me of a more mature Myspace, sometimes adults would use (I found out way later that that's what it's original intention was). That was the beginning of my 3 year, on and off relationship with Facebook.
    Now Facebook can be a great way to distract yourself from things you should be doing at that moment, and also a great way to spy on any person that you'd like. Many times I've spent more than a few minutes going through past pictures and statuses from an old middle school friend, or my cousin, or the celebrity crush I had at the time. It is so easy to connect with them, and vice versa, and conversations and problems can be discussed in seconds at times. But Facebook can be juuust a little risky. They ask for a little too personal information sometimes (why do you need my phone number?? stay on my computer screen only, for goodness sakes, and don't give out my number!) and you can be open to dangerous people online (don't add that 50 year old man, he shouldn't be even sending you a friend request in the first place). Since over half the users of Facebook I assume are of the younger generation, they should be cautious when it comes to using this site.
    The article kind of opened my eyes and made me realize how subtle they're profling me on Facebook. There have been times I wondered why that particular friend doesn't really show up in my newsfeed, even though I quickly brushed away the thought. It's affected the way I feel and think towards this site, making me grow a little leery of it. I don't enjoy the thought that it's changing what I see depending on what I click on, and keeping that information on me for as long as I have that account. It hasn't affected me to the point where I want to shut my account down, and lose that unique way of connecting with my family, friends, and others. But from now until the next new trendy website comes around, there will be that cautious attitude towards Facebook.

Vocabulary #9 The Remix

I thought for my remix I would just put the words into sentences a young teenage girl might say, sometimes they turn out quite ridiculous!

Abortive: Failing to produce the intended result

    My best friend's abortive attempt at getting that guy's number was soooo embarrassing; he was only eleven years old!

Bruit: Spread a report or rumor widely

    Oh my god, Becky totally bruited around the school saying I kissed Kevin! That was totally not okay!!

Contumelious: (Of behavior) scornful and insulting

    Some guys at this school act like such contumelious idiots sometimes, and I know they will never get girlfriends if they keep acting so insulting, ugh!

Dictum: A formal pronouncement from an authoritative source

    Principal McCarthy's dictum about nutrition was sooo lame; I totally texted the whole time, teehee.

Ensconce: Establish or settle:

    The teacher had my friend and I "ensconce our differences" and "learn to accept each other's differences." Yeah, right.

Iconoclastic: Characterized by attacks on established beliefs or institutions

    My parents are so iconoclastic, always picking on what I wanna do or say... it's so irritating sometimes.

In medias res: A narrative that begins somewhere in the middle of a story rather than the beginning

    So Jennifer and I were talking when Alicia jumps into the conversation and starts telling a story in media res, and we're like HOLD UP, start from the beginning, girl!

Internecine: Destructive to both sides in a conflict

    I don't care about what they're fighting about since it's gonna end up internecine to them all anyways.. the teachers are definitely gonna come and suspend them!

Maladroit: Ineffective or bumbling; clumsy

    Haha, Andrew gets so maladroit when I'm around; he obviously likes me.

Maudlin: Self-pityingly or tearfully sentimental, often through drunkenness

    Brittany becomes a huge maudlin mess when she drinks too much, and she cries way too much about how she loves me and wishes she was as great as me. Maybe if she didn't drink so much she could be...

Modulate: Exert a modifying or controlling influence on

    I try NOT to modulate my group of friends, but they act like such sheep sometimes that it's hard not to tell them what to do.

Portentous: Done in a pompously or overly solemn manner

    Hannah needs to learn to not live life in such a portentous way. I mean, there are lots of things to enjoy or laugh at!

Prescience: The power to foresee the future

    Remember the show with that girl who had prescience and would always get into random situations? What was it called? Oh yeah, That's So Raven!!!

Quid pro quo: A favor or advantage granted in return for something

    Telling some good gossip about my friend Brittany is quid pro quo for learning about how awful Melanie acts behind my back.

Salubrious: Health-giving, healthy

    Cutting back on those cars is definitely salubrious, and it keeps me in good shape.

Saturnalian: Of unrestrained and intemperate jollity; riotously merry; dissolute

    I love it when partys can be so saturnalian, and everyone can just go crazy all night!

Touchstone: A standard or criterion by which something is judged or recognized

    Why does everyone always use that old touchstone to judge me?  It's a new era people, let's start judging by some other kind of rules.

Traumatic: Emotionally disturbing or distressing

    It was SOOOOO traumatic when I broke that nail, I almost broke down in the middle of the hall and cried.

Vitiate: Spoil or impair the quality or efficiency of, the legal validity of

    My science partner was angry when I fixed our project, saying that I was "vitiating" it and ruining our chances of getting an A.

Waggish: Humorous in a playful, mischievous, or facetious manner

    I can get a little waggish when boys are involved, but they find it cute no matter what I do.

Okay, so as I got further and further into the list, my teenage girl became a real mean girl. I shouldn't be watching Mean Girls so much! :)

Soft You Now, the Dear Ophelia! Remix

[Kate Winslet as Ophelia]

           Dear, dear Ophelia. How difficult it must be to be in Ophelia's position. As I was reading this scene, I felt so terrible for Ophelia! So many things are going on in this poor girl's life that her head must be exploding from all the different things being told to her and how she is being used and abused. I actually wonder what's going on in Ophelia's mind as she's seeing all of this unravel around her. So I kind of broke the scene down, focusing on Ophelia, and explaining in it my own words of course.

           The King, Queen, Polonius, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Ophelia gathered together to discuss Hamlet, of course. The King is hearing about how Guildenstern and Rosencrantz's spy mission went down, and what things they learned. After the spies leave, the King and Polonius turn to Ophelia and reveal HER mission: becoming bait. They basically tell her that she's gonna have to talk to Hamlet, the boy who's supposedly gone coo coo for cocopuffs, and see if SHE's the reason behind it. 

          Ophelia, of course, goes a long with the plan because she is a good daughter and always listens to her father. What choice or say did she have at all? And how confusing would that actually be?? Her dad is first like "Ophelia, stay away from that boy! He's like, no good for you, and he will totally take advantage of you, 'cause you're a girl and stuff." Now, Polonius has turned around and said "Oh Ophelia, I know I told you to stay away from him, but I need you to go up and do yo' thing with Hamlet so my boss Claudius and I can see what's up with him. Got it? Good girl." Thanks for turning a whole 180 on me, Dad. And worse, the queen told her that she hopes Ophelia is the problem for her Hamlet's craziness! I mean, that's got to put a LOT of pressure on the girl. Such conflicting suggestions and ideas from all these people would definitely drive someone insane (hint hint.)

          And here comes Hamlet, the source of all these problems Ophelia seems to be dealing with. This guy sees her after strangely talking to himself (Something about lose the name of action? Whatevever.), and then seems to be acting totally different! I mean, he called her a nymph! What is this nonsense, does he love her still? They keep talking, but things turn sour really fast. Hamlet denies having given her "remembrances" when she brings up returning them, and then later goes on to say that she should go to a nunnery, that she is deceptive, her father is a fool, and he never loved her! Okay, WHAT is going on with this man? This verbal abuse has just come out of nowhere (Although, he is right in most of what he is saying. I mean, she is acting as bait for her father and the King, AND her father doesn't seem to be the smartest dude). 

         Hamlet leaves, after getting one more "You should go in a nunnery!" in, and Ophelia is terribly upset. She can't believe that Hamlet has gone mad, and that he isn't the smart, handsome, brave guy that she first loved. This encounter has left her totally sad and upset. Of course, daddy and the king don't seem to care. They only discuss the source of Hamlet's madness, which doesn't seem to be love for Ophelia. Claudius wants to send him off to England, but Polonius wants to play spy one more time to make sure it isn't love that's causing him mad. This whole time, is anyone asking Ophelia if she's okay? Is anyone asking her what's going through her mind, or why she was upset? No. She is alone, having to deal with the confused feelings rushing through her head. 

End scene. :)

          

Midterm Autopsy

I can't believe how well I did on the midterm! A 78, that is quite an achievement. :) My score was definitely not expected, and I was so nervous going into that test that I wasn't sure if I'd be able to write my own name. I do wish that I had gotten a perfect score, I was so close! My new method of studying helped so much more than before. I would stay for half an hour every day, starting a week before the final was to happen. It did wonders, as you can see by that 78. I will continue this method when the final is approaching, and hopefully be more confident going into the test than before!

Vocabulary #8

Abeyance - A state of temporary disuse or suspension

Ambivalent - Having mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something or someone

Beleaguer - Beset with difficulties

Carte blanche - Complete freedom to act as one wishes or thinks best

Cataclysm - A sudden violent upheaval, especially in a political or social context

Debauch - Destroy or debase the moral purity of; corrupt

Eclat - Brilliant or conspicuous success

Fastidious - Very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail

Gambol - Run or jump about playfully

Imbue - Inspire or permeate with a feeling or quality

Inchoate - Just begun and so not fully formed or developed

Lampoon - Publicly criticize bu using ridicule or sarcasm

Malleable - easily influenced; pliable

Nemesis - The inescapable or implacable agent of someone's or something's downfall

Opt - make a choice from a range of possibilities

Philistine - A person who is hostile or indifferent to culture and the arts, or who has no understanding of them

Picaresque - Of or relating to an episodic style of fiction dealing with the adventures of a rough and dishonest but appealing hero

Queasy - Nauseated; feeling sick

Refractory - Stubborn or unmanageable

Savoir-faire - The ability to act or speak appropriately in social situations

Dear Ophelia

Oh dear, it seems like you're in quite of a pickle there, O. First of all, any decision that you make should be of your own volition. They may be your family, but they should not be pressuring you to make certain decisions. Actions like that do not bode well for your future relationships with your brother and father. Approach them and tell them how you feel and what you really want, but don't be effusive in the way you bring up the subject, for you don't want to offend them. Communicating with people in this way is sine qua non for maintaining healthy relationships. As for the boy, you have to ask yourself: is this fantasy of us being together quixotic? Is it worth causing a vendetta between the man I love, my family, and myself? These questions are ineluctable, and if the answer is no to either of them, your father and brother's bromide statements might hold some truth in them. Then you might want to extract yourself from that quagmire, avoid the impasse, whatever you wish to call it. I wish you the best of luck in dealing with both the boy and your family, O.
    Sincerely,
    Sara

My Study Strategy for the Midterm

Well I'm for sure going to study every day starting today for the midterm! My plan is to try something new. I'm going to spend at least a half an hour every day going over as much as I can on all seven lists that have been assigned to us since the beginning of school. I'll study definitions, put the words in sentences, see if I can come up with fun and interesting ways to remember the words. Since there is no hint on how the test is going to be given, I have to be prepared for knowing the word forwards and backwards, up and down, side to side, I need to know ALL of the word. This well definitely benefit me in the end. Wish me luck! :)