Spring Semester Plan 1

I am always setting goals for myself in order to enhance my knowledge to a higher level. I have mini goals which are the main goals most people have for themselves, good grades (straight A's in some sense), graduate high school for other kids, good GPA's, and get a job. Well outside of all that I love to learn and help others. It makes me extremely proud knowing my name 'Socorro' means help in Spanish. I have taken on the task to go out and help others in any way possible. I am a strong believer in helping one another out and collaborating together in order to fulfill a higher level of learning. Working together brings more brain power into one project. With more brain power there is more of a chance to fulfill a positive outcome. I want to teach others that working together is a beautiful thing in life.

AP PREP POST 1: SIDDHARTHA

1. Why does he fear that he will not find it in prescribed religious teachings?

- Siddhartha feels that he has already been offered everything possible within his religion.He is seeking self-happiness, which his religion does not offer that. 

http://www.studymode.com/essays/Siddhartha-Reading-Questions-641015.html

2. What is Siddhartha missing in his life?

 - He is missing self-happiness, and can not find it in his religion.

http://www.elmhurst.edu/library/courses/forlang/SID.html

3. What does Govinda do? 

 - Govinda decides to join the monks. "Govinda had become a monk and thousands of monks were his brothers, wore the same gown, shared his beliefs and spoke his language."

http://sbmsworldhistory.wetpaint.com/page/Siddhartha+-+Chapter+Reading+Questions

4. How did Siddhartha convince his father? Why didn’t he just go?

 -  Siddhartha expressed his choice of leaving home and follow the ascetics. His father did not seem to to support Siddhartha's choice, but he could see it in Siddhartha's eyes how determined he was to follow the ascetics. For Siddhartha he felt like he didn't have his fathers consent, he did not want to just go ahead and leave since he was such an obedient son

http://siddhartha302.blogspot.com/2010/09/siddhartha-study-questions.html

5. Describe the life of a Samana.  Why do they choose this kind of lifestyle?  Explain the goal of their 

lifestyle and practices.

 - I do not know the answer to this question because there was not a sufficient amount of information from the passage given to us from Siddhartha. But In order to find out the answer, I would need to either A) read the book itself, B) or keep looking up notes until my question has been answered.

http://www.camillasenglishpage.org/wp-content/uploads/literature/novels-and-novellas/Siddhartha-Study-Questions.pdf

These question help me think more in deft about Siddhartha's thoughts and the world he is living in. By answering them I am becoming more fluent with the story and its meaning. In order to master this book so I can be prepared for the AP Exam, I will need to read the novel completely and analyze it in order to understand the deeper meaning of Siddhartha's thoughts. 

Lit Terms 1-5

Allegory- The term loosely describes any writing in verse or prose that has double meaning. This narrative acts as an extended metaphor in which persons, abstract ideas, events represent not only themselves on the literal level, but they also stand for something else in the symbolic level. 

Elegy-  Refers to any poem written in elegiac (alternating hexameter and pentameter lines)

Ellipsis- Ellipsis refers to the artful omission of a word implied by a previous clause.

       EX; "The America solders killed eight civilians, and the French eight." The writer of the sentence has left out the word soldiers after French, and the word civilians after eight. However, both words are implied by the previous clause, so a reader has no trouble following the author's thought.

Surrealism- An artistic movement doing away with the restrictions of realism and verisimilitude that might be imposed on an artist. In this movement, the artist sought to do away with conscious control and instead respond to the irrational urges of the subconscious mind. From this results the hallucinatory, bizarre often nightmarish quality of surrealistic paintings and writing. 

Meter- A recognized though varying pattern of stressed syllables alternating with syllables of less stress. Compositions written in meter are said to be in verse.

Whats In It For Me?

I have always enjoyed learning about all the different literature that has been out there for us. I found analyzing to be fun. In finding the deep meaning of a characters thoughts. So I like to challenge myself in improving my reading and writing skills. Writing has always seemed to be more difficult for me. So my biggest goal, aside from passing th AP Exam, is to improve my writing by as much as I possibly can. I already know I am capable of learning something new and putting it to good use, now it is only with time that I will slowly improve.

Fall Semester Reflection

1. Do you read your colleagues’ work online? How often? What is it like to read their work?

 How does being able to see everyone’s work online at any given time change the way you do your work?

- I often would read other's work because I was curious of their opinions and sometimes I would be a little confused on a piece of literature and reading other's explanations would help me a lot. We are at an advantage by allowing our work to be viewed public because we are not only helping one another, but what if one day someone stumbles upon our blog and were looking for some information and we happen to have then well we have became a positive resource to that individual. Which I find to be amazing. 

2. How has the publicly and always visible course blog made this course different from one without a blog? How would the course change if the course blog disappeared tomorrow?

-If we didn't have our blogs then it would very different. The class revolves a lot around posting our work on the blog. By providing the knowledge others seek just like we were in their position. Being apart of this class is special and it is very unique compared to the rest of my classes. The blog has allowed us more freedom but yet it still has the feel of a college class. I would be sad if the class blog had disappeared. 

3. Has publishing your work for the public to see changed your approach to completing an assignment? How so? How would your feelings about the course change if you couldn’t publish your work that way?

-I feel like it adds a bit of pressure, because there are going to be people who will judge our work. That'd why I try to complete the assignment, and I always tend to complete one so I have no worries. My feelings wouldn't change much, just that it wouldn't be as unique and different compared to other AP classes. It'd just be like how it was back in 10th grade. Haha 

4. Has your experience of the physical classroom changed because of the open & online aspects? Where does your learning actually happen? 

- I am a strong believer in open source learning and find it working very well for me. I like how we are aloud more freedom. It takes away the feel of being locked up in school with so many restrictions and having the adults be pointing fingers at us for doing the wrong thing. My learning happens well in everyday living, I learn inside the classroom as well as outside. I learn something new anywhere I go. I never "shut my brain down", I guess you can say depending where I am at. 

 
5. You were described in the Macarthur Foundation/DML interview as “a pioneer”-- how do you describe the experience on the edge to people who haven’t been there (friends and family)?
- I would say that it is a whole new style to learning that makes learning fun and takes away the typical teacher/student relationship. You actually build a bond with your teacher as well as our colleagues. I remember being hesitant when I requested to take AP English. I felt like it would be plenty and plenty of work. Well turns out it is work, but if we are smart about then it wont feel like such a heavy load. I have no regrets in the decision I made when signing up for AP English. I am more than happy that I did. 

6.How do they respond when you describe the brave new world in which you’re working?
-Well it is something new and it is a change that will take getting use too. I am the type of person who enjoys change and trying new things. This is change we have signed up for will only push us to excel more.

7. What do their responses mean to you? What effect(s) (if any) do they have on you?
- I value everything I have learned this whole semester. I have learned so much and I enjoy pushing myself to do better. I came in with the mentality to push myself till I cant go no further. Till I receive the grades I aimed to get and to push myself into enjoying school. Having a more positive outlook about it all. All I have is nothing but happy feelings for ending this semester strong. 

Allegory in the Cave by Plato
Lit Anal

GENERAL
1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read, and explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).
-This story is about some men who live in a cave since they were born and have been living there life  chained with shackles and being powerless, unable to see what the world is like outside the cave. The men are facing a wall with a fire behind and there is a bridge which allows people to cross and with this, the shadows of whoever dares to cross are being left on the empty wall of the cave and these are the only live images of the outside world that these men are allowed to look at. They have no knowledge of life and how it works, until one day. One man breaks free and was lead into the light to learn and seek the knowledge of how life works outside the cave. It was a challenge for the man but he was willing to push through it in order to be enlightened. Once enlightened he came back to the cave to help the others so they as well can see the light and become knowledgeable of the outside world.

2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.
- I will quote my sonnet off of Allegory in the Cave.
 "Great change will occur when he who is enlightened

But it is up to us whether we see the knowledge or choose to be frightened". 

In my opinion this is what sums up the theme of Allegory in the Cave. Plainly said.

3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).
"And suppose once more, that he is reluctantly dragged up a steep and rugged ascent, and held fast until he 's forced into the presence of the sun himself, is he not likely to be pained and irritated? When he approaches the light his eyes will be dazzled, and he will not be able to see anything at all of what are now called realities." This quote explains a tone towards the character of disbelief. It is one tone where the author expressed some emotion of how there wasn't any belief in the prisoner who was freed to see the reality of being outside the cave. Believed that the freed prisoner wouldn't be able to handle the change, and would choose to go back down into the familiar.

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.)

Imagery- " He will require to grow accustomed to the sight of the upper world. And first he will see the shadows best, next the reflections of men and other objects in the water, and then the objects themselves; then he will gaze upon the light of the moon and the stars and the spangled heaven; and he will see the sky and the stars by night better than the sun or the light of the sun by day?"

Simile- "But then, if I am right, certain professors of education must be wrong when they say that they can put a knowledge into the soul which was not there before, like sight into blind eyes. "


Rhetorical Question- "And if there were a contest, and he had to compete in measuring the shadows with the prisoners who had never moved out of the den, while his sight was still weak, and before his eyes had become steady (and the time which would be needed to acquire this new habit of sight might be very considerable) would he not be ridiculous? "

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

3. Is the protagonist static or dynamic?  Flat or round?  Explain.
- The freed prisoner expresses round and static characteristics in the story. He shows these qualities because he expressed a since of decision making like a human would. Being able to make a life changing decision is a big step, and the freed prisoner demonstrated it well. He also showed a static characteristic. The freed prisoner went from a cave prisoner, along with the others, and let himself become enlightened which proved him to grow as a person.

4. After reading the book did you come away feeling like you'd met a person or read a character?  Analyze one textual example that illustrates your reaction.
- After reading this story I felt it was so real. I connected it to my daily life and it relates to it so much, which caught my attention.  I also started connecting to other things in life as well, and it appeared that it can be compared and have the same meaning behind it all. By far I'd have to say that this story and the play, No Exit by Jean Paul Sartre would have to my favorite literature of first semester.

" No Exit "

Jean Paul Sartre

Thinking Outside the Box

1- Think about the place you have chosen as your hell. Does it look ordinary and bourgeois, like Sartre's drawing room, or is it equipped with literal instruments of torture like Dante's Inferno? Can the mind be in hell in a beautiful place? Is there a way to find peace in a hellish physical environment?

- In my mind hell is full of flames and mountain high volcanoes filled with lava waiting to erupt on all the people who are stuck in hell. It does not appear torturous in having the style of instruments that are twisting and disturbing that will cause the people so much pain. I believe yes the mind can be a hell in a beautiful place. People in fact live lives that way everyday. A person can be living here on earth surrounded be their loved ones and by the beauty of life but inside they are sickly twisted and hold onto evil thoughts about life, friends, family members, ever day people, just anything ocurring in their life. A person can be in the middle of living a dark muggish life while the rest of the world is living life a little more happily compared to the other person. Peace can be found in a hellish environment, it just takes accepting of your wrong doings and be able to learn from it so you can move on with life and be able to grow as a person.



2 Could hell be described as too much of anything without a break? Are variety, moderation and balance instruments we use to keep us from boiling in any inferno of excess,' whether it be cheesecake or ravenous sex?

- Having life throw at you twist here and there prepares to grow as a person in order to enhance your knowledge of living. By adding change in someones life then we will have to learn to adjust to what has been thrown at us. This way we do not become accustomed with the familiar. We have to learn how to live with a healthy balance of everything that is around us. To much anything can always be harmful whether it be spiritually, mentally, physically, or emotionally. Being able to live a happy balanced life style is what we should strive for.


3. How does Sartre create a sense of place through dialogue? Can you imagine what it feels like to stay awake all the time with the lights on with no hope of leaving a specific place? How does GARCIN react to this hell? How could you twist your daily activities around so that everyday habits become hell? Is there a pattern of circumstances that reinforces the experience of hell?

- The characters strongly express their emotions about the surroundings. Garcin is curious to where the paraphernalia is located. In the eyes of the characters they appear to be over thinking things. Basically letting their minds play tricks on them and are slowly but surely becoming crazy in such a small confined room with other humans. I would have to take way all dance / music related things because with out then I would in fact go crazy rather then staying sane with myself.


4 Compare how Plato and Sartre describe the limitations of our thinking and imply solutions to the problem.
- In my opinion it is up to the individual to determine how they take in and let information be processed. It is the individual who controls themselves. If they allow others to influence in a good or bad way well that is up to the individual. We can choose to learn from others or let others to make decisions for us.