Halftime Speech: Part II

I wrote my halftime speech last week for my blog post. Coincidentally, it was to the exact same prompt that was given for this week’s blog. I am either lucky or a mind-reader, which has yet to be determined. Just a recap from last week: my expectations of more quantity and more complex reading have been fulfilled, and I believe to be a better critic and writer from it. Since I already reflected on this semester’s impact on me, I shall reveal the adjustments I would like to make for next semester:

-Let’s do a group project. I feel like besides the sparse group activity, I have not been able to interact with my classmates very much (official interaction... not counting the talking during class). I don’t know what units are next semester, but a reasonable-sized group project would be fun to do next semester. 

-I want to act something out. I know we have already completed the drama unit, but I was hoping we would act out scenes or something like that. I think that a large class participatory activity would be great learning and lots of fun.

-Lastly, let’s have a party. I’m serious. This is our last semester of high school ever (hopefully). I think that after the AP test we should have a large party to finish out the year. These are what I hope. What about you? I want to hear your recommendations.

My Halftime Speech

I am feeling a tad reflective today, and considering the end of the first semester is approaching, I thought I would take a look back at the past 16 weeks that was semester 1 of AP Senior English. The main difference (and challenge) I had expected from this course was the amount of reading. This class has not disappointed, with a regular reading pace throughout the semester. Along with the amount of reading, I had anticipated a much higher reading level than advanced english classes of the past. Again, my expectations were correct. The literature we have read this semester has been the higest of any I have read-- and rightfully so. However, I really appreciate the variety of literature we read. We have read short stories, dramas, and novels (independent reading). Also, we have read modern texts, older literature, serious stories, and humorous passages. I have been able to relate to most of them (not all) which has allowed to stay interested in the class, something which concerned me at the start. Writing has also been a large part of this semester. I have expanded my writing skills by regularly doing several types of writing. I have practiced timed writing, reflective writing, interpretive writing and personal writing. I feel like I am a much more refined writer and reader because of this course. What about you guys? How has this semester of AP Senior English shaped you? Was it all that you had anticipated? 

The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster: Useful Satire

Wednesday we learned about satire, the use of irony to ridicule human folly. After discussing satirical headlines of The Onion and reading Mark Twain’s speech, I asked myself: How could satire by useful? Interested, I searched the web for an answer. Several minutes later, I found one. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Niko Alm.

Austrian Niko Alm became frustrated with a double standard in his country, that Muslims were allowed to wear turbans in drivers license pictures while the rest of the population wasn’t. The Austrian government argued that turbans were allowed to be worn because of their religious importance. To point out how foolish this was, Alm created a perfectly satirical plan to make his point. Alm created ‘The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster’ which practices the religion of ‘Pastafarianism.’ These are the beliefs of Pastafarianism:

-Pirates were peacekeeping explorers and the original Pastafarians.

-Every Friday is a religious holiday.

-All global epidemics can be linked to the declining Pirate population

-All Pastafarians must wear pasta strainers on their heads at all times.

Alm showed up for his drivers license picture wearing his pasta strainer. He argued that because of the beliefs of Pastafarianism, he should be allowed to remain wearing it. Three years later and one court battle later, Alm had won his right to wear the pasta strainer, sparking a reform of Austrian government policies. Alm’s satirical actions furthered equal rights in Austria. 

Jake's Take on Pride and Prejudice

For my second independent reading book I choose Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I had heard from several people that this was a gossipy chick flick type book. I hadn’t concidered reading it, until it conveniently appeared on the reading extravaganza as well. My indolent (gold star for Jake!) ways decided it would be better to read two books instead of one. I prove to be a creature of habit and again read the entire book in the five days before the dealine. Pride and Prejudice was considerably shorter than my first book, which was a big plus. I cannot say that I was disappointed in Pride and Prejudice. The book had many unique characteristics that I have not come across in all the books I have read. Its central topic is marriage, written from a woman’s perspective. Austen described how vastly different the culture of England during the Elizabethan era was compared to today, with marriage mainly focused on social status and class. Another unique thing about the book was the way Austen wrote it. Never have I seen so many long, several claused sentences. Some paragraphs were composed of one or two sentences. If you have never read Pride and Prejudice, I would recommend reading it. It is very unique and differs from all books I have read recently.

My 9 Most Beautiful Words

Phil Cousineau wrote an article last week which he described the art of language in the simplest form. He discusses how an individual word without any context can be beautiful, and continues to list the 9 most beautiful words in his opinion. Cousineau states that words, both short and long, can leave you with a “shiver down your spine.” Now I do not think that words are that powerful, but there are some pronounciations that have an exceptional flow. In judging words on beauty, I picked the words that best roll off my tongue and make me smile while saying them. I do not think that extra long words hold higher beauty (if you want my reasoning, take a look at the back of your shampoo bottle). In no particular order, here are my 9 most beautiful words: 

-Anemone: For anyone who has seen Finding Nemo, this needs no explanation

-Anesthetize: I enjoy saying the middle of the word. Feels odd. Makes me feel like a snake.

-Awl: It’s a simple word and sounds like it is from the South (the greatest country on Earth)

-Hippopotamus: The consecutive p’s are what make this word fun to say for me

-Mirror: This word makes me smile especially when squashing it into one syllable. Meerrrrrrr

-Poop: Try saying poop with a straight face. You can’t. Or atleast I can’t. Argh the 5 year old in me...

-Schladt (as in Becca Schladt): The 4 consecutive consanants makes this word enjoyable to say. It's a mouthful

-Staphylococcus: I know I said I wasn’t a fan of long words, but who doesn’t enjoy saying this?

-Squib: This word refers to a type of kick in football. This word is beautiful because it’s short and gives you that warm feeling inside of you. Or something like that.

Don't be so Dramatic

I was anticipating an overbearing drama unit, but we have already read one play and it has not been so bad yet. Was I the only one worried about this drama unit? I mean this is big, bad, AP Senior English. Given we have not gotten to the Shakespeare yet, I still anticipated trying to translate Old English for hours and envisioned humiliating myself trying to role play in front the entire class. I guess I still had incorrect fears about the AP class after taking advanced last year. Also, this literary analysis stuff seems to be getting a tad easier (credit Mr. Mullins for his teaching skills). All my English reservations have been put to rest. So how bout that play, Salem: A Play with Puppets? I found it to be interesting, drawing parallels between it and The Crucible while watching it. Both conflicts were introduced by a young girl making accusations against an authority figure, and the rumors spreading throughout all the characters. They also both had a supernatural element- witchcraft in The Crucible and the vortex in Salem (though I never fully understood what it represented, any thoughts?). Both plays were also centered arounf a social conflict during that time, the red scare and civil rights. I realize my blog is a hodgepodge of thoughts so comment on whatever you feel like. Also, if you were to second guess yourself about making an appointment to tour a Native American homeland, you would be having a reservation reservation reservation (credit Brian Regan).   

Fate or Fortune?

When prophecies are fulfilled, it is interesting to explore how they were filled. In Oedipus Rex’s case, it is especially intriguing to see how his prophecy came true, when he and his parents knew his fate. Oedipus’s parents first became aware of the prophecy when he was a baby, so they abandoned him to try to beat fate. Much later in his life, Oedipus became aware of this prophecy when he visited an oracle. Oedipus decided to flee from his current city back towards Thebes, where he would fulfill the prophecy of killing his father. Analyzing this, it is difficult to determine the role of fate in this story. Both the abandonment and return of Oedipus were actions done to guard themselves against fate. In fictional literature, fate can be more evident from an objective point of view. But how about in real life? Last week, Nebraska was trailing Northwestern in the fourth quarter, and quarterback Taylor Martinez threw what would be a sure interception. Three Northwestern linebackers all fought for the ball and dropped. Next play- another dropped interception. 99% of the time Northwestern would have intercepted one and iced the game, but Nebraska retained the ball and scored a go-ahead touchdown. A handful of peculiar plays led Nebraska to victory that night. Was Nebraska fortunate? Or were they supposed to win the game? Given that this is a poor metaphor, I hope you smell what I’m stepping in. I believe that Nebraska was fortunate that night because I doubt fate would care enough about a college football game. What do you think? Is everything decided, nothing decided, or only some things decided?

A Refreshing Alternative

I have a secret, but you have to promise not to judge me. I am partly looking forward to writing this short story essay. I can’t explain why I am not dreading writing this; normally writing a well-developed essay is the last thing on my to-do list. I can tell you one thing though, many essays will be in my future this semester. I just started on a college essay, the first of seven I need to write.  What I like least about college essays is that they are less contextually relevent (the part I am usually solid at) and more focused on the tone (...what does that mean?), a significant curveball for a writer like me. Compared to the in-class essays we write, college essays seem like a breeze. I can’t imagine what Mr. Mullins thinks about my unedited writing. When the timer starts I get confused and stuck and redundant in my vocabulary. Both timed essays have given me nightmares so far. The reason I am looking forward to this essay in that it is a better substitute for the essays I have recently written, no scrambling to finish or reflecting about myself. I hope my feelings about this paper don’t change between now and the final draft.

Learn From My Own Mistakes

A couple entries ago I discussed the pain of reading Catch 22 by Joseph Heller. It was so much pain and torture that I decided to switch things up, and just to make things interesting I decided to start reading The Poisonwood Bible a week before the in-class essay. I had not done any research on the book, because why would the length of a book I need to read quickly matter? So I downloaded the electronic copy of Barbara Kingsolver’s book and began on page 1 of a whopping 696. Because I’m a magnet, I ran some quick statistics on the pace I needed to read to finish on time: 99.4 pages per day, and given that I read at a 1.5 min/page rate for the text size that equates to 2.5 hours of reading per night, and over 17.5 hours in one week.  That’s just cray. Ironically, my adventure reading this book last week paralleled the plot, maybe. Given that it’s way past my bedtime and I am half asleep right now anything could make sense to me. In The Poisonwood Bible, Nathan Price goes on a mission trip to the Congo and desires to baptize the town’s children. He is so myopic on this goal that he loses sight of understanding the African culture and the whole thing is a bust, leading to his death at the end. Likewise, my experience reading this book was all about finishing it, getting to page 696. However my speed-reading technique inhibited my text-absorbing skills and I only partially comprehended the story. I would do it a tad differently if I had a redo, but I don’t so know I should be glad it’s over and hope my next book is the Tortoise and the Hare. That would be nice. 

Existentialism, you say?

In class we are discussing the viewpoint of existentialism, which has been very difficult for me. Existentialism seems to cover a whole array of philosophies and it has been hard to grasp. I understand the belief that each person is unique and man is defined by what he does, that part of our discussed I comprehended well. Then we started talking about selfishness and selflessness. That started to make my head hurt. It was argued (or proven, it seemed) by Mullins that there was no such thing as selflessness. That every action, in one way or another, was done to produce a desirable consequence for yourself. I thought about an experience I had during the summer that I thought was selfless. I went to volunteer on maintenance at Kanakuk Kamps for a week after my term as a kamper. I did work projects and set up for parties and events the whole week. I had not anticipated this, but seeing these kids have as much fun that I did the week before felt good, knowing that I had contributed to this. I had not known this feeling would occur, but I knew that I would be serving these kampers. So my motive to stay this extra week wasn't to feel good about my work. I had thought that this act wasn't selfish, but the class discussion had challenged my previous belief. Any thoughts on how/if selflessness can be achieved? Also, I have provided an 'existentialist' joke from one of my favorite shows, Criminal Minds. Ironically (you're welcome Mr. Mullins) I had seen this episode the night before we began our class discussion over existentialism.

Poor Kids...

The last two stories we have read in AP English were “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” and “The Drunkard.” Both of the stories’ plots are centered on kids who have been put in danger due to the neglegence of their parents. In “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” the main character, Connie, is left at home while her parents are at her aunt’s barbeque. While they are away, two men pull up to Connie at her house and threaten her to get in their vehicle. In “The Drunkard” Larry is accompanying his father to a funeral. While his father is distracted, Larry drinks his beer and becomes physically ill. Both Connie and Larry were put at risk because of their parents’ carelessness. But how much should the parents really be responsible for? In our class discussion about “The Drunkard,” the father seems to be responsible, because Larry is most likely in elementary school and he was just exercising curiousity in drinking his father’s beer, which is his dad’s fault. I support our discussion, thinking that Larry’s father should take blame. However, in “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” the parent’s responsibility for this is never mentioned and almost the same scenario occured. Connie was also exploring herself as a teenager and opted to stay home by herself. The parents, who left her home alone at night took no blame for the problems that ensued. The only difference between these stories is the age of the kids. Connie was 15, so she was given the responsibility for what happened to her this time. I disagree with this because I think even though she is older, the parents are still at fault for what happened. What do you think? Do you think that the older child, Connie, deserved take the blame when Larry didn’t? 

Watcha talkin' bout Willis?

Our last reading, Hemingway's 'Hills Like White Elephants' frustrated me. I figured out it was talking about abortion (after a second reading) and was still left confused. What was frustrating is that Hemingway concealed the main subject of the conversion and the feelings/ reactions of the characters. Don't get me wrong- I really enjoy mysteries and suspense. However they are much different than this reading. My favorite show is 24 because it keeps the audience guessing, but in this case the viewers are provided with character reactions. You can detect their emotions based on how the physically show in their behavior. 'Hills Like White Elephants' gave me none of this, which is why I had trouble with this book. I believe both literary strategies, objective points of view and hidden subjects are very effective in writing. I have read books that use them and are very interesting- but they only use one technique, not both. However, Hemingway uses both at the same time, and I feel that it caused the story to lack substance.

Desperate Measures

Last Saturday night, Nebraska played the UCLA Bruins on primetime TV. Nebraska was favored, but it was being played in California so anything could happen. From the opening play I knew it was going to be a struggle for my Cornhuskers. Nebraska was playing about as good as a local community college could, and my nervous watching habits has caused me to be a wild ball of emotions. In the third quarter I decided to take a break from the madness (partly to avoid a panic attack or breakdown). Sadly this wasn’t the first game Nebraska had played poorly in, and I had a routine. Oddly enough, these moments are the ideal time to read. I still haven’t decided whether I read as some form of self-punishment for my team’s poor play, or if it works as an escape route from the sad reality of another championship-less season. Either way, I grabbed Catch 22 and locked myself in my bathroom. I got a solid thirty pages read before my curiousity got the best of me and I returned to watch my team play. Sadly, we lost that night. The way we played last week, there could be many more of these nights in the next few months. That’s one way to get this book read.

The Pride of All Nebraska

I had waited exactly 321 days for this moment to come. The moment I get to dawn the scarlet and cream and attend the most thrilling 3 hours of my life. Sure I have done it 37 times before, but nothing compares to it. Nebraska Football. It’s not a sport. It’s not a hobby. It is a lifestyle. There is nothing else like it in the sporting world, where an entire state unites to cheer on their team. The stadium itself becomes the third-largest city in Nebraska when filled to capacity. There hasn’t been a ticket available since 1962, and Nebraska Football tickets have the highest street value of any other college sporting event.  When you are at the game you aren’t just a fan or spectator. You are part of the team.  You are Nebraska Football.

On the flight there Friday, as I was listening to my ‘Sounds of Nebraska Football’ CD, I couldn’t help but get the chills. The time that I had anticipated for nearly a year was less than 24 hours away, and I could hardly contain myself. Meanwhile I was figuring out what the focus of my next blog entry should be. My first two blog entries were voiceless, consisting of a bland book report and an average news story. I was looking for inspiration and a voice for my blog, but I was struggling. I couldn’t try to be someone I’m not or discuss things that I knew nothing about. A huge part of my identity is Nebraska Football, whether I realized it was there or not. It surrounds me. I’ve accepted that I’m not the literature critic or an enthusiastic book reader. I am a die-hard, passionate, ‘stick together in all kinds of weather’ Nebraska Football fan. And that person will shine in my blog posts.  

(image credit to huskers.com)

Hurricane Isaac? Not Again...

In my other summer reading book, Salvage the Bones, Jesmyn Ward described one family’s perspective of Hurricane Katrina and the few days prior. On August 29, 2005, the category five storm touched down in the gulf coast, hitting New Orleans especially hard. The natural levies that the city had put in place failed, and much of New Orleans flooded. Ward accounted these events in her book, where the Batiste family had to flee to the attic of their house to escape the rapidly rising waters. Hurricane Katrina will go down as one of the most destructive hurricanes to hit the US.  

Seven years later, to the day, New Orleans and the gulf coast are being threatened by another dangerous hurricane. Hurricane Isaac, only a category one storm so far, is traveling through the gulf and making a beeline towards the Big Easy. Don’t be fooled though- Isaac might not have the wind speed of a hurricane like Katrina- but what it lacks in speed it makes up in rain. Lots of rain. A slow moving, heavy precipitating storm is a huge threat to New Orleans, who is still recovering from flooding seven years earlier. The city is evacuating, many people moving away saying that this is the last straw. If this storm cripples New Orleans again, how much longer will it continue to be a metropolitan hot spot? Or will New Orleans be able to take the necessary measures to weather the storm again?   

    

[Hurricane Isaac as it reaches the Gulf Coast]

Harbach hits a Home Run

This summer I decided to fulfill my summer reading requirement by reading The Art of Fielding, one of the New York Times' Best Books of the Year, written by Chad Harbach. I received the book in the mail and was immediately intimidated by the 512 pages that were in store for me.

Now I'm not a fan of reading, but I have learned to appreciate it. This book is a lengthy novel focusing on a uniquely talented baseball player and his college career. From the first chapter I knew that The Art of Fielding would be a book I'd enjoy. Harbach had found a way to speak to the athlete in me. I never was a baseball player, but the main components of those feel good sports stories were there. Henry was an undersized, underrated athlete with an exceptional work ethic; something athletes of all sports can appreciate and find interesting.

I was able to draw many parallels between this book and the football movie, Rudy.

 To all my sport fans and athletes out there, give this book a read, its worth every page.