Thursday, March 29, 2012

The Stranger Albert Camus

Soundtrack- Rootless Tree by Damien Rice

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Mind Map!

http://www.mindmeister.com/148637664

Literature Analysis Notes: The Stranger

"Maman died today. Or was it yesterday maybe, I don't know. I got the telegram from the home: 'Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours.' That doesn't mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday."

Nonchalant- "The home is two kilometers from the village. I walked them."

Characteristics- (lazy, selfish, doesn't want to be inconvenienced)

- "That's partly why I didn't go there much this past year. And also because it took up my Sunday- not to mention the trouble of getting to the bus, buying tickets, and spending two hours traveling."

-Meursault goes to Marengo (where his mom had lived.)
-The next day before the funeral he meets with the director again.
-He doesn't remember much of the funeral and then goes back to Algiers.

-He goes to the beach and runs into a former co-worker Marie Cardona.
-The two see a movie that evening and she stays the night. When Meursault wakes up though, Marie is gone. He stays in bed until noon, then sits on his balcony until evening just watching the people go by.

-Monday(Next day) He goes back to work and runs into his friend Emmanuel who he had lunch with.

-Going to his appartment that night he runs into an old man named Salamano.
Then he runs into Raymond who he invites in for dinner.
-Raymond is like a pimp. He beat up his gf for cheating on him and then got into a fight with her brother.

-Raymond wants more revenge but needs something to lure her back in.. so Meursault agrees to write a letter to get her back.

-Next Saturday, Marie visits meursault at his place. She asks if he loves her. He says... "It didn't mean anything".. but probably not.

-Then the two hear screaming from Raymonds appartment. The cops take him to the police station because he beat up his mistress. Later, Raymond asks if Meursault will testify on his behaf and he agrees.

-That night, Raymond runs into Salamano(old man), who thinks his dog ran way.

-Marie asks Meursault if he wants to get married... he says they can if she wants to.. so they become engaged.

-Sunday, Raymond, Marie and Meursault go to a beach house, owned by Raymond's friend Masson, for a swim.

-They run into Raymonds mistress's brother (Arab) on the beach.

-They get into a fight and Raymond got stabbed.

-Raymond fixes his wounds then considers shooting the brother but Meursault talks him out of it, and takes the gun.

-Later for no reason.. Meursault returns to the spring and shoots Raymond's mistress's brother!

- He's arrested and thrown in jail.

-His lawyer seems disguisted by his lack of guilt or grief for his mother's death.

-A magistrate comes and says he needs to put his faith in God.

-Meursault refuses and says he doesn't believe.

-Marie visits him and forces a smile. She still says they will get married.

-Meursault's isolation from nature, women, and cigarettes is hard at first but he adjusts and soon doesn't even notice. He manages to keep his mind occupied and sleeps for most of the day.

-On the morning of the trial, Meursault is taken to the courthouse.
The subject shifts from the murder to a discussion of his character and the death of his mother. People from the funeral are called to testify and they all attest to his lack of tears or grief.

-Marie hesitantly testifies and explains that the day after the funeral her and Meursault see a comedy. The following day the prosecuter is outraged by Meursaults lack of morals or feeling, saying that it's a threat to society. He is found guilty. His sentence was beheading.

-When Meursault returns to prison.. he has trouble accepting his fate. He dreams of escaping and filing a legal appeal.

- Against Meursaults whishes a chaplain comes and tries to convince him to not be an athiest and to turn to God, but he refuses. The chaplain can't believe that he doesn't desire faith.

-Meursault gets angry and begins shouting.. saying that he is correct in believing in a purely physical world that is meaningless.

-Once Meursault accepts this and gives up on his hope for the future he feels happy.

"As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world."

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Notes: Socratic Seminar

"There's a magic of being together that's different than technology."

-When you play with imagination it helps you grow.

-It's harder to make individual decisions if you're always under rules.

-"Learn from my mistakes" - No i have to learn from my own or I won't have any experiences that help me grow.

-"Wisdom- a practical application of knowledge"

-You have to learn from experience..
-Happy Medium

-Thought process..
-Remix shakespeare to connect to your own life

-What value does knowledge or wisdom have if your not using it.

-What we learn in school needs to be relevent to our own life in order to remember it.

-We are bound for testing

-Monkey can climb a tree, but an elephant can't
(We are all individual and unique and yet testing tries to generalize us and our learning.)
-testing doesn't define who you are

-kids and building blocks... we are still in that creating state..
-Sometimes people look at the things they can't change...

-You have to have the right mindset.. "Don't do what you love, love what you do."


1a. Paragraph #1: How can these concepts enhance your learning as you arrive at a moment when grades no longer matter?
1b. Paragraph #2: How can these concepts enhance your ability to master content for the AP exam and other hurdles you have yet to leap?
1c. How can you use these concepts to collaborate with and inspire others, to improve the information exchange and overall value of your learning network?



1a. I feel like it really does have a lot to do with the mindset of the student. It is really up to them how they want to take in all this information. For a lot of people I know.. it is senior year and they already got into their college and they aren't really that motivated to finish strong. They still are stuck in this mindset that school is just test prep and not life long skills. When they stop thinking of it as points on a score sheet.. and see the bigger picture, I think these concepts will help them.

1b. I was just thinking the other day that there were probably going to be a lot of literary terms on the AP test and it would really benifit me to know them. When we had tests on the lit terms I would make sure to study them but when there was no teacher warning me.. then I lost my incentive, and didn't review. With the AP test fastly approaching.. I see the importance and benefit of knowing them for my own good.. not just for points in a class. I feel like this relates to the world in general. Don't do things just to get them done and then forget, but take the time to find the value in it and then it will seem like it's more worth your time.

1c. Just like in the video we watched, the internet creates a library for the world. After watching that video and talking to people, everyone seemed to come away very inspired. People from all overt the world asking questions and putting online for everyone to see. At first that seemed impossible to them but they did it. I think that's why so many people were inspired, because of how impossible it seemed. So often we forget how fortunate we are to have an opportunity to take an AP class like this. We can use our blogs and online resources to help educate other people who have a real interest in what we are doing.

Socratic Seminar Notes

The internet creates a library for the world.

Q: How do you percieve the world around you?
-Strange and unfamiliar or something you can relate to.

-Does increased personal choice for each individual really lead to more happiness?

*Every effort to change the world... starts with people asking questions.

Q: How do/can we sit together and discuss what's important, and reach a solution.

"where is the vision of today's leaders?" - Joe Walsh

-Is communication becoming modernized?

- The human footprint.

"Come together as one to celebrate our diversity..."

Q: Are brands more powerful than government?

Q: Why are African states less developed?

Q: What does the future you want look like?

Q: "If you had one piece of knowledge to give to the world, what would it be?"

Q: How do we get the world to listen?

-Total destiny might change from the worst to the best...


The Serious Need For Play

-Free play is crucial for developement.

-"Free Play" as opposed to structural activities

-Free Play as a child can help you develope skills for:
-Coping with stress
-Problem solving

"The consequence of a life that is seriously play-deprived is serious stuff"

-why are structured games and free play that different?
A: It challenges the developing brain instead of following predetermined rules.

-Parents should let children be children.

"Curiousity, imagination, and creativity are like muscles: if you don't use them, you lose them."


-How can playing with a question create a learning experience?

"The world is vast and wide. Why do you put on your robes at the sound of a bell?"

-I think that when you think about or dwell on anything for a period of time, you learn something. sometimes the experience is just as valuable as the result. We learn stuff just by trying.

"There is glory in the attempt."

Friday, March 9, 2012

Remix Analysis

The first poem seems to be about a lady who is always dressed up like she's going to some party or event. The author is trying to make you realize that you don't have to get dressed up all the time. That sometimes less is more and it's better to just relax once in a while and go with the simple/natural look. The author does this through importnant figures of speech, images, and diction.

The second poem is about a guy who is telling all vigin women to go get married asap and take advantage of their youthfulness. What you take away from this peom is that time is ticking and not to be wasteful with your life.

In this third poem, the author is a female and she is telling us how the world is broken and they teed to start alll over. The main message the author wants you to take away is that the world is a broken place and no matter how hard you try.. you can't fix it. People are going to disappoint you, you're going to get hurt, and that's just the way it goes. When it gets to that point is when she is telling you to start all over and create a new beginning.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Remix The Textbook

Still to Be Neat by Ben Jonson

Still to be neat, still to be dressed,
As you were going to a feast;
Still to be powdered, still perfumed:
Lady, it is to be presumed,
Though art's hid causes are not found,
All is not sweet, all is not sound.
Give me a look, give me a face,
That makes simplicity a grace;
Robes loosely flowing, hair as free:
Such sweet neglect more taketh me
Than all the adulteries of art;
They strike mine eyes, but not my heart.


Dramatic Situation- It is talking about a lady who always seems to be dressed up for a party or some big event.
Structure- The author presents the information in a simple way that is easy to follow and understand. (stream of consciousness)
Theme- The main message in this poem is basically natural beauty. Don't feel like you have to get so dressed up all the time. Sometimes less is more and it's better to just relax once in a while.
Grammer and meaning- There is a lot of punctuation used, especially commas and semi collins. The word choice is simple, but direct and to the point.
Important images and figures of speech- the author gives you the image of feast and a lady all dressed up. "hair is free" gives an example of the natural/simple look the author was talking about.
Important single words- Still, Lady, simplicity, heart
Tone- the authors tone is very relatable. He is very kind and encouraging, almost like he is giving women a compliment.
Literary and rhetorical devices- Stream of consiousness, simile
Prosoty(flow)- the poem flows very well. Its as if it's all one thought. The author's explaining what we as women do, and what he would like us to do. The smoothness of the poem helps convey the authors words of encouragement.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8xrtl3Yhik&feature=related


To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time by Robert Herrick

GATHER ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old time is still a-flying :
And this same flower that smiles to-day
To-morrow will be dying.

The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
The higher he's a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run,
And nearer he's to setting.

That age is best which is the first,
When youth and blood are warmer ;
But being spent, the worse, and worst
Times still succeed the former.

Then be not coy, but use your time,
And while ye may go marry :
For having lost but once your prime
You may for ever tarry.

Dramatic Situation- The author is speaking to young virgins telling them to not waist time or delay, but to hurry and get married while they are still young and prime.
Structure- The poem is told like a story, almost like advice. It is seperated into four paragraphs to seperate the authors ideas.
Theme- the main message in this is to enjoy and take advantage of your youth. You are not going to be young forever so don't waist your best years. Time is always ticking so use it wisely.
Grammer and meaning- The author uses punctuation such as commas, semi collins, and periods to complete his thought.
Important images and figures of speech- the author makes a lot of references to nature. we are given images of "rosebuds", a flower and the sun.
Important single words- rosebuds, time, dying, sun, youth, marry, prime.
Tone- The authors tone is very mature and wise. Almost as if he is someone who knows best and wants to convince the reader to listen to his advice.
Literary and Rhetorical devices- there were a lot of metaphors used including examples of nature.
Prosoty(flow)- The author put a lot of stress and infasis into this poem. It seemed important for him to convince the reader not to waist time. It flowed really well and the examples helped.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAIbCOhZ6x0



New Beginning by Tracy Chapman

The whole world's broke and it ain't worth fixing
It's time to start all over, make a new beginning
There's too much pain, too much suffering
Let's resolve to start all over make a new beginning
Now don't get me wrong - I love life and living
But when you wake up and look around at everything that's going down -
All wrong
You see we need to change it now, this world with too few happy endings
We can resolve to start all over make a new beginning
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
The world is broken into fragments and pieces
That once were joined together in a unified whole
But now too many stand alone - There's too much separation
We can resolve to come together in the new beginning
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
We can break the cycle - We can break the chain
We can start all over - In the new beginning
We can learn, we can teach
We can share the myths the dream the prayer
The notion that we can do better
Change our lives and paths
Create a new world and
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
The whole world's broke and it ain't worth fixing
It's time to start all over, make a new beginning
There's too much fighting, too little understanding
It's time to stop and start all over
Make a new beginning
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over
We need to make new symbols
Make new signs
Make a new language
With these we'll define the world
And start all over
Start all over
Start all over
Start all over ...

Dramatic Situation- the author is a female and she's talking about how the world is broken and we need to start over.
Structure- the structure is actually a real song so it has a lot of repititions.
Theme- the main message the author wants you to take away is that the world is a broken place and no matter how hard you try.. you can't fix it. People are going to disappoint you, you're going to get hurt, and that's just the way it goes. When it gets to that point is when she is telling you to start all over and create a new beginning.
Grammer and meaning- since it is a song, there aren't very many punctuations besides commas and hyphens. It helps to seperate the authors thoughts.
Important images and figures of speech- Something broken into fragments and pieces, and "we can break the chain"
Important single words- world, broke start, beginning, love, life, living, wrong, change, and endings.
Tone- the authors attitude is almost confident. she knows what's wrong and is going to tell you how to fix it. It's very hopeful. She is telling you what you can do in order to improve and make a better life.
Literary and rhetorical devices-  it uses figurative language and inflated words.
Prosoty(flow)- the movement is very smooth through the piece. It uses rymes and slant rhymes.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkKBYY2ZbGM

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Remix the curriculum

AP Exam Lecture Notes

Poetry is music.. know what words mean.

1. What is the dramatic situation- Who is speaker, male/female, young/old, where is the speaker and when, and what are the circumstances.

2. Structure of a poem, what are the parts and how do they relate, coherence, how do parts fit together, punctuation, transition (new idea, theme, break in time), repetition... parallel syntax.

*Dont stop at the end of a line, stop at the end of the punctuation.

-Use rhyming pattern to find technique.

3. what is the theme or central method?

4. Grammer and meaning

5. Important images and figures of speech

6. Important single words

7. Tone - authors attitude towards subject, readers, character (authors voice)

8. Literary and retorical devices- what literary devices does the poem employ?

9. Prostity (flow) The movement through a piece. Rythm, stress, infasis of speach. Number of syllabuls. Structural elements. How does the structure help convey the message?

*Look at contex


Sonnet- A sonnet is a 14 line lyric poem usually about love that employs Iambic pentameter that uses an abab rhyming scheme.
  • Sonnet has 10 syllabuls
  • Iambic Pentameter (metric foot)
  • Iam=2 syllabuls   Pent=5
  • Italian or English(elizabthan) sonnet
  • A sonnet is 3 quatrains and 1 couplet
  • Quatrain=4 lines   Couplet=2 lines

Example:

What is love but a sweet act of kindness
falling to the unknown with only trust
Always feeling safe and never restless
knowing you will be there, faith is a must.
Love's disguises can either soar or sting,
with emotions like a revolving door;
passion consuming entire beings,
But they say love's someting worth fighting for.
The elusive nymph, how it taunts me so;
Bringer of life, Great tormentor of souls;
Heartbreak of mine, will its pain never go?
I cry in pain, the joyous churchbell tolls.
The bittersweet journey that reaps and sows
The outcome of love we might never know.

Monday, March 5, 2012

Remix/Video Notes: Kirby Ferguson

Remix- To combine or edit esisting ideas to create something new.

(Music) - Hip Hop is a remix

-Music, Videos, Photos- anybody can remix anything
"Everything is a remix"

In a remix you can still see the original existing things

-Creativity use to be considered devigne (heightened accomplishment) (Talented/Gifted)

-Metaphor for creativity = lightbulb... just flip a switch.
Usually however, it's not a single moment.

*Three Basic Elements
-Q: How do we create?
  • Domain Knowledge- Speak like everybody else. "copying" (mimicking)
ex. Artists do covers of a popular song.
  • Transformation- taking existing thing and producing variations. (typewriter = Literary piano)
  • Combinations- taking existing things and merging them together
ex. Albert Einstein developed E=MC2 ...but he didn't develope the E, M, Or C.. but he put them toghether in a way that worked.

-Copy, Transform, Combine

-Implications- Original ideas are now considered property.
"cross Aversion"

-Two Distortions:
1. The lone creator
2. Ideas are property/ Can't steal an idea...only copy it.

*Ideas contain other ideas

- I think we are smart enough to realize that people before us have good ideas and we could just find a way to improve on them.

*"By idolizing those whom we honor we do a disservice both to them and to ourselves.. we fail to recognize that we could go and do likewise"


Friday, March 2, 2012

Literature Analysis: To Kill A MockingBird

1. Atticus Finch worked in a courthouse in Maycomb, Alabama durring the great depression. He was a really good lawyer. He had a little girl named Scout who was eight, and a son named Jem who was twelve. They became good friends with a boy named Dill who was a new kid in the neighborhood for the summer. They become obsessed with a creepy house on the corner. Apparently there was a man named Boo Radley who lived there, but he never left his house. They would find gifts in the tree near his house. The kids would act out the story of Boo Radley, but Atticus would tell them to stop. He tried to make them see life through someone else's eyes. Boo's real name is Arthur, and one night when the kids sneak onto his property Boo's brother Nathan shoots at them. While they are sneaking away Jem's pants get ripped but when he comes back later to get them they are all fixed. The kids were convinced it was Boo. Maycomb was a racist community but despite that Atticus agrees to defend a black man named Tom Robinson, who was accused of raping a white woman. Because of their father's decision, Jem and Scout get abbuse from other children in school. Calpurnia was the Finches black cook. She took them to her black church and they were welcomed with open arms. When Tom Robinson's trial begins, he was placed in the local jail and outside a mob gathers to lynch him. Atticus gets the mob to leave. Later in court, Atticus provides clear evidence that Mayella Ewell was not raped and that her and her father Bob are lying. Atticus says that Mayella came onto Tom and when she was caught by her father she accused him of rape to cover her shame and guilt. Atticus explains that the marks on Mayella's face came from a left handed person. Tom Robinson was right handed so it would have been very difficult. Bob on the other hand was left handed, showing it was him. Despite everything, the all white jury convicts Tom Robinson. Later he tries to escape from jail but is shot to death. Jem's faith in justice is shaken and he's filled with doubt. Bob Ewell is upset despite the verdict and promises revenge on Atticus. One night when Jem and Scout are walking home from a Halloween play, Bob Ewell tries to attack them with a knife. Boo Radley intervenes, saving the childeren but fatally stabbing Bob Ewell in the struggle. Boo takes the kids home to Atticus. To protect Boo, the sheriff insists Ewell tripped over a tree root and fell on his own knife. After sitting with Scout for a while, Boo disappears back into the Radley house. Finally Scout was able to relate to Boo Radley. She felt sympathy and understanding just like Atticus had advised her to do. She decides that her bad experiences with racism and hatred were not going to destroy the faith she had for the good in people.
Scout's realization was exactly what I think the author wanted the reader to come away with. Although there is clearly evil in this world and terrible people, don't let that stop you from being optimistic and finding the good in people.

2. Theme: The theme comes down to a struggle between good and evil. There is good and bad in everyone. Sometimes it's easier to see the bad but don't let that stop you from searching for and believing in the good.

3. The author's tone seemed depressing, and almost defeated. It was set in the Great Depression so I think that tied into the tone. It seemed to represent the attitude of the people at that time. Most families didn't have much and just weren't happy.
ex. "All we had was Simon Finch, a fur-trapping apothecary from Cornwall whose piety was exceeded only by his stinginess."

ex. "There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County."

ex. "A boy trudged down the sidewalk dragging a fishing pole behind him."

4. *Symbol- "Remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it.
“Your father’s right,” she said. “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy . . . but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird."

*Foreshadowing- There were many clues that Boo Radley was going to end up saving the kids. He would put presents in the whole in the tree by his house, he fixed Jem's pants when they got ripped on the fence, and he put a blanket over Scout when she was watching the fire.
"Atticus was right. One time he said you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley porch was enough."

*Irony- It was ironic that Jem and Scout were scared of Boo Radley practically the entire book, but in the end he's the one who saved them.

*Tone- "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view . . . until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."

*Imagery- "His hands were under my chin, pulling up the cover, tucking it around me."

*Characterization- "All we had was Simon Finch, a fur-trapping apothecary from Cornwall whose piety was exceeded only by his stinginess."