Essay Revision/Improvement Strategy

     My thinking can get really slow during a test and I think it is because of the pressure from the exam. I can write a lot better when I am given more than just a class period to write it. Honestly I am a slow writer, but with time, whatever I am writing could turn out very well-made. I noticed that after the test, I was able to remember a lot more literary elements. Things that I have to do and will need on my next essay on my next essay: legibility, authenticity, organization, get to the point and write my thesis in the first paragraph, and elements. 

"A Dream Within A Dream": Reaction/Reflection

     The poem "A Dream Within a Dream" is centered on Poe, which gives it a Romanticism feel. So that means his personal feelings and himself are in the poem. While reading the poem, the Romanticism can help you see yourself in Poe's position and if you have ever felt like Poe does in this poem then you can obviously relate to it. Poe talks about golden grains of sand falling through his fingers. Poe could be making a reference to an "hourglass of life". Edgar Allan Poe's philisophical poem contains questions that I too have wondered before. Is reality even real, is it all an illusion? It might also be asking, why does life have to end? Is our reality just a dream within a dream?

Vocabulary: Fall List #6

1. adroit: clever or skillful
 ex. The man was very adroit at basketball, so he now plays professionally.
2. amicable: friendly
 ex. The man who opened the door for others is very amicable.
3. averse: having a strong feeling of opposition
 ex. Many people are averse drugs.
4. belligerent: hostile
 ex. The drunken man was very belligerent.
5. benevolent: expressing goodwill or kindness
 ex. The new student gave off a benevolent smile.

An American Novel: "Thirteen Reasons Why"

Title: "Thirteen Reasons Why"
Author: Jay Asher

   There are a few reasons why I chose this book. My sister has recommended it to me in the past, so I decided that this would be a good time to read the novel. It does seem interesting as well, I read what was on the back of the book because it typically gives you an expection as to what you are about to read and it caught my attention. Plus, the author, Jay Asher, lives in the central coast.

Vocabulary: Fall List #5

1. allude: to refer to something the author thinks you should know.
 ex. Hawthorne alludes to Adam & Eve in "Young Goodman Brown".
2. clairvoyant: able to perceive things beyond the senses.
 ex. The clairvoyant did more than just read minds.
3. conclusive: final or decisive.
 ex. The jury was conclusive with their decision.
4. disreputable: of poor reputation.
 ex. A student with bad grades is disreputable with the school.
5. endemic: provasive in a particular place.
 ex. Hunger is endemic in the cafeteria.

The Laughing Heart.

1. The poem is called "The Laughing Heart", it was written by Charles Bukowski.
2. I find it ironic for a corporation to use this poem because the poem is about you and your life. The corporation using this poem is advertising jeans.
3. The story shows not much of a reputation, but his thoughts on life.
4. I got my answers by simply looking up the poem on Bing.

 

Vocabulary: Fall List #4

1. melancholy: a gloomy state of mind; depression.
 ex. Sad movies can put you in a melancholy mood.
2. exemplary: praiseworthy.
 ex. Good grades are exemplary.
3. peculiar: strange; unusual.
 ex. The peculiar smell coming from my meal really turned my stomach.
4. dread: to fear greatly.
 ex. I dread death.
5. bough: a branch of a tree.
 ex. Tarzan swings on boughs.

Vocabulary: Fall List #3

1. aquisitive: seeking to acquire.
ex. People are acquisitve for the latest technology.
2. banal: dull or overused.
ex. That style is banal.
3. arrogate: to take away without right.
ex. Thieves arrogate all the time.
4. substantiate: to confirm truth with proof.
ex. Evidence could substantiate a crime.
5. temporize: to comply with the time or occasion.
ex. Dressing up for Halloween temporizes with the occasion.
6. carping: to criticize.
ex. Singers get carped in American Idol.
7. congeal: to change something into a solid state by freezing.
ex. You can congeal water into ice.
8. eschew: to keep away from; shun.
ex. I try to eschew soda from my life.
9. belabor: to beat up.
ex. People can get really belabored in football.
10. emulate: to imitate.
ex. There is a lot of celebrity emulators in Hollywood.
11. coherent: logically connected.
ex. The school and district are coherent.
12. intransigent: refusing to agree.
ex. There are a lot of intransigent people in politics.
13. taciturn: silent; reluctant to join in conversation.
ex. People who are taciturn are usually shy.
14. tenable: capable of being maintained.
ex. The school is tenable.
15. largesse: money given with ease.
ex. Rich people largesse to charities.
16. excoriation: to strip off or remove the skin from.
ex. I excoriated the pen mark from my forearm.
17. encomium: a formal expression of high praise.
ex. An encomium by the president greeted the returning hero.
18. germane: closely related.
ex. The Humpback whale and the Blue whale are germane.
19. invidious: offensive or hateful.
ex. Demons are invidious.
20. insatiable: incapable of being satisfied.
ex. Selfish teenagers are insatiable.
21. reconnaissance: getting information ahead of time.
ex. You can get reconnaissance from looking at the school calendar.
22. ramify: to divide or spread out.
ex. Students always ramify in the hallways.

AHA!

When we were discussing about "Meanings, Signs & Symbols" and Dr. Preston clarified the difference between a sign and a symbol. As I found out that everything in literature is a symbol, I was all like, "AHA! Now I get it."

YGB: Most important thing I'll ever learn?

     I don't think the symbolism in Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown" is the most important thing I'll ever learn. I mean, you learn something new everyday. Potty training really came useful in my life, perhaps that is the most important thing I ever learned. Though, it seems more useful than important. The symbolism in "Young Goodman Brown" is a very important i learned, but probably not the most important. Understanding the symbolism in the story will really help you get an idea for symbolism. It will become useful in real life when you are trying to interpret symbolism in everyday situations.