Blogging Around

Nick's post described some of the positives and negatives of blogging. He said how blogging was useful in remembering what went on during the week and in developing good writing. However, he also said that he was stuck sometimes, because he couldn't think of anything to write about the prompt that we were assigned.

"Nick,

I agree that blogging was very useful for recording ideas and learning about myself through writing. However, like you, there were several times when I simply had nothing to say about a particular prompt. Maybe good way Mr. Allen could have prevented this would be to have us use whichever prompt we wanted for each week, but make sure that we used each one at least once before using the same one twice. That way, we could pick a prompt that we actually had something to say about."


Mitch's blog also discussed positives and negatives of blogging. He said that, while writing blogs was helpful for him, sometimes he wished the prompts were more interesting and fun to write about.

"Mitch,

I agree with your post, though I think it would be almost impossible to have a prompt that is simultaneously interesting and pertinent to class. These two things tend to be polar opposites. Whenever we do something for school, whether it be reading a book (even a good one), or writing blog posts, it sucks all the fun out of it. That being said, just because writing blogs wasn't fun doesn't mean that it wasn't worthwhile and valuable, which apparently both you and I think it was."

Metacognition: Blogs

When I first found out that we would be blogging this year in English, I was a little apprehensive. I thought that I didn't have anything important enough to say to put in a blog. What I soon realized, though, was that I was using the blogs more as an internal thing than external. By that I mean that I really found out a lot about myself while reading blogs that I had written. Whereas previously I had thought that the blogs were about sharing my thoughts with the world, I soon discovered that it was about clarifying and delving deeper into my own thoughts. This was pretty cool, and I often benefited from these looks into my own thought process.

Another great thing about the blogs was reading my classmates' posts. Sometimes I would do this as part of a brainstorming process, to gather ideas for my own post. Other times, the assignment would be to read other people's blogs and comment on them. In the process, I learned a lot about other people in Academy. For example, did you know that Jon Choi is an atheist? I was shocked when I learned this from reading his blog.

The experience of writing and reading blogs was very rewarding, and I'm glad that we did them. Hopefully, next year in English we will have similar assignments that help us grow and recognize our growth.

Carry it Forward: Compassionate Imagining

In class, we have been learning about compassionate imagining and how it relates to Life and Times of Michael K by JM Coetzee. At first, I was skeptical of this concept. This may be because I was caught up in the clearly false claim that imagining is impossible without compassion and vice versa (I can imagine I can fly; does that mean I automatically empathize with the situation of birds? I don't think so). However, semantics aside, it's a very powerful concept. It's a new take on the old cliche about walking a mile in someone's shoes. Compassionate imagining really makes sense because you can't really try to understand someone and their actions unless you put yourself in their place and consider how that person is feeling.

I will definitely utilize the technique of compassionate imagining in the future. It seems corny, but before I judge someone, I'll stop and do some compassionate imagining first. That way, I won't pass judgement on anyone unfairly, or without knowing what's going on with them. This will definitely make me a better person, and help my relationships with others.

Best of Week: Narration in LTMK

Since I was practically dead on Tuesday and subsequently missed school the next two days due to being really sick, chosing something from class to be the best of the week is pretty slim pickings. Therfore, I will have to go with the discussion we had in class on Monday about why Coetzee chose different narrators for different sections of Life and Times of Michael K. It was kind of interesting, and it really made me think about the author's thought process. This conversation had a special connection to me, because my short story happens to be narrated from two different perspectives; the first part is first-person and the end is third-person. Though I didn't have any deep, significant reason to do this (I was stuck and bored, and I wanted to mix it up a little bit), our discussion made me realize that good authors really think about every little thing they put into the story, and evaluate how it strengthens the overall effect of the book. Next time I write something, I will definitely put some more thought into the little things, and I'm sure this will greatly benefit my writing.

Metacognition: Writing My Short Story

Writing my short story was pretty frustrating. Initially, it went great. I wrote my story fragment, and it was actually pretty decent, especially considering I wrote it. I felt like it was open-ended enough to leave the reader thinking and that not knowing the whole story actually enhanced it and made it more mysterious. When I fleshed it out for my first draft, I added some details, but mainly just polished what I already had. At this point, I still felt that my story was going in a good direction. Then, I discovered that we were supposed to write a "middle", I was confused. I hadn't intended for what I had to be a "beginning", I had tried to write a full story. I tried my hardest to extend the story, and failed miserably. My story suddenly became about as interesting to read as Heart of Darkness. I was frustrated that I was being forced to do something that made my story considerably worse. The next assignment was to create an end for the story, and I was actually pretty satisfied with the ending I did. Though switching from first person to third person was kind of a cop-out, all in all, it wasn't too bad. Though I'm very disappointed with the middle of the story, I think the beginning and end are pretty good, and I look forward to maybe revising the middle to make it better.

Metacognition: Jane Eyre Project

When I first found out about the assignment to culminate our reading of Jane Eyre, I knew that it would be very different from the one for Heart of Darkness. In most ways, it was a lot better. The project did present a unique set of difficulties, though. First, my group (Corey, Nick, and me) had to find an effective, efficient way to collaborate. We thought about making a Google doc and then each person editing it on his own. We eventually decided against it, though, because it would be hard to create a dialogue with any flow or rythm if we each did our part separately. Instead, we decided to meet at my house a couple times and work together, face to face. This turned out to be an even better choice than we anticipated, because when one person had an idea, someone else thought of a way to make it better, and we kept building off each other's suggestions. It was also a lot easier to make it like a real conversation when we weren't working on it by ourselves. What's more, though we had fun, we were also focused on finishing the project and it probably took a lot less time than if we hadn't worked on it together. All in all, I think our project turned out great (dare I say A-worthy?), and I'm proud of how our group collaborated. Hopefully, we can do more of these types of projects in the future.

360 Degrees: Knowing the Future

Recent events in my life have caused me to think about the value of being able to predict things. For me, the value would have been upwards of $3,000. My dad's office had a March Madness pool in which over 300 of his coworkers participated, at $10 a bracket. However, I am currently in a 43-way tie for 154th place and, barring an incredibly unlikely turn of events involving Dayton's victory over West Virginia being nullified (maybe due to some scandal involving preformance-enhancing drugs/academic ineligibility/cheating/bad officiating/an unfair advantage since the game was being played in Dayton) and West Virginia, after reentering the tournament, making it to the Elite Eight, I have no shot of winning. My only consolation is that I am crushing my dad, who is in an 18-way tie for 291st place (he had WVU making the Final Four).

After musing on my downfall, I started thinking about how great it would be to be able to predict the future. Not only would I be $3,000 richer, but I would also be a lot more certain about what decisions I should make and what ramifications my actions would have. What's more, I would be able to help other people by predicting bad things that might happen to them. This is kind of like a preview I saw for a movie that I don't remember the name of. Nicholas Cage is in it, and he plays a guy that can predict future disasters and tries to prevent them.

Though being able to predict the future seems cool, in reality it would totally suck. Instead of living in the present, I would be constantly preoccupied with what was going to happen. Just think about how much less fun the NCAA Tournament would be if you knew the outcomes of all the games beforehand. The spontenaiety, surprise, and unpredicabilitude is what I like most about it. In fact, those are the best things about life in general.

In conclusion, though it would be pretty awesome to be able to predict the future (not to mention helful), the many cons outweigh the pros, in my opinion. While it would be great to have my whole life mapped out and figured out in my mind, what makes life so intriguing is the endless possibilities and the unlimited potential of the future. I wouldn't give that up for anything, not even that $3,000.

Dialectic: Taking Risks vs. Playing it Safe

I don't really know what got me thinking about the nature of risks and pros and cons involved with risk-taking, but I realized that it's an interesting dialectic (assuming that I even know what a dialectic is, which I don't think I do).

Risk-Taking:

Many people enjoy living life on the edge, taking chances all the way. These people tend to be more exciting and fun to be around than those who mostly play it safe. They also can be very successful in life if they chose the right things to gamble on and get a little luck to help them out. However, these gambles can often blow up in their faces. If they're not careful, they might take a chance when they shouldn't, and then they would be in big trouble. While these people might be happier than their more boring and methodical opposites, their happiness is very likely directly tied to their dangerous lifestyle.

Playing it Safe:

People who rarely or never take risks are a lot safer and more stable. Whereas people who always live on the edge can get a bit irritating or abrasive, people who live far from the edge usually don't rub people the wrong way, other than just being boring. Non-risk-takers might also be unhappy with their lives, feeling the monotony of their existence crushing them. They might also be fairly successful in their lives, but probably not due to anything they did.

The most interesting part of this dialectic is trying to strike the perfect balance of risk and safety. I think this struggle is captured perfectly in the movie Office Space (really, what complex and sophisticated idea isn't?). The main character, Peter Gibbons, starts out the movie in a humdrum existence, not taking any risks. He's stuck in a boring job and he is still with his girlfriend despite having the knowledge that she's cheating on him. Then, he goes to a hypnotherapist who inspires him to relax and take more chances. He dumps his girlfriend, asks out Jennifer Aniston, and starts caring less and less about his job. He eventually goes too far, though, when he decides to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from the company. He realizes that he must find a way to balance risk and not-risk. He decides to quit his job, fess up to the theft (which becomes immaterial when Milton burns down his office), and get a job he likes better, as a construction worker.

Applying this dialectic to my own life will be fairly tough to do, mainly for the reason that I'm not sure whether I need a dose of risk or safety. Part of the problem is that there are so many aspects to my life, and I have a different risk-taking philosophy for each one. Within the confines of Six Flags, I would characterize myself as a daredevil. However, in many aspects of my personal life, I am pretty timid. I believe that in general, I could stand to take more risks and put myself out there more, but I will make sure not to lean too far toward one side or the other.

Blogging Around

Duece's blog dealt with Neo's choice between the blue pill (not finding out about the matrix and going back to his previous life) and the red pill (proceeding to be unplugged from, and learn about, the matrix). He also discussed the nature of memory, and the difference, or lack thereof, between "real" and "fake" memories.

Deuce,

I thought your perspective was interesting. In The Matrix, it is more or less taken for granted that Neo made the right choice by taking the red pill. In fact, the only character that expresses even an inkling of doubt or regret about not taking the blue pill is Cypher, the bad guy. You disagree with the movie's point of view, saying (more eloquently and less cliche-y) that ignorance is bliss. You also discussed the significance of our memories and how we could possibly know if there is such thing as "real" memories, and, if there is, whether or not they are necessarily superior to "fake" memories. I agree that just because a memory is real doesn't make it better than a "fake" one, though I'm not sure that I agree with your hypothetical pill selection. Your post was intelligent and interesting, and it really made me think about myself and how much I would want to find out about reality if I were given the chance.

Brandon


Jamie's blog was about the discussions we had in English two weeks ago. She talked about the value of these discussions and how good the collaboration was.

Jamie,

I agree with your opinion of our discussions in English. The most meaningful class discussions are always ones where input is spontaneous and where people build on each other's comments. Some of the discussions we have had in other classes have been so structured that they stifle creativity and valuable comments. Regularly, I can go a whole discussion with out saying a word, for the simple reason that I haven't thought of anything important enough to contribute. On the occasions that I do think of something good, I'll say it. However, when my grade depends on how often I contribute to a particular discussion, rather than the value of my contributions, I tend to say whatever comes to mind, intelligent or not. I do realize, however, the need for making sure everyone is engaged in the conversation, so I can see where teachers are coming from when they mark down participation points. I liked how you also talked about the future benefits of discussions like the ones we had in English about the short stories. I agree that these skills will be important later in life, so it's good that we can hone them now while we're still in school.

Brandon

Best of Week: Story Fragments

Going into the process of writing our short stories, I was a little intimidated. The last time I wrote a story was in seventh grade, and it was about a time-traveling psychic rodent who had to save the world from an evil army of Roombas. The highlight of the story was an epic chase scene between hero Speedy Gonzalez, who was driving a golf cart, and evil mastermind Curious George, who was driving a souped-up tractor. While it came very close to winning a Pulitzer, I realize that Mr. Allen might be looking for something a little more sophisticated this time around. Never having written a short story in the style of Cathedral or the slightly more disturbing style of Boys, I was at a loss for ideas (other than my awesome screenplay idea, which is too complex to fit into a short story).

When Mr. Allen told us that we were to write a "story fragment", I initially thought that it was a waste of time to write things that would probably not even be in my actual story. However, when I sat down to write it, it was surprisingly easy and useful. I think it's a great technique to just put down ideas and not worry about how good they are. This allowed me to keep my thoughts flowing and write the whole thing in less than an hour. If I had tried to write a good (or even decent) short story the first try, I would have had to stop and edit myself so many times that I probably would have strangled my own creativity. Next time I have to write a short story (or maybe even a different kind of writing), I will be sure to utilize this technique to help avoid writer's block.

What If?: The Matrix

In English the last couple of weeks, we watched The Matrix and read Heart of Darkness. Both of these, but especially The Matrix, got me thinking about the fact that our world could be totally fake and we would have no way of knowing it. In the movie, everyone stuck in the matrix thinks that it is all there is, that it is the "real world". Only Morpheus, Neo, and the rest of the people on their ship know that it is a hollow substitute for real life. They are the only people that know it is just a computer program designed to imitate the real world. What the world as we know it was really the matrix? How would we know?

The answer I came up with is a simple one: We wouldn't. Unless we were shown from the outside, like Neo was in the movie, we would have no idea that the world as we know it was, in fact, nothing more than lines of code. This possibility is a little unsettling, but I also have no reason to suspect that it is true. For the sake of my own mental well-being, for now I think I will look at the world from an empirical point of view and decide that The Matrix is a nonfiction movie.

Connection: Heart of Darkness and Iraq

While reading Heart of Darkness, I noticed that Conrad was injecting many pointed criticisms of colonialism into Marlow's narrative. Even things that Marlow doesn't directly condemn, Conrad seems to completely despise. This made me think about what Conrad's opinion would be about the United States invasion and subsequent quasi-colonialization ("occupation") of Iraq. Though more humane and altogether less oppressive, the occupation of Iraq draws striking parallels with the Belgian colonialization depicted in Heart of Darkness.

For one thing, Marlow's disgust at the incompetent mismanagement and overall ineffectiveness of the Company could just has easily been a scathing critique of our government. The way the Company seems lost and confused in the Congo parallels our apparent strategy (or lack thereof) in Iraq, at least at the beginning of the occupation. Furthermore, Kurtz's self-serving exploitation of the natives for his own profit mirrors certain American businesses taking advantage of the chaos in Iraq to reap abundant monetary rewards.

If any lessons can be taken from Heart of Darkness and applied to our world, I think that the evils of colonialism is an important theme that is extremely relevant in modern times. Though we are not as blatantly imperialistic in our motives, the result in Iraq is the same as what happened in the Congo such a long time ago. Perhaps if those who made the decision to go into Iraq had read Heart of Darkness, the world would be a better place. Actually, there's no way George Bush would have made it past page 5.