Everything I Need to Know I Learned in IB Language & Literature Year 2

You know Ms.G, I honestly am currently blaming your class for all of the nostalgia lately and reading the blog post now has officially cemented you at the top of teachers who are making me really bummed to be leaving high school. I have a feeling this blog post is about to be kinda long and probably not coherent (Yay for having 8 hours of work starting at 10 the day after prom) so buckle up.

I've recently been thinking a lot about middle school for a couple of different reasons. Although it all started with the striking and weird parallels between Magellan and Hailsham (I probably am a clone tbh) although it's pretty common for me to get annoyingly introspective during endings. 

Missing my Magellan friends right about now but 2 of the 3 are going to UNC with me so that's pretty cool. 

This whole nostalgia thing isn't good for focusing cause it leads to me getting side tracked really easily (I accidentally spent 30 minutes on Facebook while locating that picture). But I think it has to do a lot with the idea of I was. I've been really bad at looking at old yearbooks and watching old videos from Magellan recently although it has been nice to see what life really was like back then, especially since it has changed so much.

The best example of this was when I went through every old journal I could find. This was prompted by Mortified Nation (it's on netflix and pretty entertaining, you guys should check it out). Here's a trailer I'd recommend watching so this next part makes sense:

So, I've decided, if I'm supposed to be talking about I was, the best way to do that is to use old diaries/journals. Here goes:

First I found one was from 2004 and most of it is completely incoherent. At one I wrote "I have a little trobul with sppelling" (I bet you can tell). Throughout that entry the words I mispelled include wright (write), frainds (friends), cusuf (cursive), sleppy (sleepy), akdamly (academically-this one's especially ironic because I was talking about how I was in the AG program and yet I spelled that one wrong), chans (chance), Hollwen (Halloween), chear (cheer), and tomoro (tomorrow). So: I was bad at spelling. 

A scintillating entry from August 7th, 2006 reads:

"Dear Dary (Diary),

My tamagaty (tamagatchi) evoled (evolved). Can't talk right now! :'("

Which I thought was strange because why on earth would I take the time to just write that down and then I continuted reading and realized that this was when I was really trying to keep a daily journal. For instance, the next two entries go: "Dear Dariy (Diary), I just woke up! Talk to you later" and "Dear Diary, gotta run!". So: I was really bad at trying to make new habits.

There's some great lists of cool IM terms including how to make Santa out of punctuation *<:)

I found this great one in a more journal like thing that I had. There's some writing at the beginning followed by a bunch of empty pages and then, out of nowhere, at the top of the page I wrote "The past is sad". Nothing else. That was it. I have no idea why or when but I found that pretty entertaining. 

Next I found a journal where I had written poems that I had found and liked. The most important one is probably Hope is the Thing with Feathers by Emily Dickenson. I had these poetry books when I was a kid and I read that poem so many times I ended up memorizing it.

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all
And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
that could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.
I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity
It asked a crumb of me.

So: I was totally an English nerd.

I found a journal from 7th grade and I would like to take a mini pause from this blog post and just apologize to everyone who knew me in 7th grade. There aren't really any interesting parts to that journal, it's mostly just complaining. It is weird though because I'm reading about me watching the first part of the Deathly Hallows which is so strange to me now? Like Harry Potter was such an integral part of my childhood and it's just weird to think about a time when I still didn't know what happened and still hadn't watched all the movies?

To preface this, in most of middle school I switched between wanting to be an author or a lawyer. This entry is from March 11, 2010:

I love writing. I love pouring a part of my soul out into something that might get me somewhere. That way I will know I've acomplished something. I also really badly want to be an English major at UNC.

And here is the part that really got me the first time I read through this:

If my life was a dream I would go to UNC.

Because in a little less than four months, at least according to 7th grade me, I'll be living my dream. So: I really was totally an English nerd and a huge Carolina fan.

Then the journal jumped forward a year so now it's 8th grade. This entry is from April 26, 2011 (almost exactly 4 years ago):
29 days of school left. Two weeks till EOGs and EOCs. I'm almost a high schooler! Quite frankly, I can't wait to get out of Magellan
I think by the end of that 5th year with the same 67 people, I was ready for a change.

Then I take a break from complaining about Magellan relating things and switch over to my brother which allowed this great phrase to happen "Ty is a total donkey".

And I have finally reached high school in these journals! This one is from the first day of school:

I have so many things to tell you! First of all, I am officially a high schooler! It's so crazy!

Also quick shout out to Sophie who was one of the first non-Magellan friends I had at Millbrook. This is starting to get really weird to read now? Now that it's out of Magellan and into Millbrook I'm starting to become acutely aware of graduation.

I just found my 9th grade English notebook that had all of our journaling prompts. They aren't particularly interesting over all. I did find that 3 years ago today the prompt was Spring Break and I wrote about my family's Easter tea. Here's a picture from Easter that year:


One of the last prompts from freshman English was the Last Day and here was my response:

I hate endings. They are the worst part of everyone's life. We have almost finished 9th grade! We're almost sophomores. And that doesn't sound like much. Sophomores. So what. We have three whole years ahead of us. But what's really scaring me is how quickly this year has passed. Sure, each individual school day felt like a prison sentence and yes I did count down the minutes till class was done, but I think back and it doesn't feel like that long ago I was walking into Coach East's civics classroom, only knowing 7 people and missing my friends from middle school. During middle school you could just walk in the doors  is particularly applicable to right now. Each teacher had their own individual countdown on the board. 

 And, almost 3 years later, the end of high school is almost here. We're so close. Right now all of my homework is intensely focused on exams and that's not been easy to get myself to concentrate on. So thank you Ms. Genesky for allowing me to spend the past couple of hours going through some old memories.

I've been liking ending my blog posts with something unrelated to the post itself and I figure that should continue:
Here's a vine to watch if you ever need something adorable to cheer up: https://vine.co/v/O9aQz6B0nhw 

And here is a song that has been making me really sentimental lately. For those of you who watch Parks this song is from (spoiler alert if you haven't watched some of the later seasons) when Ann and Chris are moving away and it's playing in the background at the end of that episode. (end spoiler alert) Either way, I think this song will be something that's helpful to listen to as this chapter of our lives comes to a close.

So thank you again Ms. Genesky for making senior year awesome and I would also like to add a little disclaimer again that this was written in the middle of the night after prom and 8 hours of work and very little sleep. Or, to quote Jose, "Yeah I sound really tired because I'm sick and it's like 10 o'clock at night. I dunno. It's late. Bye."

Freebie

Here are the highlights of what I was doing instead of my blog post #procrastination (these are Trench's vines and they are all amazing):

https://vine.co/v/OPVAHFOOOnY 

https://vine.co/v/OxDJTHmZpiQ

https://vine.co/v/OQqxU7KFzKY

And here is a video of what Millbrook will look like in the near future (I recommend watching this with sound, I find it enhances the viewing experience):

"Breathing dreams like air..."

How would you describe the American Dream?
I think the American Dream is a very fluid concept and right now we've changed a lot of what it really is. I see that with a lot of the older generations comments about mine. Because of how the world is right now (with the stock market crash, 9/11, the new way wars are being fought, and the rise of technology) we've changed the idea of the American Dream. However, I think the foundation of the American Dream has stayed the same. The idea of a place where if you work hard enough then you can make it. It's the 'make it' part that's changed. Because of the internet, we have so many options of things to do/read/watch/listen to, so we've been exposed to a more diverse world than generations before us. This means that the idea of an American Dream is changing faster and is significantly more individual than it has been before. If I'd have to guess at what a general consensus of what the American Dream is for people in high school and college right now (basing this off of posts on Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr) would be the ability to travel frequently.

What is your definition of wealth?
Well this could go in multiple ways. Obviously there is monetary wealth but that's taking the easy way out of this question. I'd consider a wealthy person to be content. Like there isn't really a word for it that I know of and it isn't quite happy.

What are American's ideas towards wealth and poverty?
Generalizing anything about American's ideas has gotten significantly more difficult now that the two parties have decided to go and polarize. But I think pretty much everyone here would like to be more wealthy, meaning that wealth is looked at positively and poverty negatively. There's definitely a sense of ignoring the poor to an extent. Like if you see a homeless person on the side of a highway, most people make it a point to not make eye contact. America like's to ignore poverty until it's convenient to them.

What is your attitude towards wealth and poverty?
We've been conditioned since we were young that money can't buy happiness and I'm sure a lot of people will write about that here. I don't agree with that sentiment at all. Now, to clarify, I'm not saying that happiness is directly correlated with money. But money does create a security net. It's this interesting paradox in a way. It's been proven that people in poorer countries are happier and that on average a person wants 20% more than they have (so if you're poor, you're a lot closer to your goal than if you're richer). But I think in a country like this one, trying to pretend like money and material wealth don't really make one appear to be happier is pretty ridiculous. I was recently reading an article about a dad who had been diagnosed with treatable lung cancer but was choosing to die from his illness instead of trying to fight it while simultaneously bankrupting his family because of medical costs. If you still think that money can't buy happiness, try to tell that to that family.

In lieu of talking about wealth, here's One Day More from Les Mis but the vocals are all on kazoos:
http://fiiyerotigelaar.tumblr.com/post/113468673751
(Or if you're using a school computer, here's a similar video on YouTube so you can actually watch it)

Nothing Really Mattress(?): Kafka, Camus, and Importance of Translations

Brief Observations of the translations:
1. As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a giant insect.

• Diction: 'Awoke' feels very old time-y, 'found himself' sounds like he had no control over the transformation, 'insect' sounds scientific and formal
• Syntax: Having 'in his bed' come in between 'transformed' and 'into a giant insect' creates a detachment 
• Imagery/Details: 'uneasy' implies something less harsh than nightmares
• Structure: The lack of commas make the situation seem very rushed and hurried
• Other: Comes across passive

2.Gregory Samsa woke from uneasy dreams one morning to find himself changed into a giant bug.

• Diction: Having the name be 'Gregory' makes him more accessible to an American audience. Saying 'bug' makes it seem more juvenile. 'To find himself' sounds like it was more of a surprise
• Syntax: Logical progression and concise 
• Imagery/Details: 'giant bug' has a SyFy movie connotation but that might just be me...
• Structure: The sentence structure is fairly simplistic

3. When Gregor Samsa awoke from troubled dreams one morning he found he had been transformed in his bed into an enormous bug.

• Diction: 'troubled dreams' implies a cause, 'he found he had been' comes across very passive
• Syntax:  Again with the 'in his bed' separating 'transformed' and 'into an enormous bug'
• Imagery/Details: 'enormous bug' sounds like something a young child would use as a description
• Structure: Starting the sentence with 'When Gregor...dreams one morning' instead of ending it with that clause put emphasis on the person not the action.

4. One morning, upon awakening from agitated dreams, Gregor Samsa found himself, in his bed, transformed into a monstrous vermin.

• Diction: 'agitated' is an interesting word choice for dreams that in my opinion describes more of a conscious state. 'monstrous vermin' sounds old fashioned almost
• Syntax:  the order is very strange, by starting with one morning and then immediately having 'upon awakening from agitated dreams' puts emphasis on the dream.
• Imagery/Details: 'monstrous vermin' has a very negative connotation, more a pest than a creature
• Structure: so many commas, created lots of awkward pauses and really slows down the sentence

I don't think the fourth sentence works at all. It's clunky and I don't like the commas everywhere.  The meaning is lost because all of the commas make me pause each time I read it. There's so many unnecessary pauses and any meaning is lost on the reader who has to try and figure out how all the clauses related to the basic sentences. The third sentence gets the meaning across in easy to understand language and structure. It's nonchalant feeling makes an interesting contrast with the absurdity of the situation. The first sentence is ordered in an unusual way which I feel detracts from the sentence. However, its word choice makes sense and helps communicate the meaning well. I like the 2nd sentence the best. By translating the name, it adds a touch of normality to a very not normal situation. By saying 'to find himself' it comes across as more passive and like Samsa have even less control over the situation.

Translating this sentence is not an easy task. French syntax doesn't differ too greatly from English, both languages are mainly subject verb object. However, German doesn't have a dominate order (switches between SVO or SOV) and it's syntax is very different from English (as far as I could tell, apparently the online information on grammatical comparisons between languages are written towards expert linguists and not high schoolers so my understanding of the information was surface level). However, here's a helpful diagram regarding grammatical ordering of sentences that may be applicable:


Either way, these differences in sentence formation are going to cause it to be even more difficult to translate from German. You can literally translate from French and still be able to understand (Aujourd'hui, Maman est morte.=Today, Mother is dead) However, any language that doesn't order it's sentences SVO couldn't coherently translate into English. This means anyone trying to translate Kafka's work is going to leave a larger personal touch on the text.

And here's a really interesting Ted Talk on linguistics

You down with the IOC? Yeah, you know me!

Here's my recording for my IOC

Grading:
Criterion A: 6
I felt that I didn't give a large amount of context about the text in general and I could have referenced the text to support what I was saying more.
Criterion B: 4
I felt like, while I did try to show effect on tone/meaning, it did not translate very well. Also, I needed to show how it affected the reader.
Criterion C: 4
Over all the structure was good, but at times I wasn't very coherent.
Criterion D: 3
I felt like I did communicate my message overall. However, I struggled to find my words sometimes and I paused to think.

Things I would do differently:
Write out my conclusion more carefully
Look more at effect and actually write them down

Here's my pssage and planning:

(I would recommend opening them in a new tab and enlarging them to read)



PS: In lieu of Ms.G's pump up song, I've decided to add my contribution:

Once Upon a Time

I chose the TED Talk by George Takei called "Why I Love a Country that Once Betrayed Me". The main claim of this talk was the idea that the American democracy is not perfect and that it is our responsibility to make it better. Takei mentioned often arguing with his dad who said that "this democracy is a people's democracy, and it can be as great as the people can be, but it is also as fallible as people are". Takei also talks about the importance of appreciating the 'American Way' and to work really hard to allow them to work. This talk also focuses on the difficulty that Takei had with dealing with the fact that a country built on equality imprisoned him with his family without cause. The idea that being an American citizen is for everyone regardless of race was also central to this story. The bravery of the Japanese-American units who went from being behind bars to fighting for a country who didn't trust them was something that Takei made sure to recognize. He also recognized the resilience of children.

The purpose of this talk is to discuss George Takei's experience in the Japanese Internment camps and the subsequent conclusions he had came to about hypocrisy in general. This message is important to spread because there are still injustices happening today. Takei is a pretty credible guy when it comes to this topic considering he was there. Also, he is a well like character from one of the most famous sci-fi shows of all time (For those of yall who don't know who George Takei is, I recommend sitting yourself down and looking up Star Trek on Netflix-educate yourself), and I find well liked people often come across as more believable. The logos in this is also very interesting. It's undeniable that there is a fair amount of bias in his story. Although, for someone who went through an experience like that at such a young age, he is very forgiving. This in turn relates back to his logos.

The main part of this talk appeals to emotion. The idea of a five year old being put in these conditions for no reason is unacceptable-especially by a country that is founded on the principle of freedom and equality. Emotion being the primary strategy is understandable for such a personal story. This talk happened in Kyoto, Japan which only adds to the appeal of this strategy. Takei's story is so emotional and raw that it actually makes it more believable. His use of ethos make the logos he uses significantly more effective.

I chose this story for a few reasons: a) I had actually seen a couple of gifs from this talk  and I was interested in watching the entire thing b) George Takei is an amazing human being and c) I think it's important to learn about America's past mistakes so that the people who suffered them aren't just forgotten. It's hard to imagine how many things have been glossed over in the history textbooks because they don't fit the "Abe Lincoln never told a lie-Chris Columbus discovered America-George Washington and the Cherry Tree" America that's portrayed to us. George Takei's story is incredibly important to American history and that is why I chose to watch this talk.

A quick end note: This talk is really sad, so here's a lighter story about a girl who immigrated from China and tried to make US a communist state by ending Christmas for all. (Source: http://theseerasures.tumblr.com/)

so i immigrated to the US at age 9, right, and one of the first things my family did was join the local Chinese church. as far as the whole “figuring out how to do things so we no longer have to live in the back shed of Uncle Joe’s* Magic Emporium” thing goes, it’s a pretty sound strategy! now we had people to teach my dad how to drive and give us old furniture and say “hey, Seattle is pretty rainy maybe you should rent an apartment-like space before either a) the shed roof caves in b) your daughter with the famously delicate constitution falls dramatically ill from a strain of black mold or possibly herpes”

*is not my uncle, that’s what his store was called. he sold magic gadgets and my dad knew him because???? possibly in a past life they ran a meth empire in Albuquerque, who knows

ANYWAY. thanks to the church i did not fall dramatically ill from black mold or possibly herpes, but there was an unforeseen factor in joining a Christian church, which was that they? were pretty hardcore? about Jesus?**

**in a nice “we build houses for the homeless” way, not in…the other way

given that we’d just immigrated and that China’s religious policy is worshiping Mao’s preserved corpse ehhhhh…let’s call it “freedom of atheism,” my family was decidedly not hardcore about Jesus. my parents mostly took the bemused “i guess Jesus is okay since he indirectly led to us living in a place suited for human habitation” route, but i

was

DISGUSTED.

i was the first kid in my class to get her red scarf, okay, and when we sang the national anthem and saluted the flag every morning i f*cking meant what i was singing. we almost didn’t come to America; my dad had more lucrative job offers in Germany and Belgium, but i put my foot down because everyone knows Europe is full of gross imperialists Dad, GOSH, and the Americans helped us fight off the Japanese.

so seeing all these fellow Chinese believing in THE CAPITALIST GOD was basically the worst thing to ever happen to my delicate psyche. my parents’ tacit approval was even worse: DID PATRIOTISM AND COMMUNISM MEAN NOTHING TO THEM? DIDN’T THEY KNOW THAT DOING NOTHING AGAINST OPPRESSION MADE THEM OPPRESSORS THEMSELVES??

clearly something needed to be done.

so because the church was pretty hardcore about Jesus, it was understandably also hardcore about Christmas. big party, massive intricately decorated REAL TREE, sleepover for the kids with presents in the morning—you name it. everyone was going to be there.

WHAT A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO PROVE TO EVERYONE HOW WRONG THEY ARE ABOUT JESUS.

my plan:

1. sleep UNDER the giant real Christmas tree: y’know, the one with real pointy needles reaching all the way down to the base? that sheds? with lots of pokey tinsel?
2. catch Jesus in the act of depositing presents***: look. i’d seen like, ALL of Scooby Doo by this point. i knew Jesus was probably a real person, just not the Son of God.
3. subdue Jesus so he’s still around when everyone else wakes up: CLEARLY VERY FEASIBLE, given that Jesus was a heavyset white dude who used superhuman agility and strength to deliver presents around the world overnight and possibly had reindeer minions and i weighed 70 pounds at most while sopping wet.
4. (who is Santa Claus?? who cares)
5. ????
6. EVERYONE MAGICALLY BECOMES AN ATHEIST AGAIN, AMERICA BECOMES A COMMUNIST STATE

***even if i didn’t believe in him, why was i slavishly devoted stopping a highly altruistic man who gave? people? presents? did i hate joy????

sure enough, at around 3 in the morning i heard soft boots approaching the tree. i reached out and snatched one of the Ankles of Jesus

—whereupon Youth Pastor Liao screamed “OH MY LORD” and kicked me in the face.

and THAT, dear friends, is how i spent my first Christmas in America with a concussion.

Blog Post #8, Baby

In your mind, are there any heroes in Double Indemity? If so, who?

According to Google, a hero is:

1. a person, typically a man, who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.
2. the chief male character in a book, play, or movie, who is typically identified with good qualities, and with whom the reader is expected to sympathize.
3. (in mythology and folklore) a person of superhuman qualities and often semidivine origin, in particular one of those whose exploits and dealings with the gods were the subject of ancient Greek myths and legends

Now, I think it's safe to say that we don't have anyone from definition 3. There is a stunning lack of cosmic interference in the Film Noir genre.

However, there definitely are heroes according to definition 1 and 2. I would argue that Barton Keyes is a hero because of definition 1. He is brave, which is seen at the very end of the movie when he confronts Neff after listening to Neff admit to two murders. His job requires him to realize when someone has committed insurance fraud and then deny them money and it's reasonable to assume that people aren't exactly happy when they are denied of money and accused of a serious crime. He's also high up in the company, which would qualify as an achievement. And, he's very noble at the end when he waits to call the ambulance while Neff tries to escape. He knows his friend isn't getting far, so he listens to his friend's request.

In a way, Neff is a hero according to definition 2. He's definitely the chief male character and he is who the reader is supposed to sympathize with. The only part that makes him more of an anti-hero is the 'good qualities' part. A venn diagram of 'good qualities' and murders doesn't have much overlap. I would say that Neff could have been considered good up until he kills Dietrichson. 

Another important factor to look at is the time period. Google has this awesome feature where you can see word usage and how it has changed over time. Here's the graph for the word 'hero' from 1900 to 2008:

Double Indemnity came out in 1944, which is one of the lower points on the graph. It's really interesting to see the way that World War I and World War II seem to affect these graphs. There's a spike before the war and after the war. We can see that the lowest point for WWI is right as the Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919, however the lowest point for WWII seems to be 1940 right after it began. It's also pretty weird that our usage in the 2000s is actually lower than what it was during the World War.