Blog #10

The Great Gatsby, the movie and the reading, matched up in a lot of ways.  Whenever we first read this book, we observe that Nick Carraway is a person who seems to be much more passive and goes with the flow.  He tags along with Gatsby, and he works almost as a middle man between Gatsby and Daisy.  In any book with a storyline, you imagine the characters in your mind with their own features and own personality traits.  I imagined Nick in the book almost exactly like Nick in the movie.   As I imagined Nick as some nerdy looking guy who seems to be a smart and middle class man, I imagined Daisy as a big fluke. Daisy is very flirty, and loves her possessions.  As we know, Daisy seems to be wishy washy in the focus of the story between her love for Tom and Gatsby, the movie shows Daisy spot on as a character.  The way the book explains Daisy, a wealthy wife of Tom Buchanan who only goes for money, seems to show that she really does love Gatsby in the movie.  And her husband, Tom, is known as a very aggressive man who has a mistress, Myrtle Wilson, and is a great match as well to his character in both the movie and the book.  He has a defined face, never smiling, with a little tilt in his head downward, with his eyes looking at you as if being accused of something all the time.  As we read about a senile man in the story, we also see the same man in the movie.

 Now, the man with the story named after him, Jay Gatsby.  Gatsby is unique as we know.  When I read the book, I imagined a man with a comb over, overly confident in himself, loving for Daisy, rich, and secretive.  This is depicted very well in the movie.  The actor, Leo, was a great fit for Gatsby, even with his relatable mannerisms to the book.  He uses the term “Old Sport,” he is very mysterious, even spying on Nick in his little house just below his mansion in West Egg, and he even has that non-forgetful personality to him.

The tone from the movie is very different than what I would have thought as it would have been in the book itself—but it still was a great tone in its unique way.  The movie played music that was from our modern era, but they made it fit into the story well.  The tone of the parties though? That was very well presented.  They made Gatsby’s parties very real and massive, just as imagined.  Also, the actors and actresses had very well haircuts—at least for that time.

The plot of the story was almost spot-on to that of the books.  With quotations from the story being used frequently throughout the movie, it added the real factor to the movie. Everything that happened in the movie, I thought in my mind, “I remember that part in the book!”  The film showed Gatsby’s love for Daisy, and Daisy being a huge stroke of luck, and Jordan Baker, Myrtle Wilson, and other characters were all doing the same role in the book at the same time they were in the story.  The chapters seemed to go in order the same way for the story and the movie.  It also showed the green light, valley of ashes, money, Gatsby’s mansion, even Daisy’s $350,000 pearl necklace that Tom bought her.

Blog #9

         My stance on gun control is rather supporting both sides.  I agree with people only being allowed to carry handguns.  I don’t see the necessity in carrying a LG (Long Gun) such as a rifle or shotgun or any other large weapons, unless they are a hunter. People have the right to want their own self defense, but if someone is under attack and want to use a weapon as self defense, a person with trained skill with a firearm could fend for themselves with a handgun.  In my opinion, which will hopefully be taken into consideration, is that people should; be allowed to carry a handgun only, take a 9 month safety course to obtain a license and be over the age of 18 to carry a handgun, have no major health issues, and the people who possess the weapon must properly have it in safe custody while not in use and know how to properly use the weapon if needed.  This subject also is taken into national consideration, not just a state or local idea.

            Almost every state makes a driver gain initiate experience prior to obtaining a driver’s license, which is called a GDL (Graduated Driver License).  What this does is give the teenager an opportunity to drive before getting their license, allowing them to know what it’s really like to drive.  Some states, such as Illinois, require up to 50 hours of driving and you must hold on to the permit with 9 months.  Ever since the GDL program has been established, there have been more drivers that are giving a safe environment for the other drivers they see on the road.

            If the United States pursued the idea of a Firearm’s License that allows people 18 and older obtain a license with a 9-month course for the right to hold a handgun, then the U.S. will see fewer tragedies statistically.  Having a handgun is a privilege, just like driving is a privilege.  Just like people have to earn their right to obtain a driver’s license through the GDL program, people who take a firearm’s safety course will grant them to opportunity to hold a firearm.

            Following upon that, people must not have any major health problems that can cause them to misuse the firearm.  The owner must also know how to properly maintain the weapon.  According to http://www.minnpost.com/second-opinion/2012/12/health-risk-having-gun-home, death certificate data show that there were 680 deaths each year from 2003 to 2007 that were accidental and 46 suicides daily in that same time period.  Proper care must be taken into consideration.

Blog #8

Throughout the story, I first felt a little pity for Edna Pontellier.  As we read early in the book, Leonce says to his wife on page 2, “’You are burnt beyond recognition,’ he added, looking at his wife as one looks at a valuable piece of personal property which has suffered some damage.” This excerpt explains how Leonce doesn’t necessarily view his wife as his wife that he shares love with and cherishes, but he views Edna as “personal property.”  

In chapter 4, the narrator mentions, “In short, Mrs. Pontellier was beginning to realize her position in the universe as a human being, and to recognize her relations as an individual to the world within and about her.”  This point in the story is where Edna starts to realize who she really wants to become and how she wants to be free.  Even though Edna wants to be free, I feel like she is definitely overstepping and doing harm to others around her and is not necessarily justified in her choices.  Edna begins to show a great interest in Robert, even though she is married to Leonce.  We get it, Leonce doesn’t necessarily show any positive signs early on that he truly does love Edna, but rather is just doing what the Creole society asks of. 

As Robert and Edna start to see each other, is Edna just another one of Robert’s summer flings?  He then moves away to Mexico.  Edna gets in a huge argument with Leonce, stomping on her wedding ring.  But as it says in the first line of chapter 19, “Edna could not help but think that it was very foolish, very childish, to have stamped upon her wedding ring…” After this happens, do you think it’s possible that Edna would start to actually show affection for Leonce?  Somehow she does.  However Leonce had to leave for a business trip shortly after the argument and when Edna comes to a reality check that she might actually have feelings for Leonce. 

As she gets lonely with nobody around, she starts to see Alcee Arobin.  This is where I feel like she starts to step over the line, she is going from guy to guy!  Anyways, she starts to show not necessarily an emotional connection, but more of a physical affection for Alcee.  They even kiss, and the book implies that they might have even taken it a step further as it says on page 93:

“Good night,” she murmured.

He did not answer, except to continue to caress her.  He did not say good night until she had become supple to his gentle, seductive entreaties.

When I got to this spot in the book, I most definitely felt like Edna has crossed the line.  Although she is married to Leonce, she has seen two other men.

If I was Edna, I most definitely wouldn’t act as her.  I possibly would try to work things out and at least talk to Leonce about their marriage.  Instead, she is being way to free of her actions and needs to put them on a leash!

Blog #7

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine on February 27, 1807.  He loved to read and liked the plays of Shakespear and stories set in foreign places.  He went to Bowdoin College, and after graduating there he studied modern languages in Europe for three years.  He than came back to Bowdoin to teach about them.  Longfellow worked at Harvard in 1836, and in 1839 he published his first collection of poems. He married Frances Appleton and had six children.  He wrote "Paul Rever's Ride."  His wife died in 1861.  In 1865 when the Civil war ended, most of his important work was finished but still had a famous lifestyle.  He still published more poetry books.  In of 1882 he passed away.

Walt Whitman
Walt Whitman was born on May 31, 1819.  When Whitman was 12 he bagan to learn the printer's trade, and read a lot.  He worked as a printer until a fire ruined the industry in New York City.  When he was 17, he started out as a teacher in Long Island until 1841, where he focused on journalism for his real career.  He is the founder of the weekly newpspaper, the Long-Islander.  He was also a newspaper editor.  In 1848, he founded a "free soil" newspaper, the Brooklyn Freeman.  He developed a certain style of poetry that inspired  Ralph Waldo emerson.  He published 12 untitled poems and a preface in 1855, and a second edition that consisted of 33 poems in 1856.  In 1862, he went to Washington D.C. to take care of his brother who had been hurt during the war.  Whitman wasn't a very supportive person of himself.  He was kind though because he would spend his extra money to buy supplies for patients he once took care of.  He settled down in Camden, New Jersey, where he bought a home from the money he earned from the publication of Leaves of Grass in 1882.  He had finished one of his final poems, called Good-Bye, My Fancy in 1891.  He died on March 26, 1892.

Comparisons/Differences
Walt Whitman and Henry Longfellow were similar in the fact that they both were successful poets. Longfellow went to Bowdoin College, while Whitman started out as a teacher at age 17.  As two young-aged kids, they both loved to read with a passion.  As far as writing styles, we know that Walt Whitman had an ispiring one that was even inspiring enough to catch Ralph Waldo Emerson's eye!  Whitman was an editor, but also was a journalism and poet.  Longfellow seemed to study modern languages, and was a poet mostly.  Longfellow's writing style had some imagination to it since as a kid he loved to read stories set in foreign places.  As for their writing subjects, Longfellow focused more on myths and Whitmas was more of a writer upon slavery.  Whitman might have written about slavery with the injury of his brother in the Civil War, which would attract him closer to the sights of the war and what was going on in it.

Blog #6

During this writing essay, I started out pretty confident and thought I had some pretty good ideas.  I had good topics, but I still just can't find enough support it feels like.  I did feel pretty successful though, when I thought of three pretty solid topics of discussion.  I feel like after I am completely done and look back at it and read it all, my personal succession levels will feel higher.

I did find the pre-writing activities useful, and it made it simpler for me because it gave me more of a step by step and broke down the whole outlook of the essay.  I would change my future pre-writing essays by putting more details into everything in general, and making it more organized.  The more organized it is, I feel like I would do better over all.

My peer editing experience was pretty helpful because I let other people actually know what was going through my topics, and I could get their views on it too.  The feedback did help me with my revision, because I realized some things that needed to be changed, and if they weren't changed it would effect my paper.

The strengths in my essay would be my topics  in general, and the weaknesses would be my support for those topics.  I need to get more support, and that is my goal on my next revision for the final draft.

Blog #5

2)   My own life has been greatly influenced by relationships with others.  One of the coolest relationships I have is with an 83 year old man named Don Wooten.  Don is one of those people that you can consider "old and wise."  Don has been a teacher, an Illinois State Senator, a weatherman, a parent of 5, and he has traveled all around.  He also is very intelligent, and told me that he got an A on every test in high school until he went to college, where did on all but one test.  Don also has been conducting plays for over 50 years for the Genesius Guild in Rock Island.  Every Sunday I go over to Don's to do random things around the house. This can consist of things such as refilling the birdfeeders, splitting logs as winter fire wood, raking, and just about every other random thing that you could think of.  After I do all of this work, his mind always wanders off and he talks about his life.  He is really into nature, and studied all about it, and graduated with a degree in Biology.  I guess I am a pretty fortunate 16 year old kid for being able to hear such great life stories.  He sits on his porch and looks at the trees, and thinks it's amazing how trees can communicate with each other by roots.  He also likes seeing all of the birds chirp outside.

Not only is Don a great impact, but my family is too.  My brothers are 24 and 27, and with this they have gone through high school and participated in all of the sports.  They always tell me to watch out for certain things in high school, like drugs and things like that, but than again they grew up in a much worse high school.  Also, they have had some pretty unfair coaches, and that when a coach yells at you, to just let it go through your head. This is not even merely close to enough of the things that they have helped me with.  I wouldn't be half the person I was today if it wasn't for them, because who knows if I would be led down the wrong path or not if it wasn't for them.  Also, my parents have been great influences too.  They are in their fifties, and have gone through a lot in their lives, and it's pretty amazing to see what they are today, and I'm thankful that I have parents like them.  These are just a small amount of people who have had an influence on my life.  My friends, my teachers, my relatives, even just random nice people with a smile on their face all the time inspire me to be a happier person and to try to do random acts of kindness.

The World Around Us

Around me, I hear cars moving across the pavement, and even one honking.  The honking is an indirect emotion, because the driver did not actually wave at us, but he did honk at us as a way of a greeting.  I hear the birds chirping up in the sky, and also they cross my line of sight too, attracting two senses at once.  Privileged are the birds, because they get the oppurtunity to fly naturally.  We as humans get the oppurtunity to walk easily, and miraculously for that matter, because of the balance that we didn't even know that we had that grows and develops in us as an infant.  The fact that we can easily walk, and that birds can naturally fly, shows us how the world and life around us has so many different complex structures of life to it, giving life the amazing aspects that it really has. The sound of wind passes by my ears, as if it is almost trying to move me or take my emotions with it.  I can feel the sense of happiness around, and I can hear the peaceful thoughts going through my fellow peers' minds, saying "What a beautiful day it is outside!", in agreement to my thoughts as well, as I feel a peaceful tone in the village today.

 I feel the grass below me, acting as a pillow calling our names to comfort us.  I feel the humidity around us, but just a little bit.  I see the naked trees, with the leaves that once clothed it on the ground, that were once decorating the trees.  It is clearly autumn.

Ahead of me, I see a lifeless leaf.  It used to be part of a tree, which had life of it's own.  But, now that it is broken off of the tree, it is lifeless.  This can relate people; we are apart of the world as a whole, but than eventually, we break off from this realm, and enter into the next world above us in the Heavens, just as like a leaf breaks off from the world it had with the tree, and enters the rest of the world and can move freely by the wind. We are like the leaves, we are still moving and effecting the world, even though we have broken off.