Class Reflection

Taking English 101 this semester proved to be a good experience for many reasons. Not only was it the best time to take the class, but it also proved to be a great learning experience for better ways of writing papers, in all aspects of it.

I thought that the papers we wrote were very interesting topics to explore, even though I thought that we could have replaced certain ones with better topics, but generally, I thought that the topics that were chosen were best for the class.

I also thought that the class periods were well spent. We, as a class, got what we needed to get done, and then we could leave. I thought this was good because I didn't feel that I wasting my time sitting in class longer then I needed to.

Overall, I think this semester of English 101 went very well.

Free Write Blog for 28 November 2010

I went Black Friday shopping for the second time this year, and I was finally able to experience some of the craziness that people talk about. A friend and I decided to help a relative get as many deals as possible, so we staked out the Leapsters, which is some kind of child computer game system. When we found the the display, women were crowding all around it. Some of them were nice, but many were clearly concentrating on how to grab as many of these things as possible.

As the clock got closer to midnight, the tension rose. My friend and I attempted to move closer to the display through the crowd, and the many of the women gave us dirty looks, and one even said to get back angrily. We ended up fighting the crowd of women to grab a couple of the item that we wanted, much the unhappiness of some of the women we took them from.

The rest of Black Friday went rather smoothly, and we were able to find plenty of deals. I was also able to pick up a few Christmas presents.

The Most Dangerous Game Analasys -- #3 Pg 244, Curious Writer

In "The Most Dangerous Game", a common and recurring element is the nighttime, or the darkness that is ever prevalent during the short story. The story even begins at night, when Rainsford and Whitney are talking about hunting, and the mysterious island that their ship is currently sailing past. The nighttime and the darkness are also present in various times later in the story, mostly during the three days that Rainsford is trying to survive the hunting expert, General Zaroff.

The nighttime represents an eerie feeling that surrounds the island. For Rainsford, it represents him overcoming his fears and using his senses to swim to the island, and survive General Zaroff during the hunt. For General Zaroff, the darkness represents an extra challenge that only adds to the hunt for Rainsford. Zaroff, as a character, is obsessed with hunting and doing it the best he can, but having it also not be too easy. The darkness takes care of this challenge.

Analyzing Young Gordon Brown

Young Gordon Brown is about a young religious man who goes a trip. The story is full of different symbols and themes. I liked how many of the characters were symbols, but also the environments and other things that you didn't think would be.

Some of the symbols was his wife, the forest, his staff, and many others. This story was written during the Age of Romanticism, so it relates nature as almost evil, which goes along with the forest being considered sin in the story. His wife, named Faith, directly represents his faith in God.

Overall, I think Young Gordon Brown is a very good story that makes good use of symbols to illustrate the story better. It is a clear piece out of the Romanticism writing era and deserves a place in its history.

Analytical Response to "A Rose for Emily"

"A Rose For Emily" is a short story written in the early 20th century and it is broken up into five sections, each important to overall cohesiveness of the story. Each section details some part of Emily's life and each one adds to the depressing overall feel to the story. What makes the story work the most, I think, is that you know that she dies at the end because the first part of the story focused on it.

"A Rose For Emily"  is definately not the best story I have ever read, but I did find that I enjoyed reading it enough to see to the next section, just to see what would happen to Emily next.

Analysis of The Most Dangerous Game

"The Most Dangerous Game" is short story written about two hunters who fight each other on a mystery island. One of them, the one who lives on the island and pits shipwrecked people in a game where he hunts them down and kill them, the other, a shipwrecked sailor who has to survive on the island.

I like the story because it an exciting read that has suspense on whether the shipwrecked sailor is going to be able to survive for three days against the other hunter, who believes himself to be above other humans, that is why he has gone beyond hunting animals and instead hunts humans.

The story has several themes, such as reason and instinct and how they fight each other, especially when the shipwrecked hunter is trying to survive. There are also some symbols, such as the island, as it effects both major characters and it is a major part of the story.

Overall, I enjoyed this story and hope to read more like it.

Blog over Class Period 28 October 2010

I thought class today was a nice break from what we usually did. It was nice to stop talking about the essays that we need to write or when something is due for once. Watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer provided a good laugh too. I did not fall asleep during it, so it is definitely a good thing to perhaps emulate in the future, but perhaps something not as cheesy as Buffy.

PS: I also enjoyed you giving the class a snack. It really went beyond what is required of you as a teacher.