Paragraph on LA (Open Essay Question)

1973     An effective literary work does not merely stop or cease; it concludes.
In the view of some critics, a work that does not provide the pleasure of
significant closure has terminated with an artistic fault.  A
satisfactory ending is not, however, always conclusive in every sense;
significant closure may require to the reader to abide with or adjust to
ambiguity and uncertainty.  In an essay discuss the end of a novel or play
of acknowledged literary merit.  Explain precisely how and why the ending
appropriately or inappropriately concludes the work.  Do not merely
summarize the plot.

     In The Color Purple, Celie, the protagonist in the story, has a difficult time fitting in with her society. Her father regularly abuses/rapes her since his wife is too old. Celie marries Mr. ___ and has a miserable life. However, she still manages to survive through the hardships and persevere. Towards the end of the novel, Celie's cruel life begins to unfold in a better way. This starts when she reads Nettie's, her sister, letters. She learns of everything about "Pa" and that the house is actually Celie's. Pa dies and Celie moves in and builds her own foundation in threading. This story ends appropriately because all the adversities Celie encountered had all worked out in the end.




         

9 Poetry Elements Interpretation

"The Laughing Heart"

by Charles Bukowski

Your life is your life
don’t let it be clubbed into dank submission.
be on the watch.
there are ways out.
there is a light somewhere.
it may not be much light but
it beats the darkness.

be on the watch.
the gods will offer you chances.
know them.
take them.
you can’t beat death but
you can beat death in life, sometimes.
and the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.

your life is your life.
know it while you have it.
you are marvelous
the gods wait to delight
in you.

1) Dramatic Situation: 
One male speaker referring to those who feel isolated and alienated from community/society. Maybe the author himself went through this phase and wants others who feel the same way to fix/solve their problems.

2) Structure:
There are three stanzas in this poem which all build on top of one another. The first stanza commands the readers to look for a "light" that they can turn to. The second stanza lets the readers know that there will be many opportunities given to them and tells the readers to accept them. The last stanza reminds the readers about individuality and hints an expectation in the future.

3) Theme:
Individualism: the main theme of the poem has to be about finding oneself ("your life is your life") and seeking for something they are confident in ("there is a light somewhere").

4) Grammar and Meaning:
The author's grammar is used in a modern way since all the words are current use of language. The poem has a deep meaning for those who feel hopeless and helpless from the world they live in.

5) Images and Figures of Speech:
By saying "light", Bukowski allows the readers to imagine an exit from a dark cave which represents isolationism("darkness").

6) Important Words:
Some important words are life, light, darkness, and death. These words are used throughout the poem and each represents a symbol.

7) Tone:
The tone of this piece is a sense of hope. The author lets the readers know that despite the isolation/alienation, there is a "light" out there that they can turn to for comfort.

8) Literary Devices:
Imagery:     "clubbed into dank submission."
Parallelism: "Your life is your life"...
                  "your life is your life."

                  "be on the watch."
                  "be on the watch."

Rhyme:      "know them"
                  "take them"

Symbols:    dank submission - isolation
                  light - hope
                  darkness - loneliness
              
9) Prosody:The way Bukowski structured this poem is very clear and easy to understand since I said as previously, the three stanzas build on top of one another. Readers can define what the poem has to say and finish the poem knowing exactly what to do to come out of the "darkness".

AP Lit Essay Opinion

Yesterday, we took the micro-AP Part 1 where there were three essay questions we had to respond to each one in 15 minutes. What made this difficult for me was the time management. I took too much time thinking which book to write about to get the most out of it. I didn't expect each of the questions to be so similar to one another. They all had to deal with how the authors use this technique/format to get the meaning across this book to the readers. I learned that even though the questions asked are simple are direct, they require critical thinking and analysis to add depth. Surprisingly, I work well under pressure...when I'm by myself. When others are around, I constantly think about what would my peers think about me if I do this or that. This experience I had yesterday, will help me improve my performance in the actual test by having a feel of what it's going to be like during the real "deal" and help to which parts to focus. I learned that my weaknesses were not knowing which book to choose for the questions directly and manage time to complete the essay on time.   

Dr. Tony Williams's lecture on A Tale of Two Cities

Tale of Two Cities:

- There is a third city: Manchester
- In 1857, Dickens and Collins worked to write Frozen Deep
- Tale of Two Cities and Frozen Deep are connected 
- Dickens fell in love with Turner's daughter, Ellen, and separated with his wife the following year
- Lucie represents Ellen's appearance
- Dickens saw the connections and organizations when writing about London
- He writes that this is the best work his has ever written
- There are highly personal influence on the work that's been incorporated

Dickens' Purpose

Dickens' purpose in writing Great Expectations was to reflect the literary technique of realism. The story was written in connection to his own life. When Dickens was young, his family went through financial difficulties and he wanted to change his life. He was inspired by the times he lived in; England in those days of the early 1800s was a very bad place to live when you could not pay a debt you were held in prison until it was paid.

Great Expectations Discussion Notes

Literary Elements we came up with and who is going to discuss it during class:

1. Imagery - Annais
2. Symbolism - Yun Joo
3. Characterization:  Direct and Indirect - Jessica
4. Allusion - Ryan
5. Diction - Jessica
6. Syntax - Alex
7. Theme - Me
8. Mood - Me
9. Point of View - Ryan
10. Tone - Annais

Alex is also going to summarize the book from pgs. 1 - 100.

Great Expectations 10 Questions

Questions&Answers!!!

     Q: 1. Why does the protagonist go with the name, Pip,instead of his real name?
     A:     He was unable to pronounce his real name as an infant.

     Q: 2. Why does Pip not tell his sister and her husband about the convict he encountered?
     A:     He was a boy who was compassionate and caring.

     Q: 3. Why is Pip feel so guilty?
     A:     It was him who stole the food and gave it to the convict.

     Q: 4. Why do the police come to Pip's house?
     A:     To ask Joe to fix their handcuff since he was a blacksmith.

     Q: 5. At school, who does Pip befriend?
     A:    Biddy, the granddaughter of his teacher.

     Q: 6. Who does Pip fall in love with?
     A:     When Pip saw Estrella, he fell in love with her and wanted to be in the upper class to win her.

     Q: 7. When does Estrella allow Pip to kiss her on the cheek?
     A:     When Pip fights a young gentleman and knocks him over.

     Q: 8. Why does Estrella criticize Pip?
     A:     He is from the lower class and he doesn't have the proper manners.

     Q: 9. What is Miss Havisham's real motive towards Pip?
     A:     Use Estrella to break his heart as a revenge to all men.

     Q: 10. What happened to Mrs. Joe in chapter 15?

     A:       Towards the end of the chapter, she was attacked and injured on the brain.

Great Expectations (Pgs. 1 - 15)

The story starts off with the background of Pip living with his older sister, Mrs. Joe, and her husband, Joe Gargery. Pip is sitting in the cemetery when he suddenly hears threatening remarks made toward him. He finds out that he is an escaped criminal, so he listens to what he says in order to be safe. The guy tells Pip to bring him food and some files. So he goes back to the house and secretly takes some food and brings it back to the criminal. 

By applying my lecture notes, I researched about Charles Dickens' life to see if I could make any connections to the book. I found out that CD's father was in prison for having a lot of debt. So the name of the book meant that someone died and left you inheritance hence the Great Expectations.