End of a Quarter

The third quarter is dwindling down to the end.  This last quarter is your last nine weeks of high school.  College and the real world will bring about new expectations; often times, these expectations will be much higher than what was expected of a student in high school. 

This next step is a necessary step in the maturation process.  You will need to step out in the world and be on your own.  Some will find themselves in college, others the military, and others will join the work force.  You will be an adult.  You will be responsible for yourself.  I can preach to you the changes that are coming, but I want you to hear it from your peers.

This week's blog asks you to list five things you know will be different in your life within the next year. What will you need to do in order to prepare to meet these changes and who will help you meet these changes directly?

The Blind Viewer

         We watch an amazing amount of television in this country.  Some of it is good and some of it is not so good. Reality television takes the drama that most people run from in their own lives and broadcasts it for a full audience.  Whatever the television show, there is a meaning to be taken.  The Wizard of Oz was originally commentary on the Industrial Revolution. We have turned it into an iconic film filled with romance of days past and what could have been.  The movies, Red Dawn, Hunt for the Red October, and No Way Out are all movies that came out in the 80"s.  This in turn was to provide commentary on the Cold War.  
         My point is that what we watch each day impacts our ideas and our views.  Look at what you are watching now.    The movie remake, Red Dawn changed its antagonist to North Korean invaders.  What commentary are they making now?  What are you watching and what do the writers, directors, and actors want you to take from it?  

• Your assignment: Look at what you watch this week.  Pull one example.

1. Briefly provide some background information
2. Explain what message is being conveyed to those viewing
3. How is that message being conveyed--characterization, visual imagery, archetypes, etc?

Sarah Kay

The imagery of our lives is what allows our world to go from black and white to a world exploded into a Willy Wonka color phantasm.  The way we paint the world with our language is what allows us to connect--two people drinking from the same straw.  Two people connected by thirst.  Watch Sarah Kay's spoken word poem about Forest Fires. (The title is the link.)  Listen to her story and listen to her imagery. Pay attention to how her descriptions speak volumes.  

The language we use determines the way we feel and understand a piece of writing.  Listen to hers. 1. Once you have listened, pull one of her images and explain why you like it.  What does it do for you as the listener?
2. Go to a text we are reading in class--Hamlet, Crime and Punishment or As I Lay Dying--and pull an image that resonates with you.  Explain why it speaks to you the way that it does.