Friday, October 28, 2011

Irony


True irony occurs when we expect something to go one way but something else happens instead.  In the story “the destructors” there is an excellent example of irony, when the gang breaks into a house and instead of stealing the money they burn it on the floor.  This is true irony, because it goes against what a thief is supposed to do.  Many people believe that every bad thing that happens when we don’t want it to happen is irony, but really they are just inconveniences in life that make are day harder.  So once again the gang burning the money, is true irony because it isn’t an inconvenience, but is a true “shocker” that isn’t expected to happen in an everyday occurrence. 

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

NPR Great Gatsby program

1. The main theme is that there is no American dream.  Money rules everything, and money that is given is very different then money is earned.  Everything is not fair so hard work is crustal.

2. He was a failure in school and in college, which is a great example of Nick's life in the novel.  Fitzgerald and Gatsby are also similar because both of the individuals were looked down upon in society.

3.Everyone can relate to the fact that we all want a glamorous life, the life that we always dreamed about.  Money and social status is also a key concept that everyone can relate to.

4. Fitzgerald really did not like the title and tried to change it several times, but finally went with "the great Gatsby"

5. In today's society rappers like Jay Z are similar, they work their lives around money and freedom.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Research

Awl. "Wikipedia and the Death of the Expert." Theawl.com. Web. 25 Sep 2011
< http://www.theawl.com/2011/05/wikipedia-and-the-death-of-the-expert>

Intuitive Blog. "What Wikipedia Lost: Credibility." intuitive.com. Web. 25 Oct 2011

New York Times. "Week in Review” newyorktimes.com. Web. 25 Sep 2011
PCWorld. "Wikipedia Color Codes for Credibility." pcworld.com. Web. 25 Sep 2011
http://www.pcworld.com/article/171113/wikipedia_colorcodes_for_credibility.html
 

Monday, October 24, 2011

Identity and Changing Names


1)   I do feel that I have different identities in different environments.  Such as at school and at home I m really relaxed, calm, and can be the funny and goofy person that I am.  However when I am in a more series atmosphere I retain my goofy nature and bring my series self out, so I can impress individuals and make a good impression for myself.  I am still the same person, because my series side still has the humor of the my funny side; likewise, when I am at school my series side tells me when to stop making jokes that way I do not get into trouble.  These different personalities co-exist in the same person to make a well rounded whole.
2)   I do agree with the speaker.  Even the most simple of people have multiple sides.  A husband a father can show caring, compassionate, and nurturing nature when he is at home.  Then when he is shipped to Iraq, he turns into a ruthless killer that will die or even kill for his country.  Then he could also be the individual that would give up a wallet to a mugger to protect his family instead of risking a fight that might cause them harm.  This individual I described has three sides of his personality, just like a prism shows when light is sent through it.  Multiple colors are extracting from a single beam of light, all these individual lights (personalities) coming from one whole being.
3)   He never really achieved this objective, because even though he seemed like a person that achieved riches; however, inside he was still the farm boy.  He would always act as the boy who grew up on the farm.
4)   Every individual is different.  No two humans are the same, even twins.  We all have original personalities along with our unique looks.  Some individuals have personalities that change them completely.  Most individuals have multiple personalities, but they choose to take certain characteristics and use them to their advantages at certain times in life.  To sum it up, all we are is big bags of personalities, emotions, and life.
5)   I do not believe that an individual can truly change.  A bank robber can choose to change his life after he gets out of jail and become a good person, but the emotions and personalities that caused him to rob the bank in the first place, are still inside him he has just learned to “control” them.  So he never really truly changed, because the feelings and personalities are still inside of him.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

My thoughts


I believe that America is run by a hidden class system; however I believe it is an individuals responsibility "to an extent" on which class system they are put in to.  Today's world is full of many opportunities to be something if an individual wants to get ahead they can with the right amount of work.  However, there are many factors that can stop an individual from progressing (such as a lack of jobs or identity theft).  This ties back into the social/economic classes running America.  The individuals at the top of the economic pole control everyone underneath them, because for the most part, these individuals control the money that flows through everyone else.  People have to have money to survive and to provide for their family, so the individuals that have a grasp on the wallets, have a grasp on the individuals themselves.

Hidden class system in America

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21272238/ns/us_news-gut_check/t/who-or-what-middle-class/

Monday, October 17, 2011

A New Leaf


            Both of these literature works, the novel The Great Gatsby and the short story “A New Leaf”, were written by F. Scott Fitzgerald.  They have similar settings, plots and roughly similar storylines.  One theme that the two pieces story share is the inability to forget the past, and that that has a huge effect on our futures.  Both stories involve the chemical romance known as love and entail a man not being able to give up his sweat heart.
            In The Great Gatsby, the theme entails Gatsby and his love Daisy.  They are separated, and the story is about Gatsby being able to forget her. Daisy is the person from his past and the time they spent together before he went to fight in the war are the events.  Even after Daisy is no longer a part of his life, Gatsby focuses on her, and his continued love of her makes him act the way that he did. Daisy was always on Gatsby’s mind, which caused him to freeze in his life, unable to move forward, because she is always on his mind.  He buys a large expensive house, in hopes that she will be impressed.  He befriends Nick (Daisy’s cousin) in hopes that he will reacquaint the two of them.  He throws outrageous, extravagant parties all the time in hopes that she, by some stroke of luck, will attend one of them and he will be able to work his way back into her life.
            This theme also applies to “A New Leaf”, because of the relationship between Julia and Dick. Julia meets Dick while they are in Paris, and continue a relationship with each other despite the multiple warnings Julia receives about Dick’s reputation.  Throughout the rest of her stay in Paris and once she returns to America, Julia cannot forget about him. Fait seems to play in favor of this relationship as Julia and Dick meet again on the way back to New York.  Eventually they get married, but is put on hold because Dick is having an affair with another woman. She can never truly get over her feelings for Dick, and the incorrect opinion that she had formed of him.  Even though she appears to move on with her life because she marries another man, she tells him before their wedding that essentially she will always love Dick. So, like Gatsby, she never really forgets about the person from her past, and this changes her future, because she is never able to truly move on with his life. 

Friday, October 14, 2011

Great Gatsby



Chapter 1 
Nick Carraway is introduced as the narrator of the story, showing an attitude that is hard to read, somewhat vain. He shares a quote with us very early on in the book that says, “‘Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,‘ he told me, ‘just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.’” (1), this quote gives Carraway a sense of deepness and universal understanding. We also learn in chapter one that he lives in West Egg, because he has moved northeast in hopes of starting a new career.
The story takes off by Carraway describing a trip he went on to visit Tom and his wife, Daisy.  Tom's overall personality is quickly revealed, as his smug personality requires him to comment on his, “nice place” (7).  An unhappy marriage is also quickly revealed along with a second woman, Miss Baker, being introduced, whom caraway seems to be moderately attracted to. In fact, in fact Daisy would later say that she would, “arrange a marriage between the two” (18).
The role of the Great Gatsby’s character is never formally introduced within the first chapter.  However, we can infer that he appears to be a rather wealthy man.  However, the end of the chapter provides a mysterious sighting as Nick sees Gatsby watching a single green light.     
Chapter 2
Within the second chapter we learn why tom and daisy have an unhappy marriage as Nick and Tom take a train into New York to meet Toms mistress, Myrtle Wilson. Tom’s mistress later rejoins her man and he proceeds to buy her a dog.  They then travel back to a secret apartment.  Nikki still has a sense of awareness, but he seems incomplete at this point in the story.
At the apartment, it seems as though Nick is attempting to fill a void in his life with a woman. Tom’s mistress invites her sister to join them at the apartment so that Nick will not be alone. However, the sister, Catherine, only talks about how Tom and Myrtle should become a real couple, because Tom was Myrtle’s “first true sweetie” (35).
Gatsby’s character continues to be shrouded in mystery. Fitzgerald appears to be trying to provide various accounts of who Gatsby truly is. These accounts are then followed by Catherine stating that he is the “nephew or cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm” (32).  Even though the identity of Gatsby is unclear, it is reasonable to conclude that Gatsby should turn out to be a good character within the story.
Chapter 3
Chapter 3 begins by Nick being invited to Gatsby Butler's party. At the party, Nick found Miss Jordan Baker, and continues to stay with her throughout the evening (revealing that sense of longing for a female companion once again). Gatsby is again brought into the conversation and two of Jordan’s friend claim that he was a “German spy during the war” (44). Nick seems to be searching for something that he cannot find and feels out of place at the party, despite his willingness to drink among the “suits”.
While Nick is waiting at the bar, a man claims to be a former Army man that Nick had previously known, introducing himself as Gatsby. However, things do not add up as the mystery behind Gatsby's identity tries to become clear. Nick later asks Jordan who the man was and questions his true identity. Nick’s thoughts add to the mystique as a question arises as to whether or not the man is truly Gatsby. Nick’s vainness also reappears after he makes a comment towards Jordan’s dishonesty and declares himself as “one of the few honest people I have ever known” (59).
Over the first three chapters, Nick seems to be becoming more and more confused.  It appears that he is trying to find something (physical, or inner such as a partner in life). Gatsby has become even more perplexing as a man surprisingly reveals himself to be Gatsby. A link seems to be growing between Gatsby and Jordan after the two spent an hour discussing some unknown topic.
Chapter 4
Nick ponders the reasons for Gatsby’s rather eclectic mix of houseguests. Over the course of the summer, Gatsby invites men and women from both East and West Egg to visit him during certain periods of time. One day, Gatsby invited Nick to go on a car ride with him. During the trip, Gatsby’s began to open up and described the details of his life to Nick.  This allows parts of Gatsby’s mystery to clear up.
Nick, in his usual disbelieving nature, questioned all of Gatsby’s stories. However, after Gatsby showed several pictures of him, Nick began to believe the stories. Any reader would have to replace the sense of mystery once felt toward Gatsby and replace it with sympathy after reading about the tragic events he overcame.
Once Gatsby was done speaking, he told Nick that more information on his life would be shared over tea with Jordan. “I hadn’t asked Jordan to tea in order to discuss Mr. Jay Gatsby” demonstrates that Nick had little interest in spending time with Jordan reviewing the finer points of Gatsby’s life (67).  Nick was hesitant at first, but over time agreed to the meeting.
Nick’s conversation with Jordan revealed the link between Gatsby and Jordan that Gatsby was madly in love with Daisy. The entire reason that Gatsby, a wealthy man, lived in West Egg was, “so that Daisy would be just across the bay” (78). At this point in the story all these characters start to get webbed together and all their different stories begin to get intertwined.  Gatsby becomes a character with a broken heart, while Nick is still worried about no one but himself.
Chapter 5
The depth of Gatsby’s heartache is revealed when Nick invites him to his house just as Jordan instructed and he replied, “I don’t want to put you to any trouble”, revealing how he struggles with how to arrange a meeting with his lost lover (82). Gatsby requests that Nick do him a business favor, which, considering the Gatsby’s usual acquaintances, might be a shady task (such as bootlegging), but Nick refuses almost admittedly.
On the day Daisy was to visit Nick for tea, Gatsby was extremely nervous. His tension increases once Daisy arrives, and is worsened when a clock nearly falls on his head. Instead of having concern for his guest, Nick conceitedly explained the reason for the clock’s fall by saying, “It’s an old clock” (87). As the communication between Daisy and Gatsby grinds to a halt, the only solution Nick can think of to hurry the discussion is to have the two help him make tea and progresses to dominate the conversation with Daisy.
Nick exited the room at the first available opportunity. Gatsby quickly follows him to plead with Nick for help, but Nick only becomes frustrated with him. Nick then leaves the house. When he returns, he finds Gatsby and Daisy overjoyed. Gatsby invites the cousins to his house and gives a tour of his property. Nick grows disgusted with the happiness of the new couple. He moaned that, “Gatsby didn’t know me now at all”, and hastily left the home (96).  This shows a more angry and jealous side to Nick that hadn’t been previously shown before.  Gatsby shows a more joyful side that might cause others to become jealous, but he doesn’t mean to cause the jealousy. 
Chapter 6
The book really takes a turn when Nick reveals that Jay Gatsby is an alter ego that James Gatz created: “James Gatz— that was really, or at least legally, his name” (98). It appears that Gatsby changed his name at seventeen to reflect how he was hoping to change his life. With this, intrigue returns into Gatsby’s persona. Now we begin to ask what his business is and what was the real reason for him changing his name?
Gatsby’s name change seems to have been derived from a conversation with Dan Cody. Gatsby had lied about his family and previous exploits and the “family inheritance” actually came from Dan Cody. Nick explained these details in order to “explode those wild rumors about his antecedents” (101).  It seems hat Nick is rather enjoying the devastation that Gatsby is receiving.
While meeting with Tom, Gatsby begins to become more hostile. Tom is completely clueless and does not understand, “where in the devil [Gatsby] met Daisy”, although he does accompany his wife on her next visit to West Egg (103). Daisy still manages to evade the presence of her aloof husband and escapes for half an hour with Gatsby. Nick, desiring as always to please his peers, carefully watches out for Tom.  Now it appears that Tom (the cheater) is now being cheated on to a certain level.
After the party, Gatsby feels that Daisy did not enjoy it one bit. Nick offers no help, and instead responds to Gatsby’s unease with, “’I wouldn’t ask too much of her’, I ventured. ‘You can’t repeat the past’” (110). True to form, Nick is too self-absorbed to console Gatsby. 
Chapter 7
Nick’s “Finn” tells him that Gatsby had fired all of his servants. Nick questioned Gatsby’s motives, and Gatsby informed him that he wanted “somebody who wouldn’t gossip” (114). Shortly thereafter, the group gathers at Daisy’s house. Gatsby struggles to keep his affair with Daisy private and grows increasingly anxious in Tom’s presence.
The group separates into Tom and Gatsby’s car to travel into New York City. Tom, Nick, and Jordan stop for gas at Mr. Wilson’s mechanic shop. Mr. Wilson reveals that he   has gotten rather sick because he realizes his wife is having an affair. Nick insightfully deduced that Mr. Wilson had grown ill because he had “discovered that Myrtle had some sort of life apart from him in another world” (124). This, along with various other inferences is an example of Nick’s perceptive abilities.
As the day continues, Nick provides additional observant remarks. Gatsby and Tom grow progressively more antagonistic towards each other, until Tom openly attacks Gatsby. Nick attempts to keep the peace, but the other two men are ready to spar. They both exchange words until Gatsby presses Daisy into saying she never loved Tom. The two go back-and-forth; their demands exhausting Daisy. Tom reveals that Gatsby is a bootlegger, and Gatsby becomes defensive of his actions.
Tom tells the two lovers to leave him. Nick responds to this all my commenting, “today is my birthday” (135). His self-absorption is further exemplified by his continuous discussion of Jordan. Tom discovers that Myrtle has been killed. Gatsby flippantly tells Tom that he and Daisy accidentally ran her over. Gatsby cares only for Daisy's reaction, while Nick rightfully grows angered over Gatsby's behavior.
Chapter 8
 Gatsby returned home to find Nick running over to meet him, trying to get him to run way so his involvement with the accident could not be traced. Gatsby replied, “Go away now, old sport?” indicated that he wanted no part of leaving Daisy (148).
 After stumbling about his mansion, Gatsby reveals how he met Daisy. He described how she lived a lavish life, and that the true reason for his name change was to impress Daisy and make her feel secure. At this point, Gatsby’s character becomes that of a scorned lover, and the reasons for his previous actions begin to become clear.
 Gatsby begs Nick to tell him he was right about Daisy not loving Tom, but does not allow Nick a moment to speak. He instead continues to share his despondent tale, growing more desperate with each detail. Once Gatsby was finished, Nick, for the first time, selflessly desires to stay with him, “I didn’t want to go to the city. I wasn't worth a decent stroke of work, but it was more than that—I didn’t want to leave Gatsby” (153). Nick finally became a sympathetic character.
 Nick politely compliments Gatsby and takes the train to his work. While at work Jordan calls him, but Nick is to tired to think. His vainness has been fully shed. His character becomes more open and vulnerable as the story continues. The story shifts to Wilson hunting down his wife’s murderer. Gatsby begins to act very peculiar until the two meet each other and ultimately kill one another.  Which is the Climax of the whole story.  Everyone and everything is starting to come together.
Chapter 9
 One of the most important events has happened know and the form of which it came in was quiet a shock.  Gatsby has entered a state of depression and it appears as though his depression will drive him over the edge, but instead he was murdered.  Wilson being a somewhat irrelevant character blind-sided me by his part in the climax.
 Nick was quite remorseful over Gatsby’s death. He took it upon himself to make the arrangements for the funeral. Having to be his only real friend, because time and time again, individuals saying they will not be attending the funeral turned him down. He implored Klipspringer over the phone to come to the funeral, insisting, “How about saying you’ll come?” and later personally visited Wolfsheim, but to no avail (169).
 After only he and Gatsby’s father attended the funeral, Nick grew exasperated with the ways of the people living in the East and decided to move back West. He comments upon how even, “When the East excites me the most, even when I was keenly aware of its superiority to the bored sprawling, swollen towns beyond the Ohio...even then it had always had a quality of distortion” (176). He decided that he no longer belonged in the East, packed his life away, left his career, and returned home.  

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

3rd History of English paper


Duane Robbins
Mr. Roberts
AP English Literature
9/15/11
As time passes everything in the world changes, the way we eat, drive, and act change with the continuing development of the society that surrounds us. This is also true for the languages that every individual speaks.  English is no exception to this fact, and is a prime example of how drastically a language can change over the course of time.  From the very formal speaking Shakespeare, to the slang driven hip-hop stars of today’s society, the English language has been through massive changes from its birth to recent years.
    The Birth of the English language can be debated over, because words that are used in todays diction were taken from civilizations that thrived thousands of years ago, but the foundation of the English language wasn’t developed until later on.  Many powerful civilizations left a mark on the language by blending in words that they spoke in their language into the language we speak today.  These civilizations included the Celtics around 500 B.C and even the great Roman Empire 43- 450 A.D.  Words such as wine, belt, and even city names such as London were taken from these different languages and intertwined into English. (CMU)
    English, as we know it, was born sometime around the fifth century A.D.  Old English was developed when the Germans pushed the Celtics into the areas such as Scotland and Ireland. Their language became considered “Englist”, the term that eventually led to the words “England” and “English”.  It developed slowly over the next six hundred years until 1066 when a prince of Normandy named William defeated the Anglo-Saxons at the Battle of Hastings. (BCC) William became the King of England, but he was still under the French thrones power, so once he had won, he declared that the French language would become the official language of England, which is stayed for the next 300 years. William was the new King of England, but he was also still the Duke of Normandy in France, which put him and his successors in the awkward position”.   This is why he decided to rule England, but would change the language to French that way he could have it both ways. (Wheaton)
This led to a blending of the two languages.  The addition of French significantly transformed the grammar of the Germanic-based of the English language.  At the same time, Christian missionaries were deployed into these areas to try and convert the locals.  These missionaries spoke Latin, which is why many Latin words are included into the English language.  (BBC)
Due to the fact that William had made the relationship between England and France bitter, due to the forcefulness of French society onto English society, French rain as the main language was short lived. (Pandora)  So these relations turned into the Hundred Years War from 1337- 1450.  This really took French influence out of England, but the influence that it had on English language would remain in tact.  
Also there were two universities, Oxford and Cambridge that were founded creating a great increase in education. This created literacy for the citizens and increased the use of the English language.  Next there was the invention of the printing press, which made the production of reading material much easier.  This invention really spread the use of language, which in turn helped the English language grow. (Wheaton)
One of the things that helped the English language develop into what is spoken today as modern English was the development of America as a nation built on the ideals of freedom and allowing individuals to bring there lifestyles with them.  The mixture of the cultures and different languages really helped transform the “formal” English language that is more commonly known as old English into the “less formal” newly more modern way of speak the English language that we speak in our lives today.
With the newly invention of the printing press a need for a solid dictionary that would contain all the words of the English language.  This is where Noah Webster came into the history of the English language.  American Noah Webster believed that in order to strengthen the American cultural, a dictionary that would contain the words of the new nation was necessary. Therefore, after twenty-two years of hard work a standardized American dictionary was published in 1828(CMU). Webster’s dictionary was considered to be an even more remarkable work than Johnson’s Dictionary of the English Language.  Even in the modern age, this dictionary is considered the “go to dictionary” for the American and is re-published every few years to add new words to the ever-growing American language.
The English language has grown greatly since the language of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of the early fifth century A.D. The number of words has been increased by tens of thousands while the grammar has had a hill affect over the passing years.  With the ever-changing development of society, the English language changes as well. The meaning of words and phrases are transformed, when society is rich in culture, the language is very formal, and as society loses focus on culture, the language becomes based on slang and makes most individuals seem to be illiterate.

Bibliography

BBC. "The Great Vowel Shift." BBC. Web. 15 Sep 2011
Central Michigan University. "Samuel Johnson." libwebspace. Web. 15 Sep 2011
Oxford Dictionaries. "How many words are there in the English Language." Oxford Dictionaries.
Pandora. "The Dialects of American English." pandora.cii.wwu.edu. Web. 15 Sep 2011
Wheaton. "A Brief History of the English Language." wheatonma.edu. Web. 2011 Sep