1.) The Crucible is a playwright about the Salem Witch Trials. The story starts with a group of girls trying out spells and forbidden things on a black servant. Then they are caught but they choose to deny it so that they do not get killed. To cover there usage of spells , they say they have been possesed and controlled by witches. Soon, the whole Puritan town is filled with uneasiness and many innocent women are taken into jail because of accusations that they are witches. John Proctor is sent to the gallows, but the main character, Abigail Williams wants to be with him. The whole witch hunt had cause many conflicts that cannot be taken back and later on it ends.
2.) A theme I thought was significant is that people are easily rattled up or will take wrong actions due to fear or other feelings that make them give in. In the novel, the whole town hears about the witches and start to make accusations towards innocent women. You can see that people can make quick irrational choices that can't be erased or backtracked.
3.) Since the story is a playwirght, most of the reading consisted of dialogues. The tones used were fearful, scared, careful and never truely at ease.
"Mrs. Putnam, softly:Aye. Her voice breaks; she looks up at him.
Silence." - Act One, pg. 39
"Hale: Believe me, Mr. Nurse, if Rebecca
Nurse be tainted, then nothing's left to stop the whole green world from
burning." - Act Two, pg. 71
"Mary Warren, hysterically, pointing at
Proctor, fearful of him: My name, he want my name. 'I'll murder you,' he
says, 'if my wife hangs! We must go and overthrow the court he says!'" - Act
Three, pg. 119
4.) The author used dramatic irony throughout the story, making it noticable if not obvious what the girls were thinking of doing. The author uses indirect characterization for all the characters where you are not given the exact figures of each character or properly introduced visually. Also, the usage of the tone and mood makes the playwright more dramatic, where it is dark and gloomy and full of fear and hesitation.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Vocabulary List #7
aberration - (noun) an optical phenomenon resulting
from the failure of a lens or mirror to produce a good image; a disorder in
one's mental state; a state or condition markedly different from the
norm
-Often times, magicians use abberation to amaze the crowd and start to get their attention.
Ad hoc- (adverb) for the special purpose or end presently under consideration
-We had no choice but to ad hoc the event because of the horrible weather we have been having for the past five days.
bane - (noun) something causes misery or death
-Cancer was a bane for my grandmother and she had no choice but to live her very best until the horrid disease ate her life.
bathos - (noun) triteness or triviality of style; a change from a serious subject to a disappointing one; insincere pathos
-The story had a dramatic seen of bathos where no one in the audience saw it coming.
cantankerous - (adj.) having a difficult and contrary disposition; stubbornly obstructive and unwilling to cooperate
-There is always someone who is cantankerous in your group that will bring up issues and make things harder for everyone.
casuistry - (noun) moral philosophy based on the application of general ethical principles to resolve moral dilemmas; argumentation that is specious or excessively subtle and intended to be misleading
-The novel we read for the class had many details informing readers about casuistry.
de facto - (noun) in fact; in reality
-
depredation - (noun) an act of plundering and pillaging and marauding; (usually plural) a destructive action
-The evil in any movie or story usually makes a depredation before the actual attack.
empathy - (noun) understanding and entering into another's feelings
-It is hard to make an empathy to someone you have just met but it is a possibility that you can understand just a small part of their lives or their feelings.
harbinger - (noun) an indication of the approach of something or someone; verb foreshadow or presage
-Readers were able to easily make a harbinger when the prince was back in town, he would meet the pretty new girl who everyone was talking about.
hedonism - (noun) an ethical system that evaluates the pursuit of pleasure as the highest good; the pursuit of pleasure as a matter of ethical principle
-Not everyone will believe or think that hedonism is right because everyone has different views of what pleasure is.
lackluster - (adj.) lacking luster or shine; lacking brilliance or vitality
-The old car that has been sitting in the garage for more than a decade is very lackluster.
malcontent - (adj.) discontented as toward authority; noun a person who is discontented or disgusted
-The girl was discontented when she saw the criminal kill a person without hesitation.
mellifluous - (adj.) pleasing to the ear
-Girls often expect to hear mellifluous things by guys just like they expect them to make the first move.
nepotism - noun favoritism shown to relatives or close friends by those in power (as by giving them jobs)
-My aunt shows neptism towards me because I am one of the few that gives her the time of day.
pander - (noun) someone who procures customers for whores (in England they call a pimp a ponce); verb arrange for sexual partners for others; yield (to); give satisfaction to
-There has been many articles about panders on the newspaper.
peccadillo - (noun) a petty misdeed
-As a child, many young kids make peccadillos that are later forgiven.
piece de resistance - (noun) the most noteworthy or prized feature, aspect, event, article, etc., of a series or group; special item or attraction.
-The trophy was an obvious piece de resistance since the team had been working to win the world cup for over seven years now.
remand - (noun) the act of sending an accused person back into custody to await trial (or the continuation of the trial); verb refer (a matter or legal case) to another committee or authority or court for decision; lock up or confine, in or as in a jail
-They had to remand the criminal being accused for three different crimes because they ahd no evidence of whether he did them or not.
syndrome - (noun) a complex of concurrent things; a pattern of symptoms indicative of some disease
-As you get older, you may start gettign syndromes of different sort that become harder to manage.
-Often times, magicians use abberation to amaze the crowd and start to get their attention.
Ad hoc- (adverb) for the special purpose or end presently under consideration
-We had no choice but to ad hoc the event because of the horrible weather we have been having for the past five days.
bane - (noun) something causes misery or death
-Cancer was a bane for my grandmother and she had no choice but to live her very best until the horrid disease ate her life.
bathos - (noun) triteness or triviality of style; a change from a serious subject to a disappointing one; insincere pathos
-The story had a dramatic seen of bathos where no one in the audience saw it coming.
cantankerous - (adj.) having a difficult and contrary disposition; stubbornly obstructive and unwilling to cooperate
-There is always someone who is cantankerous in your group that will bring up issues and make things harder for everyone.
casuistry - (noun) moral philosophy based on the application of general ethical principles to resolve moral dilemmas; argumentation that is specious or excessively subtle and intended to be misleading
-The novel we read for the class had many details informing readers about casuistry.
de facto - (noun) in fact; in reality
-
depredation - (noun) an act of plundering and pillaging and marauding; (usually plural) a destructive action
-The evil in any movie or story usually makes a depredation before the actual attack.
empathy - (noun) understanding and entering into another's feelings
-It is hard to make an empathy to someone you have just met but it is a possibility that you can understand just a small part of their lives or their feelings.
harbinger - (noun) an indication of the approach of something or someone; verb foreshadow or presage
-Readers were able to easily make a harbinger when the prince was back in town, he would meet the pretty new girl who everyone was talking about.
hedonism - (noun) an ethical system that evaluates the pursuit of pleasure as the highest good; the pursuit of pleasure as a matter of ethical principle
-Not everyone will believe or think that hedonism is right because everyone has different views of what pleasure is.
lackluster - (adj.) lacking luster or shine; lacking brilliance or vitality
-The old car that has been sitting in the garage for more than a decade is very lackluster.
malcontent - (adj.) discontented as toward authority; noun a person who is discontented or disgusted
-The girl was discontented when she saw the criminal kill a person without hesitation.
mellifluous - (adj.) pleasing to the ear
-Girls often expect to hear mellifluous things by guys just like they expect them to make the first move.
nepotism - noun favoritism shown to relatives or close friends by those in power (as by giving them jobs)
-My aunt shows neptism towards me because I am one of the few that gives her the time of day.
pander - (noun) someone who procures customers for whores (in England they call a pimp a ponce); verb arrange for sexual partners for others; yield (to); give satisfaction to
-There has been many articles about panders on the newspaper.
peccadillo - (noun) a petty misdeed
-As a child, many young kids make peccadillos that are later forgiven.
piece de resistance - (noun) the most noteworthy or prized feature, aspect, event, article, etc., of a series or group; special item or attraction.
-The trophy was an obvious piece de resistance since the team had been working to win the world cup for over seven years now.
remand - (noun) the act of sending an accused person back into custody to await trial (or the continuation of the trial); verb refer (a matter or legal case) to another committee or authority or court for decision; lock up or confine, in or as in a jail
-They had to remand the criminal being accused for three different crimes because they ahd no evidence of whether he did them or not.
syndrome - (noun) a complex of concurrent things; a pattern of symptoms indicative of some disease
-As you get older, you may start gettign syndromes of different sort that become harder to manage.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Vocabulary List #6
1. Beatitude: (noun) supreme blessedness or
happiness
The girl had an aura of pure beatitude that no one could dislike.
2. bête noire: (noun) something that is particularly disliked
Although it is a part of life all americans experience, I will always see homework on weekends and vacations a bete noire.
3. bode: (verb) to be an omen of, predict or foretell
The fortune teller boded what will be the destiny of the young married couple.
4. dank: (adj.) unpleasantly damp and chilly
Don't let yourself be clubbed by dank submission.
5. ecumenical: (adj.) universal
English is an ecumencial language because wherever you go, most people will know or understand English.
6. fervid: (adj.) intensely passionate
He was fervid when it came to football and put more effort and time than most people could ever do.
7. fetid: (adj.) having a stale nauseating smell, as of decay
The trash can reaked of a fetid air everytime it was opened.
8. gargantuan: (adj.) sometimes capital huge; enormous
The artwork was a gargantuan piece taking up almost one whole room in the museum.
9. heyday: (noun) the time of most power, popularity, vigor, etc; prime
The 80's is a heyday for many Americans.
10. incubus: (noun) something that oppresses, worries, or disturbs greatly, esp a nightmare or obsession
My dream was an incubus because it felt so real and I knew for a fact that it could happen in real life.
11. infrastructure: (noun) the basic structure of an organization, system, etc
It is important for each club at school to have a infrastructure so that it is easier to process everything and easier to plan everything for the whsole group.
12. inveigle: (verb) often fall by into or an infinitive to lead (someone into a situation) or persuade (to do something) by cleverness or trickery
The thief was such a master at inveigling that no one, at first, would suspect him to take anything until its too late and gone.
13. kudos: (noun) functioning as singular acclaim, glory, or prestige
We all gave kudos to the students who posted all the definitions of the vocabulary words.
14. lagniappe: (noun) something given or obtained as a gratuity or bonus, small trinket
The coach gave a player a lagniappe for all the hard work that was done during the season.
15. prolix: (adj.) so long as to be boring; verbose
The class was honestly prolix to a point where at least six students had fallen asleep.
16. protégé: (noun) a person who is protected and aided by the patronage of another person
The princess was a protege in the story.
17. prototype: (noun) one of the first units manufactured of a product, which is tested so that the design can be changed if necessary before the product is manufactured commercially
I wonder what the prototype of an iPhone looked like since it is so high tech and full of wonderous ways of using it all over the world.
18. sycophant: (noun) a person who uses flattery to win favor from individuals wielding influence; toady
There is always at least one sycophant who buys their way to getting a good grade.
19. tautology: (noun) the use of words that merely repeat elements of the meaning already conveyed
The essay topic required to use tautology in order to relate to the passage given.
20. truckle: (verb) to yield weakly; give in
The little kids truckled and came into the house after smelling the sweet smell of their mother's pie.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Beowulf and Godsylla
Meanehwæl,
baccat meaddehæle, monstær lurccen;
Fulle
few too many drincce, hie luccen for fyht.
Ðen
Hreorfneorhtðhwr, son of Hrwærowþheororthwl,
Æsccen
æwful jeork to steop outsyd. Þhud! Bashe! Crasch! Beoom! Ðe bigge gye
Eallum
his bon brak, byt his nose offe;
Wicced
Godsylla wæld on his asse.
Monstær
moppe fleor wyþ eallum men in hælle.
Beowulf
in bacceroome fonecall bamaccen wæs;
Hearen
sond of ruccus sæd, "Hwæt ðe helle?"
Graben
sheold strang ond swich-blæd scharp
Stond
feorth to fyht ðe grimlic foe. "Me," Godsylla sæd, "mac ðe minsemete."
Heoro
cwyc geten heold wiþ fæmed half-nelson
Ond
flyng him lic frisbe bac to fen
Beowulf
belly up to meaddehæle bar,
Sæd,
"Ne foe beaten mie færsom cung-fu."
Eorderen
cocca-cohla yce-coeld, ðe reol þyng.
Translation:
Meanwhile,
back the mead-hall, monster lurking;
Full
few too many drinks, he was looking for a fight.
Then Hreorfneorhtðhwr, son
of Hrwærowþheororthwl,
Asked
the awful jerk to step outside. Thud! Bash! Crash! Boom! The big
guy
All
of his bones broke, bit his nose off;
Wicked
Godzilla wailed(?) on his ass.
Monster
mopped the floor with all of the men in the hall.
Beowulf
was in back room making a phone call;
Hearing
sound of ruckus said, "What the hell?"
Grabbing
shield strong and switch-blade sharp
Stood
forth to fight the grimlic foe. "Me," Godzilla said, "make the
mincemeat."
Hero
quick gotten hold with famed half-nelson
And
flying him like a frisbee back to fen
Beowulf
belly up to the mead-hall bar,
Said,
"No foe has beaten my fearsome kung-fu."
Ordering
coca-cola ice-cold, the real thing.
Hahaha so confusing and weird, but it made me laugh!
Hero's Journey Deconstruction
For my hero, I chose Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games trilogy. At first, when I heard the word hero, I started to think of Batman, Superman, Spiderman, Ironman... etc. and realized that I couldn't pick which one was my favorite. Then I came across The Hunger Games and I knew for a fact that I've read those books about a hundred times.
So in the books, Katniss is triggered to volunteer as tribute after her little sister, Primrose has been chosen as tribute for the 74th Hunger Games. Knowing that Prim does not have the power nor courage to fight against 23 others, she choses to take her place. Surprisingly enough, she makes it out of the games alive and along with her tribute from the same District 12, Peeta. She is then forced into going into the games again risking her life even more. Her sctions, words and aura creates a cause for a revolution no one has expected to happen for ages. Now she is forced to fight for the freedom of all twelve districts and to break away from the customs of putting 24 teenagers into an arena of death. Katniss is my favorite hero because she is unlike others, she is courageous and clever but also afraid in a way that no very many people would understand. She doesn't trust many people but there is something about her that brings everyone near and willing to support her. Throughout the story, she has to go through many obstacles of separation, death, injuries, hatred, war and crime. She is strong till the end hoping that in the end, things will be back to normal, before she volunteered as tribute.
So in the books, Katniss is triggered to volunteer as tribute after her little sister, Primrose has been chosen as tribute for the 74th Hunger Games. Knowing that Prim does not have the power nor courage to fight against 23 others, she choses to take her place. Surprisingly enough, she makes it out of the games alive and along with her tribute from the same District 12, Peeta. She is then forced into going into the games again risking her life even more. Her sctions, words and aura creates a cause for a revolution no one has expected to happen for ages. Now she is forced to fight for the freedom of all twelve districts and to break away from the customs of putting 24 teenagers into an arena of death. Katniss is my favorite hero because she is unlike others, she is courageous and clever but also afraid in a way that no very many people would understand. She doesn't trust many people but there is something about her that brings everyone near and willing to support her. Throughout the story, she has to go through many obstacles of separation, death, injuries, hatred, war and crime. She is strong till the end hoping that in the end, things will be back to normal, before she volunteered as tribute.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Vocabulary #4
apostate: a person who forsakes his religion, cause, party, etc.
-The man was an apostate and when he walked around the village, the villagers would look at him as if he was an outlaw.
effusive: unduly demonstrative; lacking reserve.
-The substitute teacher was effusive toward the students.
impasse: a position or situation from which there is no escape.
-We were put in a impasse when they locked us up in a room to talk about our personal problems.
euphoria: a state of intense happiness and self-confidence.
-The boy was in euphoria after attending a football college and receiving praises from famous coaches and players.
lugubrious: mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner.
-There is always a lugubrious family member at a family event.
bravado: a pretentious, swaggering display of courage.
-The young man was bravado after his big make over.
consensus: majority of opinion
-We took a consensus of whether or not we should take the asphault volleyball courts out in order to build another tennis court.
dichotomy: division into two parts
-There was a dichotomy in the group after the big argument during the meeting.
constrict: to slow or stop the natural course or to contract or shrink
-The point of the lab was to constrict the time it took for the ball to reach the ground.
gothic: noting or pertaining to a style of architecture, originating in France in the middle of the 12th century and existing in the western half of Europe through the middle of the 16th century, characterized by the use of the pointed arch and the ribbed vault, by the use of fine woodwork and stonework, by a progressive lightening of structure, and by the use of such features as flying buttresses, ornamental gables, crockets, and foils.
-The house down the street was very old and gothic.
punctilio: a fine point, particular, or detail, as of conduct, ceremony, or procedure.
-For the wedding, it was punctilio so that it would turn out perfect.
metamorphosis: a complete change of form, structure, or substance, as transformation
raconteur to tell
-The weird solid block did a metamorphosis at night and in the morning, it was liquid.
sine qua non: an indispensable condition, element, or factor; something essential
-The team captain was sine qua non to the team since she has done everything that she can to bring the team to the championships.
quixotic: extravagantly chivalrous or romantic; visionary, impractical, or impracticable
-Not very many young people these days are quixotic.
vendetta: any prolonged and bitter feud, rivalry, contention
-You can see many vendettas when it comes to sports.
non sequitur: an inference or a conclusion that does not follow from the premises.
-There was a non sequitar in the middle of the song.
mystique: a framework of doctrines, ideas, beliefs, or the like, constructed around a person or object, endowing the person or object with enhanced value or profound meaning
-My mother likes to read books that are mystique.
quagmire: anything soft or flabby
-My cat is quagmire.
parlous: perilous; dangerous
-The tour guide told us not to go in the jungle without a ranger because it is filled with parlous creatures.
-The man was an apostate and when he walked around the village, the villagers would look at him as if he was an outlaw.
effusive: unduly demonstrative; lacking reserve.
-The substitute teacher was effusive toward the students.
impasse: a position or situation from which there is no escape.
-We were put in a impasse when they locked us up in a room to talk about our personal problems.
euphoria: a state of intense happiness and self-confidence.
-The boy was in euphoria after attending a football college and receiving praises from famous coaches and players.
lugubrious: mournful, dismal, or gloomy, especially in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner.
-There is always a lugubrious family member at a family event.
bravado: a pretentious, swaggering display of courage.
-The young man was bravado after his big make over.
consensus: majority of opinion
-We took a consensus of whether or not we should take the asphault volleyball courts out in order to build another tennis court.
dichotomy: division into two parts
-There was a dichotomy in the group after the big argument during the meeting.
constrict: to slow or stop the natural course or to contract or shrink
-The point of the lab was to constrict the time it took for the ball to reach the ground.
gothic: noting or pertaining to a style of architecture, originating in France in the middle of the 12th century and existing in the western half of Europe through the middle of the 16th century, characterized by the use of the pointed arch and the ribbed vault, by the use of fine woodwork and stonework, by a progressive lightening of structure, and by the use of such features as flying buttresses, ornamental gables, crockets, and foils.
-The house down the street was very old and gothic.
punctilio: a fine point, particular, or detail, as of conduct, ceremony, or procedure.
-For the wedding, it was punctilio so that it would turn out perfect.
metamorphosis: a complete change of form, structure, or substance, as transformation
raconteur to tell
-The weird solid block did a metamorphosis at night and in the morning, it was liquid.
sine qua non: an indispensable condition, element, or factor; something essential
-The team captain was sine qua non to the team since she has done everything that she can to bring the team to the championships.
quixotic: extravagantly chivalrous or romantic; visionary, impractical, or impracticable
-Not very many young people these days are quixotic.
vendetta: any prolonged and bitter feud, rivalry, contention
-You can see many vendettas when it comes to sports.
non sequitur: an inference or a conclusion that does not follow from the premises.
-There was a non sequitar in the middle of the song.
mystique: a framework of doctrines, ideas, beliefs, or the like, constructed around a person or object, endowing the person or object with enhanced value or profound meaning
-My mother likes to read books that are mystique.
quagmire: anything soft or flabby
-My cat is quagmire.
parlous: perilous; dangerous
-The tour guide told us not to go in the jungle without a ranger because it is filled with parlous creatures.
Literary Analysis #1
I chose to read the Crucible by Arthur Miller. As I read many of the summaries, when I saw "Salem witch trials", for some reason, it caught my attention. I'm usually not super excited about reading books for school especially when we have no choice of what to read, but I'm actually happy to read the Crucible. I figured that none of these novels will be easy to read so I guess I also chose this because I know the background of the witch trials.
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