ED IN THE SHED

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

HI

HI

Over break, I saw my friends quite a few times. I also watched some of my favorite movies on Tuesday, Ciitzen Kane and Raging Bull. They are old movies in black and white, but they are some real goodies. I also got a substantial amount of music while lounging around on Tuesday, dreading going back to school the next day. That's pretty much a general explanation of my break.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Cornell Notes for Sources

TITLE:
AUTHOR:
YEAR PUBLISHED:

Main Idea #1: Equality

Summary: The word equal in Animal Farm is a large contradiction in Animal Farm.


Quote: In this reading the pigs want less equality, not more; being "more equal" means that you belong to the common herd, not the elite.


Question: Did Orwell intend to make the commandments very confusing and difficult to understand?


Main Idea #2: The characters in Animal Farm connect to the world

Summary: Orwell found the perfect metaphor of Eastern Europe ongoing fights.


Quote: The men who come to deal with the ruling pigs, Pilkington from capitalist England and Frederick from Nazi Germany, commiserate with the pigs: "You have your lower animals and we have our lower classes."


Question:

Main Idea #3:

Summary:


Quote:


Question:



How will this source help you write your paper?

Thursday, May 1, 2008

The main difference between a research paper and an essay is the topic of discussion. An essay usually talks about the importance of a novel. A research paper usually talks about real life. These two can be connected quite well to make a very strong point. Showing that a major theme in a novel is true in real life is probably the best thing possible for a well written essay. For example, in my first topic I talked about how sibling feuds were a major theme of the novel. I did not incorporate any research and only used a quote from the book. In my second essay, I talked about the theme of sibling feuds in real life. I used an actual research paper, and then I tied it to the book.
In the book, many themes and motifs pop up right from the start. One theme that has been mentioned is the protagonists large family that is full of personality. On page 36 it states, “Frank was witty, charming, at smiling ease with his life and everything in it.” As the narrator describes his family, it seems like the majority of his family are kindhearted people. However, his grandfather is later described as a power hungry sheriff who always wanted to have control over the town. The grandfather used his son as a tool to keep power over the town even though he was not the sheriff. The protagonist could turn out to be more like his grandfather and less like his father. He is already thinking revolutionary ideas of escaping town life and living life in the fast lane. David Hayden also seems to know quite a bit about guns, the tool of violence.

According to the research, one of the tactics used to avoid sibling rivalry is to go your own way. I think David Hayden does not want to follow his family in the line of town life. He wants to do something his family is not interested in. He also talks about how he does not know how to behave as a civil person. He looks at people to try and find the “secret” behind being a good mannered, normal person. I think David wants to just be himself, as he wants to be and not behave like the other people in his town. He has stated he does not know how town life works and he wants to escape. I thought this was similar to Catcher in the Rye in the sense of phonies. David does not want to be a town phony and behave a certain way around other people.

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

annotation

Weekly, Publishers. “Sundown, Yellow Moon.” Rev. of Sundown, Yellow Moon. Publishers Weekly 2007: 31.

This article talks about the book Sundown, Yellow Moon by Larry Watson. It is written by Publisher Weekly, a very highly respected review magazine. The author talks about the main character. His father’s best friend shoots a senator and then hangs himself. The author talks about the important symbol of cigarettes in the novel. Nearly every character has a bad habit of smoking cigarettes. I thought this was similar the guns that are constantly being mentioned in Larry’s other novel, Montana 1948. Both books take place in older times, and violence seems to be an important factor of both books. The author makes a good summary/‌synopsis of the book for interested readers. I have gathered the main points of the book simply by reading this short paragraph.

Thursday, April 17, 2008



Guilt is a strange feeling if you think about it. You got away with the crime, and you will most likely suffer terrible consequences for getting caught. However, you feel the need to turn yourself in. Why do we feel guilt? One of my favorite examples of guilt is a work of Edgar Allen Poe. Most of you have probably heard of it, it is called The Tell Tale Heart. It is about a man who perfectly executes a plan to kill an old man with an eye he cannot stand. He executes his plan flawlessly, and he even fools the police officers who came to investigate the scene. He hears a weird ticking noise that gets louder in louder as the Police sit in his house, talking with each other. He eventually loses his mind and confesses to the police officers that he hid the body parts under the floorboards.

In a teenager's life, guilt can be a huge factor. Sometimes lying to your parents can seem like an awful deed. Our parents do a great deal of things to support us. They pay for us, care about us, and they protect us from the dangers of life. And teenagers lie to their parents non stop about a great deal of many things. However, parents sometimes forget the fact that we are young adults and it is only natural for us to explore in different ways, and I'm sure a lot of our parents have done their share of "bad deeds".

Guilt is also a large theme in Macbeth. Lady Macbeth kills herself because she was behind the corruption of Macbeth. He used to be a nice, great guy before his wife made him go crazy. Guilt was the root of the entire plot in Macbeth if you think about it. And in the end, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth both die and things go back to normal. You can start to see the guilt of Macbeth second after he kills Duncan. When he knows what is he up against, he states he wishes Duncan was back alive shortly after his death. It seems truly unrealistic that nobody suspects Macbeth until later in the play. He said that he killed the guards of Duncan but not Duncan himself? Why would he be at the crime scene?

Wednesday, April 9, 2008



Feminism is one of the longest standing political topics of our time. Feminism began in America as soon as the Union was formed. Feminists like Susan B. Anthony thought women should have the right to vote and be independent. I found this website of feminist quotes. Susan B. Anthony makes a very interesting point, "It was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed the Union." Points like these are undeniable arguments towards Feminism. I believe that men and women should be pretty equal, but there has to be some biological limit. After all, the point of the women is to stay behind while the man does the physical bodily work. Many women such as Susan B. Anthony are strong role models for women. And of course, other women like Paris Hilton are horrible role models. A women who does not work thinks men should be politically equal to women. Many women believe that Feminism is undeniably true. A quote from Rita Mae Brown, "Any woman whose I.Q. hovers above her body temperature must be a feminist." I find that comment quite offensive, but the quote could have been said a hundred years ago. Women DO have a lot of power in today's society. Hillary Clinton is quite close to becoming president of the United States. The most powerful leader of the most powerful country could be a woman. Feminism is of course a huge theme in the play, Macbeth. The idea of Feminism is almost flipped in the play. The women call the shots. However, my definition of Feminism is the equality of men and women. Lady Macbeth is clearly not equal to Macbeth in terms of respect in any way. Lady Macbeth is a terrible role model. Feminism should not mean that women should use men as puppets to get what they want.