Metacognition: Jane Eyre Writing Assignment

To prepare for the Jane Eyre writing assignment, my team members and I held a verbal discussion about some of the themes in the book, acting as Charlotte Brontë, the Academy student, and the publisher. We recorded the conversation with a digital recorder and composed a transcript of the discussion. I found this process very beneficial in that it allowed me to realize the roles of each of our characters in the discussion as well as address the themes and elements of the book from these varying perspectives. The discussion itself provided a solid foundation of ideas that formed our writing assignment.

This entire process exposed my brain's methods of learning and understanding and I've come to the conclusion that the best way for me to learn or unearth new ideas is through discussion. The practice of bouncing ideas off of one another was incredible because there were a few occasions where I realized something I hadn't before. It was fantastic.

As far as writing the transcript itself, I would look at the topic being discussed and see how I could weave in an important theme all the while making each character remain true to themselves. I found that I was able to have each character's defining traits complement or challenge the others'. For example, sometimes I would have the curious nature of the Academy student question the motives of the author, Brontë.

Overall, I liked my mind's ability to piece together multiple levels of information, especially from varying perspectives.

Metacognition: Jane Eyre

As I read Jane Eyre, I heeded Mr. Allen's advice and took my time to finish each reading assignment. I tried to focus and not rush reading as I simultaneously evaluated and enjoyed the text. I found that taking time to read as opposed to just getting the assignment done improved my ability to take in details and make connections.

However, I noticed that there were times when reading Jane Eyre was quite difficult as the plot lulled and Bronte described scenery excessively. Although I am not doubting the importance of scenery to the story, I've realized an unfortunate characteristic of my thinking that my mind tends to wander during the more dull points of the text.

On the other hand, I do like the fact that I can evaluate the text and even recognize elements of good writing at the same time. It was very well written and I think my mind was very effective in analyzing the writing and ideas of Jane Eyre.

360 degrees: Big is Beautiful

It's a well-known fact that the media displays the "ideal" embodiments of the human being through magazines, TV, movies, and any other mode of communication or entertainment. These "ideal" images are telling young girls that "thin is in" and that beauty is directly related to your dress size, causing many girls to develop eating disorders at young ages. A change in times have altered these images for the new rise of obese and overweight individuals. A popular catchphrase, "big is beautiful," has grown to be a methodology for many, but is it really beneficial?

Some say yes, this new ideology has reshaped the thinking of females to focus less on their physical appearance and accept themselves for who they are. "Big is beautiful" has allowed many girls to realize their inner beauty and value themselves for character rather than dress size. It boosts her confidence and can even improve her outlook on her life. The acceptance of larger people into society has given birth to plus-size fashion lines, now allowing big men and women to dress fashionably, further fostering personal acceptance.

However, this new ideology also excuses children and adults for being overweight. It seems to exempt individuals from the health risks associated with obesity and labels it as something along the lines of "acceptance of individuality." Obesity is a growing epidemic and a serious matter that cannot continue, but now it's ok because big is beautiful. Wrong. Obesity is never ok. It's unhealthy and harmful. Also, the introduction of plus size as a new size for models may even be encouraging such behavior.

But maybe the catchphrase "big is beautiful" provides stable grounds for improvement. It could serve as inspiration to improve unhealthy lifestyles and get back on track to live a healthily and therefore happily.

From any perspective one views the situation, one thing is clear: there is a beauty revolution going on that's reforming the way we see ourselves. Is it positive or negative? I'll let you be the judge.

An Inconvenient Truth: All good things must come to an end

As spring break has come to a close, it's rather depressing to accept the end of a wonderful break and the dreaded return to school. So as school starts tomorrow and my euphoria dissolves, it has inspired a deeper thought that all good things must come to an end.

Yes, it may seem obvious that goodness can't last forever, but don't we hold the reins to our own lives? Can't we just live so that we only experience happiness? Although it may not be impossible, on a biological level I do know that the human brain experiences a variety of hormone-induced emotions that are functions of daily activity. Now, some of these emotions can be learned, like guilt or shame; so can someone be ignorant of these emotions and live in a world of happiness?

On a philosophical level, epicureans live their lives to experience the most pleasure possible. However, sometimes an epicurean will sacrifice feeling immediate pleasure for experiencing long-term pleasure. In Sophie's World, Gaarder uses the example of a sum of money. One could easily spend that newly-earned money on a chocolate bar and feel immediate pleasure or one could wait, save the money, and use the savings to buy a brand new bike for a long-term sense of pleasure. This concept was called the "pleasure calculator."

So, even though an epicurean lives to be satisfied, he or she still makes sacrifices to achieve the utmost satisfaction. So can someone be truly happy all the time? I think not, for all good things must come to an end.

Dialectics: Regionalism and Globalism

My initial inspiration for this blog post was not from the examples given on the blogging prompts page, but from our French book. Two of our vocabulary words for the chapter are: la mondialisation, or globalization, and la regionalisme, or regionalism.

Globalization and regionalism are, for one, different in the areas they address. Globalization expands across the earth whereas regionalism applies to a specific region. Obvious, I know, but now we have the basics out of the way.

So what exactly is globalization? By my definition, it's the communication of people across long distances, connecting all four corners of the earth.

Regionalism is the sense of belonging to a specific region. It gives the region a feeling of being larger and more important and focuses in on its prosperity

So, in a sense, the connections through globalization make the world seem smaller as communication becomes faster, easier, and more prominent. It feels as though the world has shrunk in size and relations with faraway lands are increasingly more attainable. However, regionalism focuses in on one region, making it the center of all decisions and thought. This makes the region seem much larger, as it is the sole purpose and focus and outside elements become less important.

With each mode of thought, perspectives change. Globalization accepts and welcomes outside nations while regionalism is more self-centered.

Yet, either way, both of these methodologies bring masses together, whether on a global or regional scale. They formulate close connections and elements that bind us together.

Blogging Around: Connor and Merrick

Connor's dialectics blog post was about the role of business and government in society.

My comment:

"I completely agree with you in that business and government should remain two separate entities and should not intervene with one another. You addressed important yet unfortunate effects of each institution holding too much power and realizing these outcomes are vital in maintaining society. This was well written and thought out."

Merrick's blog post was about colonialism and its long-term effects on Africa's development.

My comment:

"This really grabbed my interest because I, too, have pondered Africa's slow progression (compared to the rest of the world). The idea of European imperialism stunting Africa's growth makes perfect sense and I completely agree. I also agree with you, Merrick, in that Africa didn't benefit under European rule. It only led to a wounded society that never seemed to fully recover."

Best of Week: HOD through the eyes of an African

During our Heart of Darkness discussion, Mr. Allen had brought up a point about introducing an African perspective to the story. This idea immediately sparked interest within me for I was curious to explore the difference one narrator could have on the story.

Not only would it change the literary aspect of the novel in ways I will describe later, but the historical background would be altered concerning the position of blacks in society at the time. Not only were the Africans in the story of a minority race, they were "savage" indigenous peoples who were subject to white colonial rule. Therefore, introducing an African perspective to the story would take away some of the pride in imperialism and methods of The Company from a European colonist's eyes and replace them with disdain towards whites, altering the feel of the book.

From a basic literary standpoint, the language and rhythm of the writing would differ if from an African's perspective. I also think it would change the mood of the book from a story about colonialism rich with modernist and post-modernist elements to a diary of an indigenous African and his/her relations with European colonists. However, I think the reader would be subject to even more of the modernist idea of multiplicity through African fascination and reverence for Kurtz.

Also, during class someone had brought up the idea of making a character in the book African, using the Russian as an example. We evaluated that if any of the characters were "Africanized," then they would be reduced to being of little importance. Relating back to the historical aspect, only a century ago, Africans were of the lowest social class, so any character of high stature in the story would be reduced to a minority with a change of race.

An Inconvenient Truth: Food, Inc.

Today in health class I was faced with the inconvenient truth of the practices of our agrarian society. The movie, Food, Inc. is a documentary that takes viewers behind the scenes of today's food manufacturers and their treatment of animals as well as poor production methods. As I watched merely the first 45 minutes of the film, I was horrified, disgusted, and deeply saddened all at once.

Food, Inc. took me back to the ideals of Ishmael and humanity in the rest of the world. The Fall marked the beginning of man's grasp on the earth; the ability to bend the environment to suit our own needs. We tilled the land to feed a growing population that would only keep growing, rationalizing our actions as sustaining the population. We as humans gave ourselves permission to tamper with lifeforms and form them to support our populations with the help of science, technology, and the might of the human race. And what are we left with? Now we genetically modify chickens and cows and plants to be bigger, better, and less susceptible to disease and we mass produce them. Animals aren't born. They're manufactured to our needs. They're manufactured to make money. This is what has become of the hunter-gatherer societies of the Stone Age. Well done.

Another angle to this situation is that our new agrarian practices make us richer. Food is made cheaply and efficiently and is engineered to give utmost satisfaction. The fast food industry is now booming and more and more people have grown to rely on it. Also, science has helped us make our food safer and more nutrient rich so that we may receive vital vitamins and minerals.

Although it is difficult to accept our current food situation, it is important to realize that the progression of our society has led to increases in population, and we must feed this population cheaply. However, I don't have to accept the horrors of this situation, but I can accept that maybe green and organic initiatives will continue to grow and hopefully our newly developed food technologies will be used for the better.

Connection: Heart of Darkness and the East India Company

During our Heart of Darkness discussion on Thursday, we talked about the relationship between government and economics with the main question being: "To what extent should government be involved in businesses?" I connected this idea to the English East India Company and their involvement in the colonization of other countries.

The East India Company (EIC) established especially close relations with India after the 1757 Battle of Plassey when troops defended the weak Mughal empire from rebellious warlords. This resulted in a peace treaty making the commander of the EIC troops the official tax collector for Bengal. From 1757-1858, the EIC progressed to become the de facto government of India, illustrating the mesh of government and business.

This is along the lines of Heart of Darkness as Europeans scramble to exploit African commodities and African society suffers European enroachment and brutal power. This is visible as Africans are enslaved to work in mines and businessmen from European nations travel to Africa seeking ivory.

This connection sheds light on the relationship between government and business because at one point, business organizations or companies became the government and ruling body of these nations. It shows their political weakness but also the changing times and the modernist/post-modernist development of Heart of Darkness. The connection further illustrates the post-modernist worldview that globalization leads to more complicated representations of society and the way people live and relate to one another, for example.

Metacognition: 1000 Word Essay

Word count FAIL: Before writing the 1000 word essay, Mr. Allen made it seem as though the word count would be easily fulfilled and even surpassed. However, while writing the essay I found that this word count wasn't as easily attainable as I thought it would be. I found myself tossing in words just to reach the goal of 850 words, throwing the desired succinctness down the drain.

Structure/organization FAIL: I had conformed to the age-old 5 paragraph essay format taught as early as 3rd grade. For a reason unbeknown to me, I had assumed that it was part of the assignment to follow the lovely formatting, but after turning in the essay I quickly learned that this wasn't the case.

Quality FAIL: My essay lacked deep insight and perspective as well as voice.

As is quite visible, I did not like my essay very much.

But, to preserve optimism, found that I was able to piece together many philosophers' perspectives and find underlying commonalities. I also found that I enjoyed delving into this question and hunting for the answer within the lines of Sophie's World.

While writing the essay I pondered creation and evolution and their conflicting roles in society. Science has taken a new stand in today's world and religion isn't very welcoming of its growing power.

Throughout the semester I had gained a lot of insight into various philosophies that will prove to be very helpful in my essay writing and thinking. It is mode of thought that is foundational to many fields of study, no matter how contradictory they may be.

Blogging Around: Rebekah and Anna

In her blog post, Rebekah gave us a 360 degree perspective of rock and roll music. From a bad influence and the cause of druggies and rebels to the greatest thing ever heard, rock music has been a ground for change.

My comment on Rebekah's post:

Rebekah, Being a rock and roll lover myself, I really enjoyed reading your post. I have also experienced others' varying opinions of rock music, but this post raises many interesting questions. Music is a very very powerful form of expression, and I think that it was the driving force behind many of the revolutions of thought and societal values in the 60s and 70s. It became a strong foundation for many people and propelled their causes forward. With so many effects associated with it, maybe rock and roll did change the world.

Anna's iMedia blog post reflected a new Levi's commercial that went against the norm, was artfully done, and very grasping. The commercial had the underlying idea of rebelliousness that also had historical relevance.

My comment on Anna's post:

Anna, First off, I totally agree with everything you said. Upon seeing these commercials, I was completely captivated. I experienced the same exact thoughts: "artistic; historically relevant, yet refreshingly modern; frightening, yet optimistic." Basically, it was the coolest Levi's commercial I had ever seen. Ever. Also, Anna, stop stealing my thoughts. This post addressed every thought in my head and you even brought attention to the ones that were elusively unaddressable (great minds think alike!) I was so happy to see a thought-provoking commercial with meaning and not a superficial figment of the modern world.

iMedia: Apocalypse Please

The song, "Apocalypse Please" by the band, Muse, addresses issues within our society and human responses to these issues.

When confronted by a difficult situation or a dramatic event, it is natural for humans to turn to a leader for guidance. The lyrics,"Declare this an emergency/ come on and spread a sense of urgency/ and pull us through.../ this is the end of the world," demonstrate this dependence on leadership in dire situations.

Another reaction is for humans to turn to a higher, "other" power or spiritual being as is illustrated in the following lyrics, "It's time we saw a miracle/ come on it's time for something biblical/ to pull us through.../ this is the end of the world." There is a commonality throughout history for religions to expand and flourish during times of crisis, which could be due to loss of hope in any other guiding force.

I chose this song because of the recent buzz about the Mayan theory of the apocalypse on December 21, 2012. Recently, movies, such as "2012," TV shows, and books regarding the apocalypse have been spewing from every direction.

Not only does this song address recent concerns of the end of the world, but it also addresses human philosophy and responses to these situations.

"Apocalypse Please" by Muse

Poor Tom and the Ghosts of Christmas

A Christmas Carol tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a greedy man who is confronted by three Christmas spirits that help him achieve redemption and embody the Christmas spirit.

Edgar's disguise as Poor Tom relates to the Christmas spirits in the novel, A Christmas Carol. During his first appearance, to King Lear, Poor Tom catches Lear's attention because they share the feeling of misery. However, Poor Tom gives Lear a new perspective on his situation and calms some of his rage as he tells Lear that he had no daughters to drive him mad and that his insanity was caused by his own actions. Poor Tom sheds light on Lear's situation as Lear recognizes that others have it worse than him.

Lear echoes Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol as the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Christmas Yet to Come confront Scrooge concerning his way of life. These ghosts present varying perspectives on Scrooge's life and force him to realize his ways and change them for the better.

Hopefully Poor Tom's warnings will reshape Lear's thinking and force him to re-evaluate the immature treatment of his daughters as he refuses to talk to them like Scrooge changed his way of life.

360 degrees: The Pink Cow

The Pink Cow. What an interesting work of art. Andy Warhol strikes again with a display of dual vibrant colors that turn ordinary into extraordinary.

But not all see it the same way.

Some say, "The cow isn't even pink. It's red. And why would anyone make a cow red? Cows definitely aren't red. When was the last time you saw a red cow?

While others reflect, "I think Mr. Warhol's clashing colors present a deeper, underlying thought. The cow is clearly the subject of the piece as it is the darker color against the brighter yellow background. The sharp division in the pink and yellow illustrate the debated issue of animal rights."

Another perspective says, "This is pretty awesome. I like the vibrant colors and the random cow. It's even kinda comic-bookie. Andy Warhol was a cool guy."

A few others:

"I like the colors, but the cow doesn't fit."

"I like the cow, but the colors don't fit."

"What was this guy thinking?"

The last question seems to remain true in all of the perspectives: What was Andy Warhol thinking? We don't really know for sure, but he took a cow and made it "WOW" (I know, I'm so funny). This ignorance is present in all of these views, but it also makes each point of view question more.

Why did Warhol choose a cow as his main attraction? Was he actually trying to prove a point? Was he just trying to be funny? Personally, I think Warhol chose the cow for a number of reasons. Warhol's art revolved around American culture with subjects such as a Campbell's tomato soup can and Marilyn Monroe. The cow represents America's acres of farms and dependence on agriculture. Cows are also simple and, well, random.

What if Andy chose different colors? What if he didn't change the original color of the cow at all? What if he added a few more colors to the spectrum? The colors of a work of art lend great meaning and understanding. In any situation, a different palette would change the outlook entirely. Whether outrageous or conservative, the colors shape the perspective of the beholder.

Metacognition: Kite Runner Essay

While writing the Kite Runner essay, my thought process was something along the lines of, "You have a plan in front of you. Fill in the gaps, expand, flush out, and git 'er done."

But, in more depth, I noticed that I was making many connections from Kite Runner to the outside world. I like the way I can pick out symbols and identify their meanings and even connect them to other parts of the book or other ideas altogether. Not only is this present in my essay writing and reading for school, but I think the Academy has reshaped my mind to spot these connections in everything: TV shows, books, movies, anything. But that's another story for another time.

Sometimes, I am surprised to see that I can use such high-level thinking and form ideas that are hidden deep within the heart of the text. However, there are times when I over-evaluate simple thinking and ignore blatant clues that are right in front of my eyes.

I would like to expand my thinking even more and cover many different areas while reading books and writing essays. For example, I would like to be able to pick out elements of good writing (i.e. Beat by Beat) while noticing literary elements and taking note of themes, questions, characters, and underlying ideas. I have merely scratched the surface in doing this, but I know that the horizons are endless.

Chen and Graicey: Blogging Around

Chen's Connection post was about Amir and Hassan's unequal and, in Chen's words, "brown-nose relationship." Chen reflected on how Amir subjugates Hassan and makes him feel inferior, despite his loyalty to him. This is my comment from Chen's blog:

http://jasonc2012academy.blogspot.com/2009/09/connection-hassan-bridge-over-troubled.html#comments

Graicey's Change of Mind post was about our judgments and the way they limit our actions. This is my comment from Graicey's blog:

http://graiceyvacademy.blogspot.com/2009/09/change-of-mind-mockingbird.html?showComment=1255364992808#c7559040636973973955

(I was having trouble pasting the comments into this post, so I settled with inserting the links to the comments themselves. I hope this isn't too much of an inconvenience.)

Connection: Amir and The Hero's Journey

"The Hero's Journey," according to Joseph Campbell, is a series of common elements in works of writing that the typical stages of a character's adventure. While reading The Kite Runner, I couldn't help but notice a strong connection between the two. Does this mean that Amir is a hero?

A condensed form of steps of the hero's journey are as follows:

1. The Ordinary World
2. Call to Adventure
3. Refusal of Call
4. Meeting the Wise Mentor
5. The First Threshold
6. Tests, Allies, and Enemies
7. Supreme Ordeal
8. Revisiting the Mentor
9. Return with New Knowledge
10. Seizing the Prize
11. Resurrection
12. Return

Now, most readers wouldn't consider The Kite Runner an adventure story, but the hero's journey reveals an alternate view of some of the events that occur in the story. There is one point in the story in which Amir's life takes a dramatic spin: the Call to Adventure.

Amir's call to adventure started with a phone call from Rahim Khan, beckoning him to Afghanistan. Rahim then presented his request for Amir to find Hassan's child, marking the official call to adventure. This was the point that marked the end of the ordinary world and a turn in Amir's life. He originally refused the call, but then realized that it was his only shot at redemption for his actions.

As Amir sets out on his journey in the first threshold, Farid becomes his companion and transporter, linking him to the stages of his journey. Amir makes friends and foes, but then he is tested to his limits in the Ordeal, or confrontation and fight with Assef.

Amir's brawl with Assef could be called the climax, the battle, or the ordeal, but one thing remains true: it is the darkest part of his adventure and separates Amir's old self from the new. A violent and traumatic fight made room for change and new beginnings in Amir's life and allowed Amir to finally achieve some sort of redemption within himself. Assef had doled out the punishment that Amir had longed for for decades. So, this Return With New Knowledge cleared a path for Amir to Seize his Prize, Sohrab.

The Resurrection was a time of peace for Amir; a time away from the stresses of his past journey and a time of reflection on how he had changed. This was an internal struggle for Amir, yet it had finally lead him to his Return home with Sohrab. He had seized his prize and brought him home safely, but failed to subdue Sohrab's pain.

So, as Amir concludes his journey, can he be considered a hero?

Best of Week: The Western Mind

The West has always been, well, different. We're the guys hanging out in the upper lefthand corner of the map, distant from the hip and happenin' Eastern hemisphere and enormous Eurasian land mass, yet we hold an immense amount of power. The US is simultaneously a newborn (less than 300 years!) and an economic superpower. Not to mention we have cowboys. But how does this change our thinking?

As we discussed The Kite Runner, Sean mentioned the presence of a feeling of closure in the story, especially in chapters 14-18 when Rahim Khan contacts Amir and Amir makes amends with his past. We came to the conclusion that Hosseini wrote this way to appeal to the Western mind.

So this is a lie.

Hosseini tied up various loose ends of Amir's past just so we Americans could sigh with relief and release our balled fists and get on with the book knowing that Amir had confronted his torn past. Sure, it makes some of these ideas pretty and wraps them up in a nice, neat parcel, but I feel cheated.

I feel cheated of the real story. The way Amir's life really played out or the way Hosseini really wrote it. I want to know what the book would have been like if Amir had to live the rest of his life in ambiguity, drifting through the depths of the unknown. Would his emotions get the better of him and drive him to insanity? Would he conquer his grim past and carry on with his life? Too bad I'll never know.

Of course, we really don't know the truth about Hosseini's motives, but I found the idea intriguing. How often do authors rewrite or change the message of their pieces to attract specific audiences?

Carry It Forward: The Kite Runner

To be quite honest, I had never really evaluated an author's motives in choosing to write in a specific genre, especially fiction. While non-fiction is strictly based on truth and fantasy is a limitless realm of wonder, fiction was just different. In my mind, it was a genre that gave authors more freedom in writing their stories but set limits by assuring that they were still believable. To put it simply: fiction was believable make-believe.

This opinion was quickly put to rest during our Kite Runner discussion as we contemplated Hosseini's decision to write a fictional memoir. During the discussion, Mr. Allen brought up the very thought-provoking idea about our public versus our private selves. We choose what we want others to see, leaving the rest to the depths of our private, inner selves. It was then that I realized the intensity of the seemingly-dull fictional genre.

Fiction allows the author to submerge their private thoughts into the context of a story without making them public. It allows them to delve into their own experiences and let another character feel the things they felt, act the way they did. It grants authors the freedom express their inner selves in a creative form.

Now I see that Hosseini's choice was artful and meaningful, as each tear shed by Amir was a tear that once grazed his own cheek and each smile was one that had lifted his spirits. I felt the joy, lonliness, and utter despair of each of the characters as Hosseini wove these emotions out of his own heartstrings, forcing his emotions through those of the characters. Fiction can be as boundless as the fantastic genre or as limited as non-fiction writing, but the choice relies on one's private or public self.