The play of Macbeth relates with many essential questions in this unit. The two essential questions that most related to Macbeth were "What does it mean to be human?" and "How does power corrupt?". Macbeth proved himself human when he crumbles under the power and manipulation from both the witches and Lady Macbeth herself. Lady Macbeth calls him a coward to cause him shame for going against his promise to her: "...wouldst thou have that which thou esteem'st the ornament of life, And live a coward in thine own esteem," (I, vii, 44-47) Lady Macbeth manipulates Macbeth into doing her deeds through toying around with his conscience, which makes him feel guily, which is the ultimate drive towards his actions. In the scene my group did, Act 5 Scene 1, Lady Macbeth, too, crumbles under the power of the guilt and shame she once made Macbeth feel. She eventually loses her mind and kills herself. Macbeth also can be asked "how does power corrupt?". Gaining power from killing the king, Macbeth becomes power hungry and is obsessed with this new power, and his ability to do whatever he wishes as king. Because of this obsession of power, Macbeth kills those that once cared for him to keep this power from escaping his grasp. After hearing the prophecy from the witches, Macbeth swears to kill the family of the one that fled from him;"...the cast of Macduff I will surprise; Seize upon Fife; gives to the edge o' sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls that trace him in his line." ( IV, i, 164-167). Macbeth here, is determined to kill the members of Macduff's family to ensure that the last prophecy that was revealed by the witches would not come true. He did this in order to keep the power that he has gained. Macbeth is the clear example of how gaining even a little power will corrupt one's self. Power here, is Macbeth's high and his eventual downfall.
What I learned from this project is that working in groups is a hard task, but when everyone collaborates: the results are good. We worked together to achieve it as fast as possible because we all had really busy lives. It was difficult to find a time to actually film the project, but we eventually found a free to time to put everything together. I also learned that it is really important to understand the play and to go beyond the words, reading between the lines, to really understand the purpose of the play and what Shakespeare is trying to teach. Something I noticed for the next time we work in groups is to not leave everything to the last minute. We really need to tackle everything early, so we have time to analyze our project and make the necessary changes to make it as perfect as possible. Also, it is important to spend time analyzing the scene, analyze the concepts and what the writer is trying to say.
I am extremely proud of the analysis of this scene we did because we dug deep into the meaning of the true meaning of the scene to uncover Shakespeare's message towards his audience. He reveals a common characteristic that we may all possess, whether we admit it or not. If I divided the work of each of the group members, I would have to say that we all did equal amount of work contributing to the project. There was no one that did not do their part so it was a good group which helped us finish the project.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Identity Poem
http://poemshape.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/page-202.jpg?w=510&h=795
Identity is the way humans beings differentiate from each other. This poem shows us the authors view on his identity and identity in general. The poem in question is an untitled poem by Patrick Gillespie, in which he details himself as "the indecipherable movements of the winds" and the "murmur ascended in the field". In the poem, he uses metaphors to explain what he thinks an identity is. He uses nature to explain how he perceives his identity. I think that identity is everything around and in us that makes us who we are. The poet takes a different approach. He describes everything that would happen in a field and relates it to himself. I guess that we have an identity because of our two different approaches towards identity.
Identity is the way humans beings differentiate from each other. This poem shows us the authors view on his identity and identity in general. The poem in question is an untitled poem by Patrick Gillespie, in which he details himself as "the indecipherable movements of the winds" and the "murmur ascended in the field". In the poem, he uses metaphors to explain what he thinks an identity is. He uses nature to explain how he perceives his identity. I think that identity is everything around and in us that makes us who we are. The poet takes a different approach. He describes everything that would happen in a field and relates it to himself. I guess that we have an identity because of our two different approaches towards identity.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
A & P
EQ: How do our personal experiences shape our views of others? Ourselves?
Have you ever had a personal experience that has influenced the way you view somebody or something? That is exactly what happens in "A&P" by John Updike. The protagonist, Sammy, is working as a clerk in a grocery store, when three pretty girls come in the store in "nothing but bathing suits". He is infatuated with the leader, whom he names "Queenie". They are in the store to buy "herring snacks", but the manager confronts them and tells them that this "isn't the beach" and that they should come in next time with their "shoulders covered or be refused service". Sammy thinks that this is embarrassing them, so he quits as they walk out the door, but soon realizes that this was in vain because they had already left and didn't here him stand up for them. This experience helped determine Sammy's view on the store and of the store manager. It helped him determine whether he really wanted to work for him or not. It also helped Sammy see himself differently. He now sees himself as someone who has his whole life in front of him and doesn't need to be wasting it working at a grocery store. He has a new outlook on life and he thinks he is now on the right path, thanks to the experience he had one faithful day at the grocery store.
Have you ever had a personal experience that has influenced the way you view somebody or something? That is exactly what happens in "A&P" by John Updike. The protagonist, Sammy, is working as a clerk in a grocery store, when three pretty girls come in the store in "nothing but bathing suits". He is infatuated with the leader, whom he names "Queenie". They are in the store to buy "herring snacks", but the manager confronts them and tells them that this "isn't the beach" and that they should come in next time with their "shoulders covered or be refused service". Sammy thinks that this is embarrassing them, so he quits as they walk out the door, but soon realizes that this was in vain because they had already left and didn't here him stand up for them. This experience helped determine Sammy's view on the store and of the store manager. It helped him determine whether he really wanted to work for him or not. It also helped Sammy see himself differently. He now sees himself as someone who has his whole life in front of him and doesn't need to be wasting it working at a grocery store. He has a new outlook on life and he thinks he is now on the right path, thanks to the experience he had one faithful day at the grocery store.
Just Lather, That's All
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVajBLVOmxJJklk8zWw8mys2QhyphenhyphensnltXvhgp4_CBicvK44IOy0kLpFvix_B1sKuuGDMRuP_uMNB7Qs0DKPYToOl0QBKc1KGErEEx2Iq3VY0NQ48qQZiSDpeEhWlfIQOnyh0RIso-hxHpvq/s320/Blog+Art+-+Sweeney+Todd7.jpg
This image from the movie "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street", relates to the short story "Just Lather, That's All" by Hernando Tellez because the main characters in each are barbers. They both contemplate killing one or more of their customers. The only difference between the two is that Sweeney Todd is actually a serial killer and follows through with his contemplations. In the short story, the barber contemplates killing a General who has caused great hardships in his small town, like public executions or ransacking houses. The barber is part of the rebel force in the village attempting to overthrow the government and regain their village back. He is not like the others, though. He is not as "hardcore" of a rebel, but more of a "talk about it, but never do it" rebel. He has never held so much power in his hands. With one slip of the blade, he could cut the General's throat, spilling his blood and becoming a hero. There is a catch though. He would be on the run for the rest of his life for murder. He is not a murderer, but a simple barber. He cuts hair. Thats ALL that he does. This brings us to destiny. It is his destiny to cut hair, not become a murderer. It is the General's destiny to murder and pillage, there is no changing that. Besides, if he killed him, there is always a keen and eager soul to take his place and resume the killing. You see it throughtout history and movies. One side believes that when they kill the leader, the opposing force would just drop their weapons and surrender. But that is never true. They will still fight for what they believe is right, leader or not. It is their destiny and the barbers destiny to cut hair. Nothing more than that.
This image from the movie "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street", relates to the short story "Just Lather, That's All" by Hernando Tellez because the main characters in each are barbers. They both contemplate killing one or more of their customers. The only difference between the two is that Sweeney Todd is actually a serial killer and follows through with his contemplations. In the short story, the barber contemplates killing a General who has caused great hardships in his small town, like public executions or ransacking houses. The barber is part of the rebel force in the village attempting to overthrow the government and regain their village back. He is not like the others, though. He is not as "hardcore" of a rebel, but more of a "talk about it, but never do it" rebel. He has never held so much power in his hands. With one slip of the blade, he could cut the General's throat, spilling his blood and becoming a hero. There is a catch though. He would be on the run for the rest of his life for murder. He is not a murderer, but a simple barber. He cuts hair. Thats ALL that he does. This brings us to destiny. It is his destiny to cut hair, not become a murderer. It is the General's destiny to murder and pillage, there is no changing that. Besides, if he killed him, there is always a keen and eager soul to take his place and resume the killing. You see it throughtout history and movies. One side believes that when they kill the leader, the opposing force would just drop their weapons and surrender. But that is never true. They will still fight for what they believe is right, leader or not. It is their destiny and the barbers destiny to cut hair. Nothing more than that.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Brother Dear Response
The person from "Brother Dear" Bernice Friesen that I connect with the most is Sharlene. She is almost exactly like me when it comes to decisions regarding the way we run our lives. Usually, what my parents want me to do, is what I do. I have little confidence to actually stand up to them and become what I want. Now, I have gained some confidence in myself to tell them what I want to become. Thye told me that I should follow my own path and become what I want to become. This is just like Sharlene from the story, who is afraid to tell her dad that she wants to go to Europe and become a writer than going to university like her dad wants. This just proves that we are constantly trying to please the people who still hold a little power over us.
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