If you're reading this, it's a sign

When I first started writing this, it was a comment to Lindsey's post about how we pass time then I went on a tangent, and I thought it deserved it's own post. So here's a little inspiration for you all... enjoy!

We were just talking about this the other day. We constantly complain about how little time we have to get things done, but we don't realize the hours a day we waste on social media, in bed, watching TV, etc. and all of these activities are done alone. I believe, as humans, we need time to ourselves, but with that time we should be trying to better ourselves instead of mindlessly wasting hours on hours. With that being said, I also encourage everyone, including myself, to go out and live a little more... push your boundaries!! We're only with each other for a few more months so enjoy each others company, we also won't have the same physique for long, so go rock climbing, bungee jumping, skiing, the list goes on... and lastly this is our prime time. Once we settle down, have kids, stable job, and all we won't be able to do half the stuff we are able to do right now so go travel, be spontaneous, have fun!!! We're all so busy focusing on college and school, we forget about everything past that: life. I know when I'm older, I hope to look back on an endless amount of memories for myself, and I'm sure y'all will to. So go out, and do something, even if it's as small as going to the Fly with friends. :)

Literature Unites Us

As we heard in Thomas’s sermon in chapel yesterday, faith helps unite all people. By having the Honduran students come visit this week, we can especially see this. Although we may speak different languages, the “language” of faith is common to us both.

I think that literature does the same thing for us. Many plays, novels, or poems are common to us both. Yes, they might be written in different languages, but the story and morals are the same. This shows the importance of literature itself. If something in common among many languages, it is because it is essential to our lives.

Many times, we are looking into how others are different than us. However, we never really take the time to see how we are similar. Faith and literature are just two examples of similarities between us.

Can y’all think of others?  What does this say about faith and literature?

Swedish Prison

As we all know, Sweden tends to be better at things. In Sweden, the life sentence is not given as freely as it is in the USA. As of 2015 There were only 142 people serving a life sentence, one of then was convicted of genocide. In Sweden only .03% of its prison population is serving a life sentence, while in the USA it .07% - a clearly higher percent. Do you think that the USA should not give as many life sentences, try to focus for on rehabilitation, and try to actually release people back into society?

HOWS THIS FOR A SUBSTANTIVE POST?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Do you think the guy in the documentary today did it? Is he guilty or is he truly a victim of the system as he says? I personally think he's innocent, but let me hear your thoughts.

JUST WANNA LET YOU KNOW

Mrs. King,

You will be missed tomorrow.

Regally,
King TDS I
(the king that you crowned)

Angola Documentary

I really enjoyed the documentary today on the Angola prison. However, I feel terrible for many of the prisoners who are serving life sentences or close to it. If I were in the position of one of the three men looking at the inmate’s petition for parole, I would feel so much sympathy for this him. I would feel inclined to give him a chance. I know every prisoner would want a chance for parole and it would be incredibly hard for me to choose who gets this opportunity. Maybe this is just me because I am not familiar with seeing tons of these cases, but who knows.

When the man entered the room in front of the three men to try to get parole, it seemed to me that these men already had their minds made up. It was not a surprise to me that he was denied parole because I could already tell so right when he entered the room. With this said, this man wasn’t even given a chance! This is terribly sad because some of the innocent people might be looked upon in the same way. 

Did y’all pick up on this in the documentary? What do y’all think?

The documentary we watched today.

I just found extremely confusing on why that one man was charged for aggravated rape. I do not recall any mention of DNA. I find the witness to be extremely unreliable due to the quote about African Americans . I would understand if there wasn't sufficient DNA and if she was a lot less racist. What do you guys think?

Quick Question

Who's your favorite band/artist and why? Also what is your favorite song from that band? My favorite band is Tame Impala and my favorite song by them is Expectation. I would like to know yours.

Shakespeare imporov

So Tanner and I are in Chicago right now doing college visits and what not and he decided to buy tickets to see a Shakespeare improv show. It’s called “To thine own self be shrew” and basically you give them a location and they improv scenes from Shakespeare (i.e. Lady Macbeth in a women’s prison in upstate New York or Hamlet in a downtown LA strip club). Idk I think this is going to be interesting, but we’ll let you know...

Freedom of opinion

Since we read a piece on the Enlightenment, I started thinking about how truly free we are to express our ideas to the world. I think the internet is obviously a great outlet for us to share beliefs and information with others, but I do feel that it can easily backfire on us. Our generation is definitely persuaded by the masses, I would argue even more so than those who have come before us. Ms. King brought up the concept of "trending" in class today, and I realized just how easy it is for one opinion or belief to take hold of a whole generation of children who have access to phones. A hashtag or idea that's viral on the internet is easily accessible to an age group that probably can't even comprehend some of the topics being presented to them. However, I do think we have a lot more freedom to express ourselves in workplace and school environments, but I definitely wouldn't say we are safe to say our beliefs whenever. People are very quick to reveal political stances now in days, and children can be persuaded at quite a young age to agree with the adults in their lives. I just thought it was interesting question to ask ourselves: are we really free thinkers, or are our minds shaped at much younger ages now?

Ros and Guil do be boring

I'm curious. If I found out I was dying soon, I'd do a bunch of crazy, fun stuff! So if Ros and Guil knew a little earlier they were going to die, would they live their lives a bit differently? Also, what kinds of stuff would you do if you found out death was approaching you?

Just a thought

So we all know how language is unreliable, but I think that's what makes language so interesting. Would we really be taking this class or any literature class if language were reliable? Would it be necessary for our core curriculum? This would make English class much more similar to Math class I think. The unreliability of language gives us leeway to interpret literature for ourselves and relate even if how we interpret the literature isn't what the author intended. So what do y'all think about this? Would you enjoy English class more or less if language were reliable?

My Poem

Hawaiian Punch and Hot Pockets

Hot Pockets how you fill me

With your pepperoni and cheese

You make my mouth water like the roaring sea

And I become overwhelmed with unease



Hawaiian Punch how you satisfy my thirst

With your sweet fruity punch taste

You save me from dehydration even at its worst

Leaving no part of my mouth to waste



Hot Pockets and Hawaiian Punch

Together you are unbeatable

You make the best dinners and lunch

Compared to those uneatable



Pockets of Hot and Punch of Hawaiian

You boys always keep me thriving

Passing Time

As we can see in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Ros and Guil pass the time by flipping a coin and playing absurd games. When we read this play, we depict these games they play to be a total waste of time. 

However, we do the same thing! Often, in our free time, we play tic-tac-toe, flip coins, play 20 questions, iSPY, and of course sleep. We too, along with Ros and Guil, have time in our day in which we are doing nothing. So in turn, we pass the time with these absurd activities instead of doing something productive.

This provides yet another connection within our ONE and REAL reality. As humans we tend to have many of the same habits, and in this case, similarities to pass the time. For me, in my free time, I mostly watch Netflix, sleep, or play games. Each of these activities allows our brain a break from the stress of the day.

What do y’all think is the most common way to pass time??

The Butterfly Effect

The Webster Dictionary definition of the Butterfly Effect a property of chaotic systems (such as the atmosphere) by which small changes in initial conditions can lead to large-scale and unpredictable variation in the future state of the system. I find this to be a very interesting concept. The most popular examples are: if a butterfly flaps its wings in Japan, it could cause a hurricane in America. Also there is an example where if you are time traveling and you accidentally kill a butterfly in the past, the entire future is different. This begs the question. Are we, human beings, actually capable of free will or are we too interconnected to have free will. 

A dog's reality?

Hey guys, so I started thinking. I know we have had the argument about reality go on for a while and it got me thinking about a dog's perspective. (Yes. I know. My brain works weird. I am just curious.) I want to know what a "dog's reality" looks like. Does it look like ours? Or do they see people as friends or enemies? Or are we just really living in a dog's world? Who knows? What do y'all think? I think it would be cool to know what a dog is always thinking and how they see the world. Maybe that's just me. IDK Let me know what you think in the comments below ;)

It’s MLK Day ladies and gents

HAPPY MLK DAY!!! I’m a little late with my posts, and was stressing about it, but then I realized it’s a perfect mistake because I get to share with you all a link about the man himself, Martin Luther King  Jr.!!!!!! https://www.britannica.com/topic/Martin-Luther-King-Jr-Day Hope everyone had a great long weekend :) peace out JK I have fun facts: he was the first awarded the Nobel peace prize in 1964! One of his main influences was Mohandas Gandhi!! There’s 730 streets in the US named after Martin Luther King Jr.!!! His birth certificate says Michael King but this was a mistake— he was supposed to be named after his father who was named after the leader of the Christian movement, Martin Luther!!!!

HAPPY SATURDAY

Hey everyone, King Tanner here. I'm home alone on a Saturday night/Sunday morning, making chicken noodle soup and drinking bottles of water after I woke up in the middle of the night (you know, typical king stuff). And I just wanted to share this song because guess what! Right now, this will count as a blog post. I know it will. Where there's a will, there's a way, and where there's a Will Forte, there's endless laughs. 

Anywhosies my fergities, I wanted to share this song in honor of saturday. Here are the lyrics and a link to listen to it,

Saturday in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
Saturday in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
People dancing, people laughing
A man selling ice cream
Singing Italian songs
Eh cumpari, ci vo sunari
Can you dig it (yes, I can)
And I've been waiting such a long time
For Saturday

Another day in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
Another day in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
People talking, really smiling
A man playing guitar (play a song, play a song, play on)
Singing for us all (singing for us)
Will you help him change the world
Can you dig it (yes, I can)
And I've been waiting such a long time
For today

Slow motion riders fly the colours of the day
A bronze man still can tell stories his own way
Listen children all is not lost, all is not lost
Oh no, no

Forty days in the park
And every day's the Fourth of July
Forty days in the park
Every day's the Fourth of July
People reaching, people touching
A real celebration
Waiting for us all (waiting for us all)
If we want it, really want it
Can you dig it (yes, I can)
And I've been waiting such a long time
For the day
Yeah, yeah, yeah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuYGDm3ZXdo

So, how am I going to tie this into Rosey Posey and Guildy Buildy for class credit? I already have an answer to that, and it goes a lil' somethin like this. Hit it!

So, in R n' G r D, the player (don't hate him, hate the game) talks about how he pirates ARRRR MATEY italian operas or dramas or whatever. AND IN THE SONG HE TALKS ABOUT SINGING ITALIAN SONGS! ALSO THE SONG IS KINDA NONSENSICAL, JUST. LIKE. THE. PLAY.

Can you believe my staggering genie? Yeah, that's right. I said genie. That's what smart people call genius. Genie. I dream of it. I dream of genie. Boom. BOOM BOOM BOOM GOTTAGETGET.

Aight. I'm going back to bed.

Signed,
King Tanner Duncan Sykes the First

ooh I just thought of an interesting question to ask:

Guys, we've all been doing our Common App applications for various colleges for a while now.  Everyone's probably been asked this question at least once: "We want to get to know YOU better!  Tell us about a skill, hobby, or other thing that you personally enjoy, and why?"  I know I put down piano for most of my colleges, then videogames for the other colleges.  What did you guys write about for that question, and what should your answer have been in actuality?

Videogames??? reality??? a five paragraph ESSAY?

Yea there's a game I've been looking into lately called SOMA, it's a horror game made and published by Frictional Games studios.  I'm mentioning it here because I feel that it has relevance to our classroom discussion about objective reality.  The story follows a guy from Toronto named Simon who has his brain/consciousness (this is the "suspension of disbelief" part) scanned and copied by a doctor to try and help treat a recently inflicted brain injury due to a car crash.  You sit in the chair, put on a helmet, and wake up in a totally different place and time.  It's dark, creaky, creepy, and neither you nor Simon has any idea of what's happened.  A few things are clear: one, you're far in the future (evident by the sophisticated technology in the rooms around you) and two, you're underwater somewhere and for some reason.  You walk around, eventually finding a companion named Catherine who speaks to you through what is essentially a radio with added benefits, and then come upon the realization that you are somehow a robot.  This shift is pretty sudden, with Simon looking down at his hands, blinking, and when he opens his eyes his hands are mechanical.  Now, I took about an hour of exposition to get to this; the reason this game has relevance to our discussion is because a major subject this game asks us to question is "what does it mean to be human?"  It's a pretty pertinent question too, given that not only are YOU a robot, but basically every "person" you come across in the game are all ALSO robots, only they don't know it.  The scenes in which you get to interact with those robot people hit me in a weird way.  Their half-lucid perceptions of reality actually reminded me of interactions I had with residents of Covenant Nursing Home with Alzheimer's Disease a few summers ago while I worked there for about a week.  The similarities lying in that sometimes they believe they're in a totally different place than they actually are, and sometimes they think they're in a different physical state, or a different period of time.  Sometimes they're even violent.  Simon and Catherine are different in that they both understand their state of being and are not inhibited to experiencing and re-experiencing one place, time, and situation.  They are, ostensibly, humans.  Then we come back to the understanding that they are literally, physically, not human.  This is where the question really hits different; how can Simon be a robot, and we can still consider him to be human?  Or, "what does it really mean to be human?"  Either way, the game's story is incredibly well written and the gameplay itself is pretty scary.  I'd recommend looking into it, or watching a video like this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4tbbcWqDyY&t=1904s   which gives an in depth analysis of the game and its themes, if anyone is interested.

thanks for coming to my ted-talk

The Tension in AP English IV

Look guys, I know there is a lot of tension in our class right now. There is an huge elephant in the room and everyone knows what it is..... the question about whether reality is real or not. While everyone else argues about this in class I kind of sit back and listen to both sides. Honestly, I see both sides. Although I get the argument from everyone I really just think like why does it really matter. We should all just live life and not worry about if we are real or not. In the end it doesn't really matter because we can never know the answer so why argument about it. I declare the argument should STOP.... please....

Timon and Pumbaa...

So everyone knows that the Lion King and it's characters are based off of the play Hamlet, and we have talked about it before and what characters are parallels of each other. Now we are reading about Rosencranz and Guildenstern and I was curious about which characters they are in the Lion King. So, OF COURSE, I looked it up ... Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in the Lion King are Timon and Pumbaa. Timon is the meerkat and Pumbaa is the warthog. These are the two characters that sing the famous song "Hakuna Matata," which means "no worries." If you think about it this makes a lot of sense. That song is all about having nothing to worry about and just living life. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern literally just flip a coin for hours and it is so meaningless and has no point to it at all. What do y'all think? Do y'all think it makes sense that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Timon and Pumbaa? 

Which POV is the right one??

As I was thinking about the differences in Hamlet and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, I began to wonder how the story would be told from each person’s point of view. What would Ophelia think? Would she reveal feelings of guilt, anger, etc. What would Claudius write? Polonius? Each of these characters would have a very different take on the situation and respond very differently. 

I began to think about this, and realized this is true for everything. EVERYTHING! Not just plays or books, but in life. For instance, people are wrongly accused all the time. People may tell their side of the story that differs completely from someone else’s. 

So, when many sides are presented, who are we to believe? How do we agree with Hamlet over Ros and Guil? This is where my point comes in. If we were to read Ros and Guil are Dead first, would we be more partial to them over Hamlet? This is very similar to the way we learn about our childhood, death, etc. Many times we choose to believe what we hear first. Hamlet portrays Ros and Guil in ways that allow us to think we know who they are before we even meet them! POV can be a very dangerous tool!!

THE BOX

As we brought up in class today, the idea of being in a box is terrifying. However, after we discussed it, I began to this analogy in a different way. The only way to think about death and what it is like, is to think about what it means to be alive. Most importantly, we value life based on what we look forward or enjoy the most. This leads me to my point concerning the box. 

Being alive trumps being dead! With that said, if one is dead, hope doesn’t exist! Hope is what drives and pushes us in life.With that being said, if we were trapped in the box alive, we can HOPE that we will eventually get out. But if we are dead, the box just merely is a space without hope.

In addition, the box also functions to show the life of actors themselves. Actors do not have any free will. They are subject to the director and the play. They cannot created lines for themselves, they must abide by what is one the script. 

What do y’all think??Also, I can’t wait to hear Cameron’s view regarding the song THE BOX!!!

Everyone Else is Wrong (Brandon & Andrew)

During our class discussion on the nature of reality, Brandon and I were viciously attacked by certain members of the class. These attacks were based upon a complete and total misunderstanding of our assertion.

Our assertion is that an objective reality does exist, but there is no way to prove that said reality exists. Instead of reusing our arguments from class, we are going to use Godel’s proof. Godel’s proof says that there is no system of logic that can explain everything. Put simply, there are things that are true but that can not be proven. This is the essence of our argument. Reality is real, but it can not be proven.

Biologically, the nature of how we interact with the world prevents us from proving an objective reality. Very frequently our brains are fooled into believing in a false reality. Dreams are experiences that seem so very real in the moment, but are ultimately false. In an extremely vivid dream, our senses are completely fooled into believing a false scenario. If one’s senses can be fooled into believing that one’s dream is a reality, then no amount of sensory data could possibly prove the existence of an objective reality; and because our minds compile sensory data to develop a view of the world there is no way to prove that one’s experiences are real.

Relying on others to make life meaningful

Today in class we discussed the scene in which the Player tells Ros and Guil that an actor serves no purpose unless he has audience. We ended up relating it to life in general by saying that people are always hoping that someone or something is watching in order for their actions to have meaning. However, Hamlet had always acted on his own, when no one was watching. He told no one his plans to avenge his father's death, and he was acting solely based on his own conscious. Hamlet never tried to be a hero; instead, he struggled to comprehend what was best for everyone around him. I think Hamlet was a good example of someone who couldn't go through with a plan because he had no one else to validate it but himself. He was stuck in his own mind and only had the ghost of his father to rely on.
Does anyone else think Hamlet relates to this specific discussion in class today?

Death

I find it very interesting to think about how it is impossible to imagine our own deaths. It is said that this is also the reason that we wake up if we die in a dream. I know that this causes many people some grief. Do you think that we should try and understand this or just deal with it?

IMPORTANT BLOG ANNOUNCEMENT

Attention everyone! I would like it to be known that as Mrs. King's favorite student, I am now taking control of the blog. I own it now. I'm king of the blog. You can't stop me. I talked it over with Mrs. King. She's 100% cool with it. In fact, she's encouraged it. Now that I'm in charge, Sara is no longer allowed to post on the blog. Ever.

Further changes will be made as I see them fit.

more reality stuff

This translates to "This is not a pipe." How does this statement make you guys feel?

SEDUCTION OF YOUR NEICE

Hey everyone! I FOUND THIS VIDEO! THAT RELATES TO OUR CLASS DISSCUSSION! YAY!

Uighurs in China

I believe most people have at least heard of the conflict going on in China, but here's a very easy to read and informative piece by PBS about it: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/features/uighurs/
It's very important - it's a terrible thing thats going on right now.

"Two Goofballs" Motif

After reading Hamlet and the beginning of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, it became clear to me how the two characters of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern follow the “two goofballs” motif, as they are silly, slow, and easily manipulated. They often confuse their own selves and are, in general, not that smart. The idea of “two goofballs” is a very common motif seen in our pop culture today, with references in several well-known films, such as Dumb and Dumber and Step Brothers. In Dumb and Dumber, the two main characters, Harry and Lloyd, open a corkscrew and accidentally kill the last remaining member of a species of bird, an instance which displays both their foolishness and inattention to their surroundings. Movies that contain the two goofballs motif do so to provide for comedy, and I think it's interesting that this literary element can trace itself back to Hamlet and possibly even earlier plays.

Rhinoceros ... (the play)

Hey guys so when we were giving our short presentations I was in the group that focused on theatre of the absurd. When I was researching, one of the plays that came up was called Rhinoceros. I mentioned this briefly in our presentation but I'd thought I go into it a little more on the blog because I found it very interesting and just kind of weird overall. Rhinoceros is a play by Eugene Ionesco and was written in 1959. It is a three act play all about a small French town where all of the people turn into rhinoceroses. Everyone goes through this change except one character named Berenger. Although this character doesn't turn into a rhinoceros himself, he becomes fascinated by everyone else who does. As I was researching the play more I came across a lot of websites that said the play was a response to the "upsurge of Nazism" during WWII. This seemed to be a large topic/theme that was in theatre during this time. What do y'all think? Would y'all like to see a play like this?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhinoceros_(play)

Kind of random

Subjective reality is crazy to think about but what's even crazier to think about... DREAMS (see there’s kind of a correlation between the two). I started thinking about his when my brother brought up that he only dreams in black and white which I think is wack. Also where do y'all think dreams come from? Is it our subconscious having it's time to shine or just random thoughts or something else??? And while we're at it what's your craziest dream? I'm curious.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's Identity

As we read in the article in Rosencrantz Guildenstern the other day, both Ros and Guil are often mistaken for one another. While reading the the first 34 pages last night, this instance occurred. The reason behind this was not that they looked anything the same, but speaks to the importance of their character, a singular one.

In Hamlet, Ros and Guil hold a very minor part. They function as one character. Ros never does anything without Guil and visa versa. This is even seen in the title, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern most likely both die at the exact same time. When one dies, so does the other. Many of their traits are seen in each other. Do they just not have a distinct personality or are they not important enough to have 2 distinct characters? Or is there another reason for doing this?

What do y’all think??

" The Myth of Sisyphus"

Camu in his essay "The Myth of Sisyphus" argues that the Sisyphus is the absurd hero because he finds meaning in his torment, "One always finds one's burden again. But Sisyphus teaches the higher fidelity that negates the gods and raises rocks. He too concludes that all is well." 

Camu's essay in general is very similar to the central principle of Marxist theory which is that the bourgeoisie oppresses the proletariat by making their work seem meaningless. Thus, for the proletariat to overthrow the bourgeoisie and establish the dictatorship of the proletariat they must find meaning in their work. Camu is suggesting that if we follow this premise of Marxist theory than we shall  overcome the absurdity of life. 

Therefore, I am proclaiming the Workers Council of AP English IV. The Soviet shall overthrow the bourgeoisie and restore meaning to our work. 

Objectivity is hurting my head

Okay so I think this discussion is inevitably pointless because no matter how long you spend on this topic, you can only find a viewpoint, not a definite answer which I think, in itself could be an argument against objective reality. I found this really nice article that I suggest y'all take a look at if y'all are interested in this, but my thought is this: I think the world has to be somewhat objective because if it weren't, we wouldn't have so many agreed upon languages. Some things that happen in life is fact even if you didn't see it with your own eyes or acknowledge it. I think technology helps prove this. For example, none of us have to be in Australia or acknowledge the fact that forest fires are currently present and killing animals and people. When thinking about this, I think it's important to separate your subjective, individual perspective from the world's objective reality.
https://www.iep.utm.edu/objectiv/#SH4c

Hey everyone! GUESS WHAT!

Coming up with blogposts is hard, but you know what isn't hard? Enjoying a fine work of metafiction! Here's the full list I gave in class, and I highly recommend all of them.

The Producers, Noises Off, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet, Our Town, 30 Rock, The Muppet Movie, Foe, The Lion King 1 ½, Shrek, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip, Don Quixote, Blazing Saddles, One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Community.

All of these shows/books/movies/plays are amazing. Watch them. Read them. Do it.

Purpose in absurdity

Today we gave a presentation on the principles of Absurd narratives and the characteristics of the Theater of the Absurd. We touched on the concept of nihilism, which came forth as a philosophical movement in the early 20th century. Google defines the concept as follows: extreme skepticism maintaining that nothing in the world has a real existence. I think, although absurd characters often lack meaning or perform futile actions, that their purpose is more clear than ever. One can question their meaning in this world as much as they want, but in accepting a life of possible mundaneness or nonconformity, one finds meaning. Like we saw in the Myth of Sisyphus tonight, he decided his own purpose by declaring that everything would be fine; his fate had been accepted. Most absurd characters run through the plot in a continuous circle, never fully achieving their goal, but along the way they accept the fate that has been handed to them. The lack of reason and logic presented to them only mirrors the way that we sometimes feel when nothing around us seems to make sense. 

what do y'all think their purpose is? or do y'all think they don't have one at all?

Dracula rant because I can ok leave me alone

It's probably not a surprise to you that I'm a HUGE Dracula fan. If you were in period 3 English last year you would recall that I did my independent study on Bram Stoker's Dracula and you may also recall that in my oral presentation I stated that I've read it 6 times. I highly recommend this book to people who like slow-burn mysteries. Earlier this week, while I waited for the next season of Sabrina to come out, I discovered that BBC and Netflix have produced their own version of the story. Needless to say, I binged watched the entire 4+ hrs of it Monday night and found it a little disappointing plot-wise but very well done in the SFX and script department. I also realized that there has never been a well done and faithful adaption of this story. The closest anyone came, in my opinion, was Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 fiasco Bram Stoker's Dracula starring Gary Oldman and Wynona Ryder. However, I don't think this story could exist in any other media but print. The book is an Epistolary novel meaning it's told through letters, diary entries, and newspaper clippings. The novel retains the slow-burn quality through its style whereas films need to be more fast-paced for run time. Idk this was a more personal rant but Netflix Dracula is pretty good if you need something to keep you busy.

Absurd Fiction- Alice in Wonderland

I think the story "Alice in Wonderland" encompasses many of the principles of absurd narratives. Its plot is riddled with nonsense and lacks reason or logic. As Alice explores wonderland, she realizes that their games are played with unique pieces, they've created new concepts like "unbirthday presents," and they use words she's never heard before. Written in the Victorian era, it's considered to be a criticism of norms of the time. Alice's family raises her to believe that being socially adequate is more important than being educated, even though she expresses great intellect. In Wonderland, she isn't treated differently because she is a young girl; instead she is honored after slaying the infamous jabberwocky. Wonderland is an exact opposite of Alice's every day life. It flips traditional practices such as afternoon tea and croquet on their backs. Seriousness is purposefully replaced by foolishness. I think Carroll is trying to make his readers realize the importance of imagination and encourage their children to dream big. Imagination is powerful and often more thought-provoking then real events, a concept very important to the absurd genre.

DINOSAURS IN THE HOOD

Since we haven’t started studying a new novel yet, I thought I would share an exceptional poet that I had recently researched for another class. I am not the biggest fan of poetry, but Danez Smith’s poetry has exposed me to out of the box, passionate pieces of writing and I can’t stop reading it. Smiths' poetry is extremely powerful and political, yet personal. The titles used in Smiths' poetry are comedic, with comedy sprinkled throughout the work, but the poems themselves reflect a deeply serious topic. I highly recommend reading Danez Smith's poetry, especially the poem titled: Dinosaurs in the Hood. 

Let me know if you end up reading it! 

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/57585/dinosaurs-in-the-hood

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