Today, in English class, we took a look at "Sin City" and "Ghost World," two graphic novels portraying different things. Graphic novels are an interesting narrative as they include both words and pictures to further their story. More often than not, analyzing the art is just as important as analyzing the text, sometimes even more so.
We were asked to bring in a section of a comic book to analyze. I decided to bring in a comic based on the "Aliens" franchise. I did this partly because I enjoyed the aliens movie, partly because I found the art within the book to be rather interesting, and mostly because it was the only physical copy of a graphic narrative I had access to.
Before this class I never really paid much attention to comic books, only really knowing a series existed after I saw a movie based on it. I had no idea how much there was to analyze in this medium.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Tired.... Need Spring Break...
I don't usually get a full night's sleep. As such, I am often in a "zombie" state for the majority of anything I do before noon. No matter what I do I always seem to end up staying up late. Whether it's friends, school work or just me being an idiot, the end result is usually the same; the mornings are dreadful. This is really unfortunate as I do have some interesting classes in the morning that I pretty much go to in autopilot.
My fall semester was more lenient as my earliest class, most days, started at 11 AM. This semester, however, requires that I get up earlier. I guess there's really no point in complaining. I had to wake up even earlier for high school and I survived 4 years of that. I guess my first semester just spoiled me and made me even lazier than I already was.
Luckily, spring break is only a week and a half away. A whole week to just sit back,relax, and catch up on hours of lost sleep. It's going to be great. Hopefully I'll come back to school rejuvenated and revitalized.
My fall semester was more lenient as my earliest class, most days, started at 11 AM. This semester, however, requires that I get up earlier. I guess there's really no point in complaining. I had to wake up even earlier for high school and I survived 4 years of that. I guess my first semester just spoiled me and made me even lazier than I already was.
Luckily, spring break is only a week and a half away. A whole week to just sit back,relax, and catch up on hours of lost sleep. It's going to be great. Hopefully I'll come back to school rejuvenated and revitalized.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Analyzing Poetry: "Alone"
Today, in English class, we looked at analyzing different art forms. The primary focus of today's class was analysis of paintings/pictures and poetry. Art tends to be rather ambiguous. It is this ambiguity that makes it so difficult to analyze. I am usually a rather concrete person, preferring questions with right and wrong answers. Unsurprisingly, I find the search for meaning in art work to be a bit of a challenge.
In class, we were tasked with analyzing a poem or artwork of our choosing. I chose to analyze Edgar Allan Poe's "Alone." Below you will find the poem as well as my analysis of it.
From childhood's hour I have not been
As others were--I have not seen
As others saw--I could not bring
My passions from a common spring--
From the same source I have not taken
My sorrow--I could not awaken
My heart to joy at the same tone--
And all I lov'd--I lov'd alone--
Then--in my childhood--in the dawn
Of a most stormy life--was drawn
From ev'ry depth of good and ill
The mystery which binds me still--
From the torrent, or the fountain--
From the red cliff of the mountain--
From the sun that 'round me roll'd
In its autumn tint of gold--
From the lightning in the sky
As it pass'd me flying by--
From the thunder, and the storm--
And the cloud that took the form
(When the rest of Heaven was blue)
Of a demon in my view--
Edgar Allan Poe’s “Alone” is a very interesting piece of work. The poem, as the name implies, is about isolation. There are numerous lines within the poem which suggest this, such as the fact the author claim everything he ever loved he loved alone. These lines also suggest that the root of isolation is one's own individuality. The poem contrasts physical isolation with mental isolation, focusing more on the emotional aspect.
Poe makes numerous references to nature in his work such as suggesting his passions are from a common spring but he has not taken them from the same source. It also makes numerous references to fountains, mountains, and the sky. This suggests isolation as fountains are separated from the land that surrounds them, mountains are beyond reach, and the sky stands separate over the Earth.
In class, we were tasked with analyzing a poem or artwork of our choosing. I chose to analyze Edgar Allan Poe's "Alone." Below you will find the poem as well as my analysis of it.
From childhood's hour I have not been
As others were--I have not seen
As others saw--I could not bring
My passions from a common spring--
From the same source I have not taken
My sorrow--I could not awaken
My heart to joy at the same tone--
And all I lov'd--I lov'd alone--
Then--in my childhood--in the dawn
Of a most stormy life--was drawn
From ev'ry depth of good and ill
The mystery which binds me still--
From the torrent, or the fountain--
From the red cliff of the mountain--
From the sun that 'round me roll'd
In its autumn tint of gold--
From the lightning in the sky
As it pass'd me flying by--
From the thunder, and the storm--
And the cloud that took the form
(When the rest of Heaven was blue)
Of a demon in my view--
Edgar Allan Poe’s “Alone” is a very interesting piece of work. The poem, as the name implies, is about isolation. There are numerous lines within the poem which suggest this, such as the fact the author claim everything he ever loved he loved alone. These lines also suggest that the root of isolation is one's own individuality. The poem contrasts physical isolation with mental isolation, focusing more on the emotional aspect.
Poe makes numerous references to nature in his work such as suggesting his passions are from a common spring but he has not taken them from the same source. It also makes numerous references to fountains, mountains, and the sky. This suggests isolation as fountains are separated from the land that surrounds them, mountains are beyond reach, and the sky stands separate over the Earth.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Tired of Procrastinating
I was up all of last night. Partly because I needed to finish up some assignments and partly because I just couldn't fall asleep after they were complete. This resulted in a rather "off" day today. Thank God for energy drinks. If it wasn't for the monster I had for "breakfast" this morning things could have been worse. The shot of energy was what kept me functional today. The drink kept me up for the duration of my classes. I dropped afterward though. I ended up getting a good few hours of sleep and I am now feeling refreshed.
Unfortunately, I'm probably looking at an other late night because of more things that need to be done for tomorrow. I wish I didn't procrastinate as much as I do; it's really starting to catch up with me.
Unfortunately, I'm probably looking at an other late night because of more things that need to be done for tomorrow. I wish I didn't procrastinate as much as I do; it's really starting to catch up with me.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Good Week
So far this is shaping up to be a rather sterling week. The blizzard yesterday caused my school to close down for the day. This allowed me some time to relax. In addition to the snow day, my early morning English class was not in progress today. This gave me an other chance to sleep in, an opportunity I am happy about.
With all this extra free time allotted to me, I decided to begin revising my memoir. I have already fixed a great deal of the grammatical errors which plagued my initial copy. I am now working on adding a larger amount of detail through out my piece. I know my piece lacks some detail, but I am having a few difficulties in finding good points within the text to add more sensory description.The notes my peers provided me with, critiquing my work, are making this process easier than it may otherwise have been, but I am still faced with some obstacles. Trying to strike a balance between vivid description and pacing that won't put readers to sleep has proven to be more challenging than I had originally anticipated. Whether to further emphasize the ceremony itself, what preceded it, or what proceeded it; this is what I am still deciding. Oh well, I'll probably be able to strike a balance sometime during the next few days. There's still an adequate amount of time for me to refine my work
Hopefully my final draft will come out miles ahead of my initial copy.
With all this extra free time allotted to me, I decided to begin revising my memoir. I have already fixed a great deal of the grammatical errors which plagued my initial copy. I am now working on adding a larger amount of detail through out my piece. I know my piece lacks some detail, but I am having a few difficulties in finding good points within the text to add more sensory description.The notes my peers provided me with, critiquing my work, are making this process easier than it may otherwise have been, but I am still faced with some obstacles. Trying to strike a balance between vivid description and pacing that won't put readers to sleep has proven to be more challenging than I had originally anticipated. Whether to further emphasize the ceremony itself, what preceded it, or what proceeded it; this is what I am still deciding. Oh well, I'll probably be able to strike a balance sometime during the next few days. There's still an adequate amount of time for me to refine my work
Hopefully my final draft will come out miles ahead of my initial copy.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Communion: Revision
Today, in English class, the rough drafts of our memoir project were returned to us. Our professor had marked segments of the piece she believed required revision. I was dissappointed in myself when I discovered most of the mistakes on my paper were simple errors (i.e. improper placement of commas.) I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. After all, I did write the memoir 2 days before the deadline and didn't proof read it to the point I should have. On the bright side, these errors are easy to fix and that portion of the revision shouldn't take too long.
Another aspect which could potentially improve my paper is more in depth description. Fitting more detail into my piece, without completely altering the pace of the memoir, can prove to be a little challenging. Hopefully if I do it correctly I can significantly improve my piece.
By taking into account the professor's comments, as well as the feedback I received from my peers last week, I can turn my rough draft into something polished.
Another aspect which could potentially improve my paper is more in depth description. Fitting more detail into my piece, without completely altering the pace of the memoir, can prove to be a little challenging. Hopefully if I do it correctly I can significantly improve my piece.
By taking into account the professor's comments, as well as the feedback I received from my peers last week, I can turn my rough draft into something polished.
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