Blogging Around

First, I read Alli's blog. She talked about how she liked the prompts to help guide her in her thinking and especially liked the "blogging around" prompt. Here's my comment-

Alli-
Great post! While sometimes it was hard to create a blog post about a topic about which we did not have much to say, I think all in all you are right that it was good to have a starting point that came from the prompts. I also especially agree with you about your favorite prompt; "blogging around" was definitely my favorite too! It was extremely interesting to read what other people in my class were thinking, especially those who don't get a chance to speak up in class much. I am on the same page as you: blogging was, overall, a great way to get thoughts out!

Next, I read Daniel's blog. He talked about how blogging was a good experience for him, and it was beneficial that it was typed, because his thoughts could come out more quickly, thus creating a more natural blog. Here's my comment-

Daniel-
This is a smashing post. I, too, liked the blogs, and how for the most part, they were a really natural way to express our thoughts. I especially liked your point about how blogs are better typed. I can type a whole lot faster than I can write, so it was helpful to be able to pour out whatever was on my mind, and then sort through it. I don't think I can be quite as happy as you that blogging has never been forced or foreign; for me, I have had some forced moments when I have been forced to squeeze out some so-so ideas about a prompt I don't have much to say about. Overall, though, I agree with your post. Great job!

Metacognition: Sophomore Year Blogging

I really enjoyed the blogging process this year. For most prompts, I thoroughly enjoyed spending my time blogging. It was a really great way to let out my feelings about different topics in class and say things that I might not have had the opportunity to say in class. The blogging was only cumbersome to me when I couldn't think of something to write about. And even then, after I came up with a topic, it was enjoyable to write freely and let out my thoughts and feelings. I must admit, though, that there were times when I wish we didn't have to go by a specific blogging prompt and we could just write about whatever was on our minds (relating to English, of course). I feel like when we are limited to certain prompts, there is at least a small amount of pressure to meet requirements, and that's not what blogging should be about. IMHO, it should be for venting and/or speculating and/or just talking about whatever is on the writer's mind at the time.
As for my specific thought process during blogging, a lot of the time I am surprised by ideas I can come up with when I have time to think quietly by myself and reach insights alone. Writing out ideas is great to help me see my thinking and actually be able to think more about it! If I had the chance to blog again, I would maybe spend even more time thinking about really good ideas to put down. The problem is, of course, that it's hard to set aside time for some deep thinking in the midst of other homework and activities.
Overall, though, I really enjoyed the blogging process this year! I would love to be able to do it next year and I think it should be kept in sophomore academy for years to come :]

Best of the Week: Michael can LIVE

This week in our discussion of Michael K, as we got t0 the end of the book, we started talking about how Michael possibly escaped the system by his intense nonconformism. At the end of the book, Michael compassionately imagined a scenario in which he would get water for people who depended on him. He said that if he just had a teaspoon and some string, he would lower the teaspoon and raise it and it would be filled with water and 'in that way... one could live.' I made an attempt to analyze this passage by saying that Michael has realized he can survive by living step by step, but was incorrect. Some of my extremely intelligent classmates later fixed my statement by saying that Michael can not only survive in this way, but live. This was a good discussion to sum up LTMK, because a lot of the book is about finding meaning. The absurd premise of the book makes it hard to find significant meaning in Michael's life, but as a class, we realized how special Michael is because of his ability to escape the system and live his own way. This relates to another point that we discussed this week which was Michael as God, or as a religious or other-worldly figure. Michael is a universal example of someone who escaped the system by living in his non-comformist, under the radar way. Overall, we had a lot of great discussion this week!

Blogging Around

I first commented on Leanne's blog. She wrote about how she doesn't really like her short story, and is basically writing it just for the grade. She wishes she wrote something that she liked and felt confident about. Here's what I said:

Leanne-
I feel EXACTLY the same way. I'm extremely disappointed with my story, too! :[. When I first started writing it, I thought I had a good idea. But then my original plan seemed wrong, and every plan I came up with and have come up with since then seems wrong. It's very disappointing for me, since I really do enjoy writing, and I was looking forward to producing a good story. When I read it, though, I am embarrassed for myself, because it's pretty awful. I'm waiting for a stroke of inspiration that will make me the next Hemingway, or Coetzee, or Bronte, but right now, I just remind myself of a mediocre middle school writer. I hope that changes. Good luck with your story! Just know that there's someone in the same boat as you. :]

Next, I commented on Tessa's blog. She wrote a "What If?" blog, speculating about what it would be like if people lost the ability to love. Here's my comment:

Wow, Tess. What a scary thought! I can't imagine what the world would be like if we lost the ability to love. So much of the future I have imagined for myself (and I'm sure it's similar to the future almost everybody else has imagined for themselves) revolves around love of all different kinds. Really, though, how would the world function without love? If a person cannot love, are they evil? Or are they just empty? Either possibility is ghastly to think about. I think about in Harry Potter, and how people who have received the Dementor's Kiss are described. "Worse than death", they say. I think it would be worse than death, to live unfeelingly. That's not exactly what your post was about, of course, but living without love, whether the emptiness is filled with evil or with nothing, is something very frightening to think about. I am hoping that love is a mechanism that can't be broken, because it is so essential to people and society. Great post!

Metacognition: Short Story

I wish I could say that my thought process was as comfortable and effortless as it was for the Jane Eyre writing assignment. Unfortunately, it was/is much more strenuous for the short story. For me, writing the short story feels like I am hiking up a mountain and I can never get to the top. For an unknown reason, my mind just hasn't clicked with the short story. I find myself struggling to keep it going. It has been an unpleasant surprise that my story is proving so difficult to write since I was originally quite interested in my story's plot. I feel like I am struggling to bring meaning to my story; right now it just seems like an intriguing little tale of a girl and her experience with 9/11. And some stuff happens, and then it's over. To me, my story seems like something a middle school student or elementary school student could write. It's extremely frustrating because I have no idea how to make it better, hard as I may try.
I guess it's not all bad, though! I think I have had moderate success crafting sentences and putting together some fairly good sentences. Every once in a while it happens that a nice sentence presents itself to me in my head.
Overall though, I would really like to be able to somehow have much more ease with this short story writing process. It's disappointing to me that I am struggling so much since I really enjoy this type of writing and have been looking forward to an assignment like this for a long time!

Metacognition: Jane Eyre Writing Assignment

This assignment was a collaborative effort. I had an interesting thought process for it, considering I was thinking as three different people. It was very fun to be able to write and think in the voices of and simulate the opinions of different people. And, surprisingly, it was pretty fun! Working with Jamie, we initially intended to outline our discussion. However, that seemed much too contrived an approach to achieve the outcome towards which we were striving. So instead, we decided to just start our discussion and let it lead us wherever it happened to take us. This turned out to be a very effective approach! In my mind, our discussion flowed quite naturally, and I was satisfied with the way it turned out. I think I had a more positive mindset entering this assignment than I had attacking others, because I simply enjoyed and appreciated Jane Eyre much more than I appreciated (/understood) some of the other works we have read.
Once we got rolling on our transcript, it didn't seem to take very long. The quotes and references fell into their places. We had a sort of 'eureka' moment that happened as we played around with the dialogue, and we turned that into the end of our transcript.
For me, this was one of the most satisfying projects I have ever worked on. I would be extremely grateful to have an opportunity to work on a project with this much ease in the future. I was very happy with the end result of our transcript and I hope it receives a grade that reflects that!

What If?: Being a Boy

What if I was born a boy? I am convinced that my life would be much, much easier. Truly, guys have it easier! Jane Eyre has put this thought in my mind even more than usual. First of all, boys clearly do not have nearly as much pressure on them to look good as girls do. I know that I have spent many, many hours fretting over my appearance and comparing myself to other girls. Second, I feel like guys are in general much nicer to each other than girls are. Girls are by nature incredibly dramatic and catty. It makes things extremely difficult and uncomfortable. Also, in relationships, it seems like men have all the control. This isn't just within relationships, but in the circumstances leading up to them as well. Women spend days and months and years fretting over men, but in the end, it really comes down to boys to take initiative. We see how this affects Jane in her longing for Rochester. She has admitted to herself that she is in love with him, and cherishes her moments with him, but Rochester is "committed" (hmm... we'll see) to Blanche and there is nothing she can do about it. While women have gained many political rights and recognition over the years, men still seem to have the upper hand in social and romantic situations. Is this because this is nature, or protocol, or just "how things are supposed to be?" It seems like it would make sense for it to be more accepted for women to have equality in relationships just as they have gained it in other areas. Sometimes tradition is nice (like when it comes to proposals, etc.), but it certainly seems like sometimes boys can be too dumb to be trusted!!