Tech Frustrations

So, as I'm finishing my final projects for ENGL 579 I have come across a few frustrations...

1. I'm having a problem with passwords. I've been forewarned about changing my passwords in order to make sure my accounts are all secure and to avoid people trying to break any codes. Therefore, I use several different passwords for several different accounts and recently, with the virtual worlds page especially, I have encountered frustrations with my password not being accessed and frantically trying to attempt my others. This frustration was due to my account not working properly. The numerous passwords that I currently have just made things a little more complicated. Just wanted to note that consolidating my amount of passwords may be a good idea...

2. I am trying to scan photos for my iMovie and transfering them onto the Mac computers has been a very difficult task. As soon as I figure this out I will let everyone know... However, if anyone is skilled in scanning photos and transfering them onto programs such as iMovie please let me know.

On a side note I find it very interesting to use old photos from my grandparents that are not accessible on CD's. Today we are so familiar with digital photography and automatically putting photos onto a CD and having them computer accessible. I have never used a scanner before, I've never had to, and I'm curious to see what the prices and availability of scanners will be in years to come...

English and Technology

After listening to actual instructors speak about implementing the technology tools that we have become familiar with in their own classroom I find myself becoming very excited of the thought of being an educator that is skilled in the world of technology. Before taking English 1100 and English 5790 I was very stubborn about the use of technology and personally felt very discouraged to try to implement technology in a lower ed classroom.

Coming from a small, rural town, my middle school provided the bare minimum of technology and the one single brand new computer lab that was used by every single class within our school. Time was very limited and only the computer technician was familiar with what technology had to offer.

Now, I am inspired to not only implement, but to also make sure that technology is available for me to use. I am excited about teaching my students that the "mouse potato" world that they will have grown up in can make learning more entertaining. I am excited to show them that their interests, intellect, and hard work can be displayed and viewed with just the click of a button. Many young students are already more skilled in the world of technology as me. But through continued education and a lot of time spent with different programs I hope to become an educator of technology as well.

I hope to teach middle school students how to enrich literature and writing with technology. I want to experiment with different learning styles. I want to use technology to enrich my English/Language Arts classrooms.

Digital Stories and Family History

If I can get this digital story program working so that I am able to access it enough I am very excited to use this system for my final project. I have always been excited about the thought of incorporating family history, photos, and stories in the classroom and making actual productions out of these stories. After speaking with a friend about how fortunate we are to still have four grandparents with us I have been thinking more and more about this type of lesson in my future classroom. Not only because I believe that young students need to become more aware of their family's history but also because that this type of assignment could help the younger generations respect their elders and hopefully invest more time into the history of things. So many young students are lost in a world that they have the slightest idea about its depth, its people, and where we are now. With war affecting more and more people in a very direct mannor I find family history and stories to be so very important. I hope that through digital story telling I can give my best effort in this attempt.

RSS Feeds and Blogging in the Classroom

When I think of RSS Feeds I think of it being a bit too advanced for an elementary level student. I don't believe that this is something that I would personally want to untilize in a lower level classroom. However, in middle school I believe that RSS feeds and blogging are the types of technology that would excite students. Especially when considering blogging, I think that this is the type of writing that will allow students to express themselves and share their voice with others. Much like daily journals and quickwrites blogging could be an up to date tool that students may find more appealing and in turn could lead to RSS feeds. I really enjoyed the examples of audio advertisements for books. I can see middle school students finding this type of project very interesting.

The Blog Blog

I find myself surprised when I think about the fact that Blogging is something that I enjoy. Although it could be considered a journal for some users I have found it very interesting to see how a class dynamic can grow through the use of blogs as a form of communication with the main topics being those discussed in class. Instead of giving face-to-face advice, feedback, criticism, and praise blogging can create a world that is much more comfortable to some students. By taking away the confrontational/intimidating factor that peer interaction may cause to some students blogging allows for such students, particularly introverts, to come alive through writing. After using blogs as communication in ENGL 1100 last semester I already have some experience realizing how articulate and intellectual my most quiet and reserved peers truly were. The thought of how blogging can be a tool to me as a teacher to reach out to students who may not display as much participation in classroom discussion, but eagerly share and grow with their peers on-line is very exciting to me. Also, blogging can be a place for students to grow as writers without the boundaries and criticisms that grammar may present. Through blogging students can write about how they feel and things that they've discovered without extra worries that they may have in an English class. This also is creating history. History is created mainly by written documents if you ask me and what a wonderful way for people, especially educators, to look back on today 20 years from now and see what a college English classroom was like. Maybe they'll be looking at this blog?

I Googled "blogging" and found Wikipedia's definition with history. It stated:

"A blog is a user-generated website where entries are made in journal style and displayed in a reverse chronological order. Blogs often provide commentary or news on a particular subject, such as food, politics, or local news; some function as more personal online diaries."

I found this to be accurate to my experience with blogs for the most part. Then when I read into the history I, at only 22 years old, felt like I was of the "old" generation. There werepeople that I referred to as "out of the loop" and "uncool" in high school and now high schoolers are probably doing the same to me. I've said it before and I'll say it again, technology changes everyday and unless you update your own knowledge daily it seems as though you'll become "old" when considering technology. The part of the history that really got to me was the date in 1999 where "blog" was first coined.

"The term "weblog" was coined by Jorn Barger on 17 December 1997. The short form, "blog," was coined by Peter Merholz, who jokingly broke the word weblog into the phrase we blog in the sidebar of his blog Peterme.com in April or May of 1999.[3][4][5] This was quickly adopted as both a noun and verb ("to blog," meaning "to edit one's weblog or to post to one's weblog")."

Almost a decade has gone bye since "blog" was first coined and I am just now experiencing it for the first time! I need to get with the program(s) and start updating myself in new technology. I want to keep up with my future students. In fact, I want to be one step ahead of them. I want to feel "young" when it comes to technology for a change. I need quite a bit of work yet, but I think that I'm on my way.

Being a "Techie"

Technology has always intimidated me. I've always been the last to sign up for any trend that includes technology. Email, Instant Messaging, on-line banking, Facebook, and web design I have put off learning as long as possible. However, after becoming acquainted with technology it has become a huge part of my lifestyle (although I still hate to admit it). By learning technology skills I have gained so much knowledge and now have a great deal of accessibility to any form of communication and/or information that I need. By the click of the mouse I can balance my check book, talk to a friend overseas, send photos to my grandmother, and much, much more! Although this is common sense to anyone who has grown up in my generation here, I still find these cell phone/iPod/computer/Internet devices (all in one) to be foreign. It blows my mind to see how fast technology has advanced. Just recently I was listening to my Pastor speak about how in the past SIX years technology has advanced three times as much as it had from the beginning of our earth to the year 2000!! That's crazy to think how fast computers and such are flying of the shelves to be replaced by a completely new model. I am curious to see what my students will have accessible to them in years to come. I also hope that through this class, and more confidence, as far as technology goes I will become much more educated about it and be able to utilize this in my classroom.

Thoughts on The Tempest

My Thoughts on The Tempest

This piece is very interesting to me. One aspect of its critism that makes me curious is that it is all interpretation. Because we do not have any commentary of Shakespeare's work it is all in the eye of the beholder. What would have it been like if Shakespeare had left us detailed descriptions of what he was intending with each character and each line of the play? Would it be as acclaimed as it is today? Would present critics be shocked? Would their analysis of Shakespearean intentions be close to the truth or complete opposites? When we think of media, art, film, and the likes do we ever stop to think that often "they" that determine what is "good" work are really just manipulating reality and making decisions for the general, uneducated (about a specific type of art that is) public? Although Literary Criticism does many wonderful things for the world of English I would like to pose the question "Who was William Shakespeare?" and "What did Shakespeare specifically desire for both reader and audience to take with them when the finished this show?" I enjoy the thought of freedom of speech and research on a historic piece. However I always wonder if the author ever wanted something completely different than how their piece was interpreted. And if so, were they the type of author that would appreciate such interpretation? Or would they be offended?

" Action is eloquence. "
~ William Shakespeare

"His life was gentle; and the elementsSo mixed in him, that Nature might stand up,And say to all the world, THIS WAS A MAN!"
~ William Shakespeare

"I am not bound to please thee with my answers."
~ William Shakespeare

Find more quotations by Shakespeare

The Tempest and Film

The Tempest is analyzed in many different ways. When we look through the eyes of a director of Film we are seeing their interpretations of this piece of literature. When we consider these interpretations art and not fact there is a very interesting occurrence. We start seeing the text as a material and the interpretation (in this case Film) as the creation.

I enjoyed researching the different types of productions that have been done of The Tempest. One very interesting interpretation is that of director Peter Greenaway. His film entitled "Pospero's Books"

With many different images based upon, but not necessarily given by, The Tempest this film is criticized a great deal questioning its validity. However, popular critic Roger Ebert states;

"Prospero's Books really exists outside criticism. All I can do is describe it. Most of the reviews of this film have missed the point; this is not a narrative, it need not make sense, and it is not 'too difficult' because it could not have been any less so. It is simply a work of original art, which Greenaway asks us to accept or reject on his own terms." - Roger Ebert ***

http://petergreenaway.co.uk/prospero.htm

Modern Literary Theory

Modern Literary Theory comes in so many different forms. When I viewed Dr. Kristi Siegel's website I found the information about different types of Literary Theory to be much more clear.

One type of literary theory that I found very interesting was Psychoanalytic Criticism. We have considered how authors use different voices and/or mindsets while writing in order to depict what the characters in the text are thinking/feeling/doing. I find it somewhat contradictory to suggest that we can tell what the author is feeling. Yes, maybe we can analyze what the text is making the reader feel. But to consider what an author is thinking takes away from their art I believe. Although this type of theory may be appropriate for certain types of texts, I feel that if we were to analyze novels, especially fiction, in this way that we would take away from the fact that literature is supposed to make us feel on many different levels and in many different ways.

Literary Theory

Literary Theory seems quite appropriate to everything that has led us up to this in class. I find it interesting to view other's interpretation of literature and how many different insights that can be found within one given text.

I was looking at the history behind literary theory and found it interesting how the acceptance of what we now know as lit. theory was not truly established until 1950. Although opinions in the opposing view of an author would seem controversial and no one really wants to be criticized, I still thought that the history of common Lit. theory would have gone farther back to Shakespearean time period. However, I was not surprised to see that the profession was not established until the 20th century.

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literary_theory#History

Aljazeer Clippings

Their View on Bush
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/news_service/article_full_story.asp?service_ID=11872

Mystery Wounds
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=11896

Rape Victim
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_id=11898

Revenge on Rape Victims
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=11752

60 Mutilated Bodies Found in Baghdad
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_id=11867

Initiating World War III - Opinion Article
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/news_service/article_full_story.asp?service_id=12312

What’s behind Bin Laden’s death rumors?
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi%2Dbin/conspiracy%5Ftheory/fullstory.asp?id=343

U.S. forces killed UK journalist in Iraq
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=11893

Why didn’t the U.S. troops intervene to save Balad?
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/review/article_full_story.asp?service_id=11873

W-A-R continued...

Understanding the War in Iraq

This is an interesting site and it answers many questions from the perspective of the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) . "IPS has transformed ideas into action for peace, justice, and the environment. " I found so much new information here. I appreciate the way that they have set up the questions and answers here.

Death Squads Online

MSNBC reports how lists of citizens that "need to be killed" are posted on-line along with information of how to locate these citizens.

War Poetry

The Real Story by Robert A. Fuller

This poem encompasses a great deal about the war against terrorism. It mentions Baghadad's conditions, the people, and the country's status. By asking if this is the start of the third world war, I believe that the narrorator is suggesting that this war could possibly be more extreme than we know now.

One Little Girl by Kendall R. Holler

This poem makes me wonder if the author has experienced this scenario first-hand. The way that it was written seems quite simple. It makes me think that she has only been told such stories and has not actually experienced this.

The War On-Line

The New York Times - World
Monday, October 16th, 2007

This audio clip describes the death of a soldier, the reactions from others, and what happens when a soldier dies: (under "Multimedia" )
Farewell of An American Soldier

The reporter gave such a real and honest take to this story. The few photos that go along with his report do not show any graphic footage though and they do not tell the story with the same reality as the narrorator does. Like we talked about in class, it's as though media is sheltering us. Although no one wants to see blood and gore, it is not until we are exposed to the harsh reality of what is actually happening to both soldiers and civilians that we will actually be able to understand from a distance. Now, we only know what we see. What we see is not complete reality.

Can We Define War?

When I begin thinking about war a feeling of empathy consumes me and I have a hard time not letting a sadness effect my mood. In our class discussion it was obvious that no one wants to be at war. However it is a reality in our everyday lives and more and more of our generation is being affected first hand by the effects of war even though Michigan only views it through the media. Understanding the war seems a bit contradictory considering the fact that the definition of war began with "confusion". I started my research by looking up the definition of war and found this rather interesting....

War (n.):

1) a. A state of open, armed, often prolonged conflict carried on between nations, states, or parties.
b. The period of such conflict.
c. The techniques and procedures of war; military science.

2) a. A condition of active antagonism or contention: a war of words; a price war.
b. A concerted effort or campaign to combat or put an end to something considered injurious: the war against acid rain.

WORD HISTORY The chaos of war is reflected in the semantic history of the word war. War can be traced back to the Indo-European root *wers–, “to confuse, mix up.” In the Germanic family of the Indo-European languages, this root gave rise to several words having to do with confusion or mixture of various kinds. One was the noun *werza–, “confusion,” which in a later form *werra– was borrowed into Old French, probably from Frankish, a largely unrecorded Germanic language that contributed about 200 words to the vocabulary of Old French. From the Germanic stem came both the form werre in Old North French, the form borrowed into English in the 12th century, and guerre (the source of guerrilla) in the rest of the Old French-speaking area. Both forms meant “war.” Meanwhile another form derived from the same Indo-European root had developed into a word denoting a more benign kind of mixture, Old High German wurst, meaning “sausage.” Modern German Wurst was borrowed into English in the 19th century, first by itself (recorded in 1855) and then as part of the word liverwurst (1869), the liver being a translation of German Leber in Leberwurst.

Source : http://www.answers.com/topic/war

The Odyssey Translation

My translation is of the last portion of The Odyessey - Book I, when Telemachus is going to bed:

( I do not consider myself well versed in poetry. So, although this wasn't the most descriptive portion of the piece I enjoyed the detail about Eurycleia. Therefore, I tried to give this a modern day feel, and since it is 2006 I threw in a few twists that I thought could give better imagery to this old tale. i.e. condo= extravagant castle. Hope that you enjoy...)

After the music disappeared into the nighttime
people began dispersing away from the party
into their homes
Telemachus started his long trek home.
Home to his condominium
View overlooking what seemed to encompass the whole world that surrounded him as a child.
Structure was that of an eternal monument.
Climbing the massive amount of stairs,
finally arrived to his bedroom where he exhausts himself upon the bed.

Fortunately, Eurycleia, loyal and elderly servant, carried flames
They led their long path from the courtyard to the condo.
She is loyalty to Telemachus, that of a mother,
for she had breast fed him when he was an infant.

Laertes, his father, purchased her when financial standing was good
and had treated her with just as much, if not more, respect as he gave his own wife.
In fact, the only difference between Eurycleia and the Queen was that she did not sleep with Laertes.
Therefore, Telemachus held Eurycleia very dear to his heart for she loved him
She cared for him more than any other servant.

He tears off his clothing gives it to the woman
She makes certain that each crease pressed
hung for the morning.
Slowly she walks to the doors
Exits as she securely shuts their broad structure
locked tight.
Telemachus lay in bed
fleece embracing him
spends night
meditating
the journey that Athena advised
awaits him.

I used these three translations to create my own:

Butcher-Lang 1879

Butler - 1900

Myatt - 1996

Choices...

After Apple Picking by Robert Lee Frost

Lovely

Cradle Song by Sarojini Naidu
* One poem that I hope to write one day would be a poem to my child. I would love to write it in a lullabye style so that it could be sung. This poem made me think of how diverse each lullabye can be between different cultures.

Your Love's in Your Heart, and You're Forever in My Heart by Babette Teeth
*Gotta love it when things are straight and to-the-point.

My Heart Sings by Jennifer Burns

Poems Galore

Quilts by Nikki Giovanni
This is such an intriguing analogy about self value and life's struggles. I really enjoy Giovanni's style and hope to find a lot more from her.

The Star by Ann Taylor


The Last Flight by Kabir
There is a very interesting story behind this author from India. This site includes an English translation included that made me question how true to the original meaning poetry is after being translated..

Fancy by John Keats
Keats seems to take a certain view on women in his poems that I'm not sure that I appreciate...

There's A Moon Inside My Body by Kabir

Buffalo Bill's by E.E. Cummings
I'm not exactly sure whether I appreciate this poem or not. The style is unlike any other that I have ever read and I enjoy it. However, its message I am interpreting in too many differnt ways..

Maggie and Milly and... by E.E. Cummings


April Rain Song by Langston Hughes

All All and All by Dylan Thomas

A Fairy Song by William Shakespeare

I played Titania in a production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and this piece is dear to me because it brings me back to an exact moment in time.

Carpe Diem by William Shakespeare

Sonnet 102 by William Shakespeare

Safe Sex by Donald Hall
* This is one of those titles that makes the body of this piece jump out and the eerie ending has me guessing...

In Good Times and In Bad

Death Is Nothing At All by Henry Scott Holland

This poem is a message from someone who has passes away to those still living. I think that the honesty is stated so gracefully and the imagery is something that we can all relate to at one point in our lives.