1984 Chapter Four

1. In this chapter we see Winston at work. What does he do?
Winston works at the Minitru, a branch of the government that clears all information. Winston’s job is to rotate or “rectify” all past news articles which have been noted as false. 

2. What is Newspeak? Why do you think the party promotes it?
Newspeak is a form of language that was created for individuals to use less worlds and think less. I strongly think that the party promotes violence, lock of freedom and ignorance.  

1984 Chapter Three

Chapter 3

1. The first paragraph of the chapter references the "purges of the 50's." Use the internet to research "the purges in Russia." Based on your findings, what do you suppose happened in Oceania?
I believe that based on the findings on wikipedia of the purges in russia that this sort of political attribute is happening in oceania. Big Bear had taken a controlled stand in oceania to make something out of it, being a strong leader and the only leader, this shows that there is a purge happening.
2. Why does Winston not wear pajamas?
Winston does not wear pajamas because Big Bear set out a law if you must call it to make everyone wear pajamas. Also this is  because there is a shortage of money to be spent on a persons appareal. Therefore, limiting this society to a brisk needy source of clothing supply/

3. Winston reflects: "If the Party could thrust its hand into the past and say of this or that event, it never happened -- that, surely, was more terrifying than mere torture and death? " Do you agree? Why or why not? I honestly do not know.


4. What does the term 'Ingsoc' mean?
Ingsoc: english socialism. Newspeak was the official language of oceania and this language was used as a inside kind of speech.
5. What question or questions do you have about 1984 from reading this far?
I have no further questions, comments or concerns. Throughout this far of the book i am really looking forward to picking up as much information and take it into account for my later life book readings.

The Last Lecture Section Two Response

1) What was the most important lesson you learned from the section?
The most important lesson in this section is described on page 37 when the author says, 'when you're screwing up and nobody says anything to you anymore, that means they've given up.' I believe this is the most important lesson in this chapter because it explains to you that no matter what the circumstances are, that you should just keep at it and strive to your potential. When the chapter of him winning the giant stuffed animal comes along, Randy shows us that he wouldn't finish what he wanted until he worked his butt off to get so.

2) Why might this be an important lesson for you -or- how can you connect Pausch's wisdom to your own life?
This is a very important lesson to me because I've had to deal with lots of coaches, lots of tournament and have had my fair share of trying out for new sports teams. This lesson not only helps me for my further endeavours but also for personal experiences. It teaches me that no matter what I should keep on putting out my best until the time has ended. In the book Randy never gave up, whether it was on the football field, in the carnival, his childhood dreams to which reminded him about his father, etc.
3) Explain what thoughts or questions this section causes you to have
After reading this section, I get the impression to keep on striving to my fullest potential. It asks myself that, ' did I really put forth my best effort in this certain field of measure, or did I do all I can to make someone elses job easier?' These types of questions I have always asked myself once I finished a job, or performed to my duties.

Short Story - February 24th, 2011 *The Masque of the Red Death

On Friday I will post the information for a classic short story that we have not read. You may choose to read the story online, in paper format and/or listen to an audio version. Please answer all questions using full sentences and paragraphs (where appropriate). You will be asked to respond to the following:

1)Describe the narrative point of view (4). Is it first person or third person? Is it limited or omniscient? Is the narration retrospective or written in present tense?
The narrative point of view is in third person, this is because the story is not written in dialogue or with 'I' in it. Along with the story being written in third person, it was taken place in a limited point of view, this is mainly because it is based around Prince Prospero. Lastly, the narration is written in present tense.

2)Where is the story set? Why do you think the author chose this setting for this particular story?(4)
The story is set in a very detailed castle. It has many 'apartments' in it, nine to be exact. Each with special features and certain details. I believe he chose the setting for this story because it is a very mythical story taken place in a time frame well earlier than ours, so the reason why this setting was so well to use with this story is because there is a thousand people being used, a dance happening and a fairy tale of a creature roaming around the country.
3)Who is the protagonist in the story? Who is the antagonist? What are each of them trying to accomplish? (4)
The protagonist in the story is Prince Prospero, a well known man in his community for his work. The reason he is the protagonist is because there is not much negativity going on in the story other than the fact that they are all going to die by the antagonist. In this case, Prince Prospero doesn't change throughout the story.
The antagonist in the story is the mythical 'Red Death' that haunts the outer barriers of the castle within. I believe that the antagonist is the 'Red Death' because it is the most feared character in this story, it is very un-reveling and shadowing the very interesting costume ball.
The protagonist is simply just trying to live in his castle life with his many friends in the abbey, meanwhile the antagonist is stalking the outside walls of his castle waiting for a chance to sneak in and destroy all which lies beneath.

4)What theme or themes does this story raise? (4)
The theme of the story was portrayed right at the very end of the short story. There was a reference from within the Bible stating ''peace and safety....shall not escape''. No one escapes death. Human happiness is the way to live now, and is was shown from Prince Prospero when the 'Red Death' came upon them, they all simply just put on some nice clothes and had a costume party. The way I like to hear it put is that live everyday to the fullest potential possible and you never know when death shall be upon you, it can come like a thief in the middle of the night.

5)Explain why you feel Prince Prospero is either a static, dynamic, three dimensional or a flat character. (4)
The Prince Prospero character is dynamic because he relates physically and mentally with the antagonist, either it was him having the worries of his castle members or the random interactions he had with it. I also believe this is true because the dynamic character does not have much change physically, but physchologically they drastically change.

6) In a well written paragraph, explain whether you would like to see this short story adapted into a film format. Use details from the story to explain why you would or would not like to see a film version of the 'The Masque of the Red Death'.
In the future I would very much enjoy to see this film produced into a movie because even after reading it I could picture myself being inside the story, being apart of the castle house people. The very interesting introduction of each room really sucked me into the story when reading it. I would be interested in seeing this film done really well because this is a childhood story that could easily grab the younger audiances attention, I would rate the movie pg-13 and have it filmed in three-dimensions to get the full effects.

The Last Lecture Section One Response

1) What was the most important lesson you learned from the section?
The most important lesson I learned from this section is stated on page 17 in the first paragraph, it is as follows: '' We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand''. This is the most important lesson because when you have all you got and you make the best of it, I'm a firm believer in karma so this way, the respect you put is given back to yourself evenly.

2) Why might this be an important lesson for you -or- how can you connect Paushs'  wisdom to your own life?
This lesson is an important lesson because I can relate to Paushs' wisdom in my own experiences. I think that the way he lives life to the fullest and is always thinking ahead to the future resembles my life in a nutshell.
3) Explain what thoughts or questions this section causes you to have
After reading this section I feel emotions towards Paushs' family, because he doesn't know what his time is set at before he passes away. I also feel bad for his wife because he didn't get to make it to her last one before he passes away.

Simple and Compound Sentences

1) How confident are you now about your ability to tell the difference between a simple sentence, a sentence fragment and a compound sentence?
I am very confident in writing and interpretating simple sentences, a sentence fragment and a compound sentence. A simple sentence is as follows: Alex goes down to the library to study biology. A sentence fragment is as follows: The tree has a bird house. A compound sentece is as follows: Alex played Volleyball, so my mother can go shopping.

2) How well did today's activity suit your learning style? Do you prefer to work through grammar information like you did today, or do you prefer a teacher led lesson?
Todays activity suited me very well, I enjoyed it because it was repetative and got the point through. The sentence fragments I had most difficulty with because i've never made such weird sounding sentences before and knew what they were used for. I prefer to learn through a teacher but did not mind the way we did it. I'd rather use a teacher because i'm more of a visual learner.

3) What questions do you still have about the material?
I don't have any further questions about todays material. I felt as though you did a good job explaining and showing us how things need to be done.

The Destructors

1) What do you feel is the main theme or themes explored in this story?
Throughout the story I couldn't really tell what the theme is because these kids are so destructive and demeaning. The story takes place after the world war, the second. So the kids were brought up thinking 'destroy'.  I feel the main theme is the fact that the kids followed their peers. Considerably following the World war they found interest in taking apart an abandend building.
2) Who is the most static character in the story? Who is the most dynamic? Explain.
The most static character was the boy named Blackie. This is because he is the leader of the gang, and hates anyone who thinks down to the group, even the upper class.
The most dynamic character was Trevor 'T'. This is because he goes from being a gang member, to not being a gang member to being a gang member. This shows that he is undeciding on where to go.
3) It's been said that "little in literature is black and white, rather most fiction is about the grey area in between." Write a paragraph responding to "The Destructors" in which you agree or disagree with this statement.
I believe this statement is true about short stories because the fact that is said to be 'black and white' means such that the facts in the story are strong, appealing and grab your attention. Once you start reading the destructors you realise that there is much information that needs to be taken into account. The black and white part that is described in this phrase is such that the strong points in the book is starting in the world war and how the kids react to it.