English Musings

My Digital Story - It's short, it's quiet, but it's there.

2007-04-25T15:00:00.000-04:00

Are we there yet?

2007-04-17T11:33:00.000-04:00

Ever have that feeling like you're running towards something but it just isn't getting any closer? And then you realize you're in one of those hamster wheels? And then the problem of not reaching your goal becomes irrelevant and you are totally consumed with the fact that you are inside a giant hamster wheel? Welcome to my life. Without the hamster wheel part. Maybe it's a metaphorical hamster wheel. Anyway...

The digital story is done, but not ready to view. I finally made use of that car predicament over spring break and the result is, well, it's okay. It's there.

The literary world is getting close. I have a feeling I'm going to end up going in and making changes for a very long time, so let's just say the first draft is almost complete.

I finally gathered my courage and returned to podcasting. I'm still in the early stages, trying to ease myself back in so that I don't get mad and give up on it like I did last time. Cross your fingers for me.

So maybe I am getting somewhere, but won't be able to appreciate it until after the 27th. I think I finally realized why Allen always insists on asking me whether or not I'm going to survive finishing my freshman year: it's because I'm in his class!

2007-04-11T18:57:00.000-04:00

The eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg

2007-04-10T15:45:00.000-04:00

It's official. Podcasting is no longer the bane of my existence.

And the new champion is....digital storytelling.

More info later.

progress

2007-04-09T11:34:00.000-04:00

The digital story ideas are coming along, but I have a sinking feeling that this is likely to turn out like the podcast fiasco. My problem is that I have a serious lack of pictures, and therefore, a lack of memories. I started making a sample based on a short story my roommate wrote, but since it's not my personal story I'm not sure if it counts. If it doesn't I'm afraid I'm tapped. I'm not sure this is going to be my most crowning achievement, but we'll see on Wednesday I guess. I think this is an idea that I could play around with more and really like, but it's hard to try and make a decent product at the end-of-the-year crunch time, especially with my literary world taking over my life.

Digital Storytelling

2007-04-04T10:27:00.000-04:00

I visited some of the sites from Allen's email, hoping to find a decent idea of what digital stories actually are, because I wasn't too sure. After browsing for a while I came to a general understanding, and think that digital storytelling is a great idea for the classroom. It brings a sense of audience to student writing and, at least in all the examples I saw, the stories are personal and creative, something that students can identify with because they're putting a part of themselves into their work. I didn't take a look at any teacher-produced digital stories, thought I'd be interested to see what kinds of things teachers chose to discuss. My only problem is that I still have no idea what I should make my digital story about. Any ideas?

2007-04-03T12:09:00.000-04:00

Ok, so this semester is winding down, and I am taking a look at the syllabus thinking I've got this covered. Then I look at my blog and realize, I most definitely do not have this covered.

Since there are a few aspects of the class that I neglected to blog about, I'll make up for lost time and blog about them now. The topic of today's fantastic blog will be: podcasting, the bane of my existence.

Podcasting was the one thing I didn't quite master out of this whole experience. Wikis? Check. RSS? Gotcha. But for some reason, podcasting just didn't stick. I'm not sure if it was the program I was using, (audacity felt the need to chop up everything I saved into tiny little pieces and then reassemble them in no particular order), my inability to become a member on the free podcast music site (two full hours of sitting in front of the computer, typing in every user name I could possibly think of, only to find them all taken...suspicious), or perhaps that was an off-week for me and I just couldn't quite "get it."

Whatever the reason, I am currently without any real podcast to speak of. Hopefully we can take those extra class days to do some catching up like we discussed, and someone can try to help me through this. Until then, I remain podcast-less and painfully ashamed.

Literary Worlds

2007-03-26T16:52:00.000-04:00

The virtual worlds project was probably the most anticipated unit of this class for me. I was one of the few people in last semester's 110 class that didn't look back on this project and shudder. Call me crazy, but I like making virtual worlds, although it does get time-consuming.

So my next creation is going to be a role-playing game based on The Great Gatsby. So far I have a couple of rooms, and I think I am going to set it up so that students can visit the world in groups of 5 or so, playing as Gatsby, Nick, Daisy, Tom, or Myrtle. They'll each have objectives corresponding to their characters and they'll have to fulfill them inside the world. I have no experience with bots yet, so I'll probably have to throw a few in, as much to fill in the minor characters of the novel as to satisfy my own curiosity.

As of right now the world is nothing much to look at, but that will all change just as soon as I get some real time to sit down and play with it a while. I don't know why these other classes of mine insist on taking up so much on my free time.

Spring Breakdown

2007-03-11T19:14:00.000-04:00

Disclaimer: This story has nothing to do with English, besides the fact that it is written in English. It also has nothing to do with technology, unless you count the technology of auto mechanics.

The following is a story about luck. Whether I'm very fortunate or comepletely cursed is for you to decide.

Last Friday, my boyfriend and I were lucky enough to have tickets to a production of "Cabaret" in Grand Haven, about twenty minutes away from where I live. Unfortunately, there was a major snowstorm that night. We decided to go anyway and, fortunately, when we got there, the ticket booth operator offered us better seats because many people had cancelled their tickets.

After the show was over we got into my car to head home, but unfortunately, my car wouldn't start because the battery was dead. Luckily, most of the actors were still inside but, unluckily, none of them had jumper cables. Luckily, I had my cell phone. So, like any other independent adults, we called Andrew's mother to come give me a jump. Unfortunately, after forty-five minutes with my car hooked up to hers, we reluctantly accepted the fact that my battery was dead as a doornail, never to return. We headed home.

**The next day**

After buying a new battery, we tried the car again and, unfortunately, it still wouldn't start. Luckily, my car had broken down right next door to Grand Haven Automotive Advantage. Unluckily, it was Saturday and they were closed. I left my key in their box and considered myself lucky that at least I didn't have to pay a towing bill.

**Six Days and Several Phone Calls Later**

Luckily, the mechanics were able to finish my car on Friday. I went to the garage to pay the bill and finally have my car back afer an entire week of bumming rides from friends and family. Unfortunately, when I tried to pay the bill, my debit card was declined because it has a daily limit of $1000 and the bill was...
THIRTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS.
Needless to say, that's unfortunate.

Luckily, they were able to take my mom's credit card over the phone (there's that independence again). Heaving a sigh of relief, I waited for my keys to be handed over to me. Unfortunately, they gave my keys to someone else!! Fortunately, they were given to someone who worked at the garage, the mechanic was able to call him and arrange the switch, and my car was dropped off at my house the next day.

So, after eight days and THIRTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS, my car's back. How was everyone else's break?

RSS

2007-02-07T16:03:00.000-05:00

I enjoyed learning about RSS last week, and the possibilities of this technology seem interesting and endless. As others have mentioned on their blogs, RSS feeds enable teachers to provide students with a custom-made set of resources. This provides relief to the frustration of searching for an article or website in an endless sea of information, and also alleviates the problem of having to filter which sites students visit for school projects. I like the idea of visiting my Google reader homepage and automatically seeing all of my subscriptions right there waiting for me. All in all, using it is a breeze, even for the less tech-savvy people like me. I'm sure I have not even begun to exercise the full potential of Google reader, but I have a feeling this is something I could continue to utilize throughout my career and my life.

What Blogging Can Do For You

2007-01-30T16:57:00.000-05:00

Personally, I never looked upon the idea of blogging as something necessary or vital to life (okay, I had a 'livejournal' account, but trust me, pawing through those entries will not keep you on the edge of your seat). However, when I took Allen's English 1100 class last semester and the first assignment was to create a blog and use it to share ideas about poetry and other aspects of the class, I was surprised with how nicely I took to it. Blogging soon became a way to get to know other members of the class, discuss topics we hadn't gotten around to in our class meeting, and find insights and ideas that otherwise would never have entered my mind. For example, when our assignment was to journey through online poetry archives and post thoughts about our favorite works, another student and I ended up having a "Billy Collins Day." We soon exchanged thoughts on our favorite Collins poems and passages, which gave us both a new appreciation for the work. The same thing occurred when I was putting together my first paper for the class, about imagery in Adrian Henri's "Death in the Suburbs." Using my blog, I could get feedback from everyone and start to put my thoughts together. The nice thing about blogging is, when you get great ideas from other people, you don't spend the next week trying to remember what was said, because it's right there on your comments page.

I think that blogging can integrated into the classroom in countless ways. It makes a great discussion forum, and I love the idea that in addition to talking about something in class, ideas can be expounded upon in the blog setting and then looked back on at a later date. Great concepts are never really lost when everything is documented online.

Last week's discussion about literature circles, for example, made me think of blogging. The question arose of how the teacher should moderate the lit circles to ensure that work was being completed and that the students were getting the most out of the literature. In my experience with lit circles, the meetings were entirely outside of school. No one was teaching us the novel; we had to find our own ways through it, and form our own ideas and discussions. It was up to the students to account for themselves and each other. This is where blogging comes in. Rather than taking notes for each group meeting that, let's face it, would be written only for the teacher to see and check for credit, not content, a blog could be used to document ideas discussed at each meeting. Every lit circle could have one, and the entries could contain thoughts on various themes and ideas expressed in the novel. It would benefit the group by allowing them to scroll through the summaries of every meeting and making it easier to see the most prominent themes and important aspects of the book, whereas the teacher could view the blog and actually get a feel for the meeting, even leaving them comments for feedback, becoming both a moderator and a contributor and letting ideas flow in whatever direction they may. An added bonus is that these blogs would be available for members of other lit circles to see as well, acting as sort of an "online book review" which could even, dare I say it, spark interest in other students to read said book!

So maybe this 'blog blog' became a little longer than I intended, and I shouldn't have been so judgemental toward blogging in the first place.

Thoughts on the New Class

2007-01-23T19:55:00.000-05:00

Everyone keeps asking me what I think of English 5970, whether they are interested in how I feel about being in a 5000 level class as a freshman, or what I think of the actual course itself. Overall, I'm pretty excited to be involved, and I feel that everything I pick up while taking this class is going to help me in some way in my future. Being a freshman, years away from having an actual classroom of my own, most of the subject matter will have to be filed away for much later use, but it will nonetheless be extremely beneficial. Just kicking ideas around during class discussions makes me excited and fills me with countless questions and possibilities as to how I will use technology in my future classroom.

Tempest Art

2006-11-28T00:06:00.000-05:00

I went to the link for the emory site. The two paintings that I looked at were one of Miranda and Caliban and one of Ariel. The painting of Miranda and Caliban was interesting to me because the picture I have in my mind of Caliban changes with almost every scene of the play. He is portrayed in this image as a devil, a villain. It conflicted with my mental picture a bit because I feel that Caliban can evoke sympathy at times, and this painting depicts him as sort of one-dimensional. After we talked in class about Caliban's enslavement and the ways that Prospero has really taken advantage of him, I don't completely agree with this interpretation of the character.

The painting of Ariel agreed more with my initial interpretation of the character. I always pictured Ariel as either a man or a sort of gender-less being, because he isn't human and shouldn't have to have a gender. I also think that the image of Ariel changes over the course of the play, depending on the circumstances of his emotions and what is going on in the scene. This agreed with my mental picture of Ariel when he is sent out to do Prospero's bidding. He seems to take delight in torturing others and carrying out the more darker aspects of Prospero's plan.

Literary Theories

2006-11-13T20:58:00.000-05:00

Post-colonialism
Postcolonialism refers to a period of time after European control of an area has lessened or disappeared completely. This literary theory focuses on how the European culture influenced the colonized nation, and the impact it had on their literature, politics, and history, specifically when related to writing. Some important terms of Postcolonialism are Alterity, Diaspora, Eurocentrism, Hybridity, and Imperialism.

New Criticism
New Criticism argues that a piece of literature should not be judged according to reasons other than the work itself. This theory was developed in the 1920s and 1930s as a response to traditional criticism. Key terms of New Criticism are Intentional Fallacy, Affective Fallacy, Heresy of Paraphrase, and Close reading.

2006-10-19T08:33:00.000-04:00

AlJezeera:
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=11898

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/10/18/soldiers.court/index.html

The above articles are about the impending trials of four U.S. soldiers accused of the rape and murder of an Iraqi girl and the murder of her family. The main differences that I found were the fact that CNN's article stressed words such as "alleged," "if convicted," and "according to," while Aljezeera's article didn't deny that the event occurred. It seems as though CNN's article was not only trying to preserve the innocence of the soldiers but was also making the actual event only an allegation. I also noticed that CNN defended the American troops more, even though it seemed at times like they were grasping at straws. Included was information about the soldiers' living conditions, as if the rape of a 14 year old girl is justified because they were getting cabin fever. The CNN article seems, as a whole, to be selling the war and invoking sympathy from the American people for the soldiers.

More war info.

2006-10-18T21:36:00.000-04:00

The wikipedia site was helpful for just finding out basic information on the conflict in Iraq. I liked it because I don't know all that much about what is going on and it was a good site to get informed.

After we read the article in class about the born-again Christian soldier who fought in Iraq, I found this site discussing whether or not Christians should fight in wars.

The last site I looked at was full of Iraq war poetry written by soldiers, mothers of soldiers, etc. I scrolled through them and found quite a few interesting ones, such as "Twas the Night Before Baghdad" and "By Dawns Early Light."

War Info.

2006-10-16T21:23:00.000-04:00

I started by going to the Author's Den website and I found the poem "A Grunt Remembers." I found the last line especially interesting after we talked in class about soldiers' postwar emotional stability and the effects war has on those who live it. It seems like the author is trying to deliver the message that these images of war will be with him forever, and that maybe they should linger a little more our minds as well.

We also talked in class about prostests. Some people saw them as just small, almost meaningless events on campuses like ours that probably wouldn't do any good anyway. In the editorial Songs of Protest, the author talks about several musicians that are speaking out against the Bush administration and the circumstances of the Irag War. If the number of album sales is any indication, these artists seem to be speaking for millions.

This next article, "America's Five Iraq Wars," presents a different perspective, a more government supportive view. I didn't want to be completely one sided.

The Washington Post website had some really interesting articles as well. I especially enjoyed "In a Moment, Lives Get Blown Apart" and the collection of Shadid's War Stories.

War Poems

2006-10-11T22:43:00.000-04:00

Vietnamese Morning
This poem has so much imagery in it, both beautiful and tragic, that I couldn't keep from posting it. I'm big on Imagery-that's just what sells the poem.

A Child in the Ashes
I liked this poem's criticism of the American mentality. It was just sarcastic enough to make a point, but didn't go so far as to be cliche or lose its meaning.

The Man He Killed

Death of the Ball Turret Gunner

Naming of Parts

These last three poems were ones that I studied in my high school English class. "The Man He Killed" makes a very strong point-war turns people into enemies without necessarily giving good reason, and just because someone is fighting for "the other side" doesn't mean they are evil. "Death of the Ball Turret Gunner" is brief but its images linger after one finishes reading it. "Naming of Parts" relays the numbness with which we view war; one can almost imagine the speaker's monotone as he gives instructions on how to care for and use an instrument which will be used to kill another human being,

My Odyssey Translation

2006-10-02T14:42:00.000-04:00

I took a passage from Book V, when the gods decide that Odysseus should be freed from Calypso. I used the translations by Alexander Pope, William Cowper, and Samuel Butler for reference.

Then the gods commanded Hermes:
“Hermes, messenger of the gods,
Go visit Calypso the nymph, and give her these orders-
‘Zeus, king of the gods, demands that Odysseus be sent home.
He guarantees that Odysseus will see Ithaca again.
However, no men or gods will escort him;
He will travel on a handmade raft for twenty days
until he reaches the island of Scheria.
There, the Phaeacians, who are related to the gods,
will welcome him, give him a ship to return to his homeland
and offer him treasures of gold
greater than those he could have brought home from Troy.
He will see his country and family again, although it will take a long time.
This is the will of the gods.’”

'Odyssey' translations I liked

2006-09-27T20:13:00.000-04:00

Butcher-Lang (1879)

I liked this translation because it was easy to understand without losing much of the beautiful language. I also liked the way it was set up, not so much as a poem but in paragraphs.

WHD Rouse (1937)

This seemed like a good choice for people reading The Odyssey for the first time, or who might not be too familiar with poetry. It took less analysis than in poem format because it was formed into more of a novel. The imagery remained intact and it was easy to follow.

Richard Lattimore

This was in more of a poem format, which I liked. It flowed nicely and relayed profound images. The introduction is clear; even though it deals with a lot of events in only a few lines it does so without turning into a massive run-on, which usually makes me lose focus. I think the test of any poem is whether or not the reader can picture the action. Not only can I picture the events being described, I can also envision the actual story being told aloud, because it flows so nicely.

Imagery Ideas

2006-09-18T21:06:00.000-04:00

At this point, I think the poem on my blog with the strongest imagery is "Death in the Suburbs" by Adrian Henri.

Some Images that Grab Me:
-Sunlight thrown like a blanket
-Stone Ravens
-tasteful cooing of doves
-tiny snowstorms of cherryblossom
-a blurred polaroid
-lawns flung like carpets
-pre-packaged meals
-posters of che guevara
-cries of children/circling like seagulls
-the solitary picnicker
-the last pink petal

The way the author describes suburban perfection is precise and beautiful, but at the same time a little haunting. It feels so empty, which is ironic because most people think of a suburb as being cozy and warm. Equally picturesque in a way are the images of the end of the world.

Some More Good Poems

2006-09-18T20:12:00.000-04:00

Bound by marriage, embraced by abuse

2006-09-14T09:45:00.000-04:00

Bride of quietness,
child of silence,
Those unheard are sweeter,
more endeared.
Though canst not grieve,
though thou hast not thy bliss
Play on, fair youth,
thy song cannot fade.
Forever wilt thou love.
Never canst thou leave!
More happy love!
(Forever breathing sorrow)
More happy, happy love!
(Forever panting, burning)
Sacrifice thy peace
Or silent be for evermore
And ne’er return.
Fair attitude trodden
By thy marble man
And by eternity.
In midst of silent woe
Truth doth tease you
But wasted beauty is all you know.

Thanks, Keatsy!

2006-09-12T09:18:00.000-04:00

Shakespeare's "My Mistress's Eyes are Nothing Like the Sun"

Allen mentioned this poem in class on Tuesday as Shakespeare's "satire" of sonnets. I studied this poem briefly in my high school creative writing class, and immediately took to it, mostly because it is so different from the typical romantic sonnet.

"A Flying Song" by Adrian Mitchell

I really enjoy the use of repetition in this poem. The repeated lines emphasize each stanza and string the entire piece together. Reading this makes me contemplate life and each aspect of it, and I like the fact that the poem is so open to different readers' interpretations.

"Autumn Gift" by Valerie Bloom

Reading Allen's blog made me think of fall, as it is inevitably upon us. Luckily we still have a few nice days left, like this morning. This poem about the September sunshine is a perfect fit for days like today. Hopefully it will stick around for as long as possible!

"For Me" by Ian McMillan

I like poems about poetry and writing. They are some of my favorite to read and also to write. This one makes me laugh, as it would any writer or lover of poetry who is just plain tired of people saying "If it doesn't rhyme, it's not really a poem." Any English teacher or frustrated student could easily quote this poem in rebuttal to those closed-minded individuals.

One more

2006-09-11T20:53:00.000-04:00

http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=98

I am glued to this poem. Whether or not I can turn that into a paragraph is debatable.
First off, I love this poem because it forces me to think about something I am familiar with from a completely different perspective. I think that's one sign of a truly successful poem, when it shakes the reader out of his or her comfort zone or extends his or her way of thinking. The image of the siren has always been one of impossible beauty and power. This naturally led me to assume that the siren basked in her power. This poem completely reverses my assumption. Here the siren is chained to her throne of seduction, a prisoner of her own song. One of the things that makes this poem so effective is the language. I love the way the poet shifts from somewhat angelic, gentle terms like "picturesque and mythical" to abrasive language such as "squatting on this island" and "these two feathery maniacs." The harsh tones only draw the reader further away from the stereotype of the siren. This poem changed my entire point of view, and I like the new one much better.

More Poems

2006-09-11T19:56:00.000-04:00

"Death in the Suburbs" by Adrian Henri
http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=5896

-I especially enjoyed the vivid imagery in this poem. The first stanza knocks me off of my feet, especially the line "sunlight thrown like a blanket / over pink and white vistas." For those of you looking for a quick read, I don't advise this poem. However, it is ultimately satisfying and worth the work.

"In the Theatre" by Dannie Abse
http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=72

-I'll admit, I first checked out this poem because I am a theatre person and the title drew me in. Even after I realized the poem's actual subject, the title remained one of my favorite parts. I think "In the Theatre" is entirely appropriate, because of all the falsehood and deceit that occurs in the poem. Or perhaps it's not deceit, but more like pretending as a way to avoid more suffering. Either way, this poem is completely harrowing and I love it.

"On Edges" by Adrienne Rich
http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=430

-My favorite part about this poem is the stanza about piecing things back together.

"Gift of Words" by Peter Dale
http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=141

I'm really sorry I can't post any actual links...it must be a hassle for everyone but for some reason blogger is not enabling the links.

Billy Collins

2006-09-06T11:25:00.000-04:00

http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=6481

Charles Bukowski

2006-09-06T11:24:00.000-04:00

http://www.famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/charles_bukowski/poems/12978

Galway Kinnell

2006-09-06T10:32:00.000-04:00

The imagery is what first draws me into this poem. It's easy to visualize the entire scenario in perfect detail because the writing is so descriptive. The setting is established early on so I'm immediately involved in the poem. I like poems that include emotions I can relate to. I can feel the exhaustion the young boy is experiencing. I also like that the scene is relatively simple. The image of a tired young boy being soothed by the simple pleasures of evening is relatable and the writer can add detail without making the piece overly elaborate. Finally, I like this poem because of the message of serenity through music. Being a music lover, I feel especially connected with this piece.

http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singlePoem.do?poemId=5557

Welcome to my blog!

2006-09-05T09:40:00.000-04:00

I'm Meghan. I'm eighteen and from Fruitport. My hobbies are theatre, music, reading and writing. In high school, I was president of a writers' group called Imagery, and we published a student magazine called Escape which has been ranked "Superior" in the state of Michigan. Right now I'm a Spanish Education major at WMU.