Vocab #9

1. ultimate: maximum; decisive; conclusive
My ultimate goal is to graduate from college.

2. interactive: acting one upon or with the other.
We interact a lot during class when we have Socratic seminars.

3. principle: an accepted or professed rule of action or conduct
You have to have established principles in life.

4.guidance: advice or counseling, especially that provided for students choosing a course of study
or preparing for a vocation
We seek guidance in our lives when we feel confused.

5. collaboration: the act or process of collaborating.
We collabrate alot in class when we have group assignments.

6. formative: pertaining to formation or development
In our formative years of high school most people thought of it as a joke.

7. summative: something that is added 
The summation of all the numbers on the board was finally resolved.

8.racism: a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule others.
Racism is something that has been a problem for a long time now.

9.intelligence: capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding, and similar forms of mental activity;aptitude in grasping truths, relationships, facts, meanings, etc.
His intelligence is remarkable.

Racial Profiling Lives On

It seems like we will never learn. It seems like this will never change. This has been around for centuries and we still do not seem to get the memo. When are people going to finally realize that physical appearance isn't the only thing that matters. Its honestly very annoying how people discriminate just by someone else's skin color. I have seen this happen so much and it needs to stop. 

Notes 

• historic ruling by Judge Shira A. Scheindlin that the stop-and-frisk practices of the New York Police Department violate the Constitution is being applauded as a major victory against unreasonable policing. 
• “This is a very dangerous decision made by a judge who I think does not understand how policing works,”
•  the Supreme Court has given police officers to target African-Americans and Latinos with little or no basis.
• Despite the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures, the Supreme Court’s interpretation of that provision gives the police frighteningly wide discretion to follow, stop, question, frisk and employ excessive force against African-Americans and Latinos who have shown virtually no indication of wrongdoing.
• Officer can follow someone without any hint that they had done anything wrong. 
• If someone were a Latino, the Officer could argue that they “looked Mexican,” and therefore believed that they were undocumented. 

Literature analysis #3

A Child Called It

by Dave Pelzer

TOPIC(S) and/or EVENT(S)

1.       What my book is about a child Dave, who was brutally beaten and starved by his emotionally unstable, alcoholic mother. A mother who played sick cruel games.  Games that left him nearly dead. Dave learned how to play his Mother's games in order to survive because she no longer considered Dave a son but a slave, and no longer a boy but an "It."

2.       Why I think the author wrote this book was for society to see what kind of abuse some kids go through. So that others can see his story and so they know what really goes on in some peoples lives. 

3.       Why I chose this book was because I have been wanting to read it for a while now and others have told me that it was a good book. What caught my attention about this book was all the things that happen to him and I wanted to read it because to me it seems so inhuman that a person can do that to their own son. What made me want to keep reading it was his willpower and how he never gave up. 

4.       What I found realistic about the book was that there is abuse, and there is abuse going on all the time. I made some connections to this book because I know of some people that were abused as kids in Mexico. 

PEOPLE 

1.       This book is the story of the author’s horrible childhood and this book is based on his observations. What the author’s choices said to me was that he did what he did for him to survive another day. I think the author chose to write about this because he wanted to show a problem that some kids are going through.  The authors tone was very depressing.

2.       Dave was a kid that was fairly skinny due to the fact that his mother didn’t feed him and when she did it was scraps and rotten things. He also had the same clothes and didn’t get the privilege of taking showers. He was that kid at school who was the outcast. His mother was an alcoholic and an abusive parent. She didn’t treat him like a son but rather like a slave.

3.       What made these characters interesting enough to write about was all of the things that happened to Dave and the horrible things that his mother made him suffer.  

MORE ON CHARACTER/PEOPLE}

1.       When his mother made him eat his own through up. This is an example of indirect characterization. An example of direct characterization is when his mother put Dave’s arm on the stove and caused him a burn.

2.       The author’s syntax and diction did change when he talked about the characters rather than the setting.

3.       The protagonist is a well-rounded character.  

4.       After reading this book I felt like I met a complete new person and they were telling me their story. The whole book was something new and was very sad.

 STYLE

1.       The author used a journalistic type of style. He would say like for example the summer of 1971.

2.       He would mostly focus on the characters and their actions.

3.       He would use his mother’s cruelty to create a tone for each chapter.

4.       The author’s attitude towards the characters was hatred and disappointment at the end.

5.       It didn’t offer any resources.

 ENDURING MEMORY

Something that I will remember for a long time is the way that his mother treated him. That was something so cruel to me. I honestly don’t know how a mother can be like that to her own son.  Like giving him cold baths and stabbing him, and right after making him wash the dishes. That is something that I will remember for a long time.

LAST-MINUTE BONUS QUESTION

What they key people learned in my book was the way to survive. Dave found every way to survive everything that his mother Catherine threw at him. 

Vocab #8

1) Cursory-going rapidly over something, without noticing details

2) Impetus- a moving force; impulse; stimulus 

3) Pinnacle -the highest or culminating point as of success, power or fame

4) Contumely -insulting display of contempt in words or actions; humiliating treatment 

5) Bereavement -a period of mourning after a loss, especially after the death of a loved one

6) Cache -a hiding place, especially one in the ground, for ammunition, food, treasures

7) Consummation -to bring to a state of perfection; fulfill

8) Calamity -a great misfortune or disaster, as a flood or serious injury

9) Avarice -insatiable greed for riches; inordinate, miserly desire to gain and hoard wealth

10) Fortify -to protect or strengthen against attack; surround or provide with defensive military works.

11) Erratic -deviating from the usual or proper course in conduct or opinion; eccentric

12) Ubiquitous -existing or being everywhere, especially at the same time; omnipresent

13) Fortitude -mental and emotional strength in facing difficulty, adversity, danger, or temptation courageously

14) Nonchalant -coolly unconcerned, indifferent, or unexcited; casual 

15) Affect -to act on; produce an effect or change in

16) Effect -something that is produced by an agency or cause; result

17) Misappropriate -to put to a wrong use.

18) Pragmatic -of or pertaining to a practical point of view or practical considerations 

19) Metacognition -higher-order thinking that enables understanding, analysis, and control of one’s cognitive processes, especially when engaged in learning

20) Devoutly -devoted to divine worship or service; pious; religious

Value of Life

Activity #7 
1. Where does Hamlet ask the central question of his soliloquy? 
Hamlet asks the central question at the beginning of his soliloquy. Asking himself if he should continue living a life he doesn't like or to end that and start a new one. 
2. Where does he restate this question in greater detail? 
Hamlet restates the question throughout the rest of his speech. Going into deeper thoughts and really understanding on what he wants to do.
3. Does Hamlet ever answer this question? 
Through the whole speech hamlet sounds sad, causing us to feel sorry for him in the end he will choose to give up instead of continuing. He never really answers his question. 
4. Does he ask any other questions in this speech?
Yes he does. The whole poem is basically made up of smaller questions. He asks a lot of other questions because he is confused on what to do. 
5. Who or what interrupts Hamlet at the end of his soliloquy? Do you think he was finished talking?
Who interrupts Hamlet at the end of his speech is Ophelia. I don't think that he was done speaking. I think that he just suddenly just stopped talking. 

 Activity #12 
1. Does the soliloquy form seem to favor the expression of emotion (pathos) or logic (logos)? Explain your answer.
It seems like it is pathos because he makes his decision on the emotions that he is feeling instead of the logic that everyone expects him to do.
2.Does Hamlet's soliloquy use emotion (pathos) to create a specific effect on the reader? If so, describe how emotion is used.
Yes, Shakespeare uses pathos as a way of creating in the reader to feel some sort of sympathy toward Hamlet because some of the readers might connect with what Hamlet is saying. It helps connect because emotions is something that we all share.
3. Does Hamlet's soliloquy use logic (logos) to create specific effect on the reader? If so describe how logic is used.
He also uses some logos when he starts debating between life and death. he debates whether if its really worth it or not.
4.When Hamlet speaks his soliloquy, he is in crisis. How do his circumstances position Hamlet to speak with authority (ethos) about the value of life? Does Hamlet seem to be speaking about his life in particular or about the quality of life in general?
The circumstances that he is in put him in a really tough position. That is why he speaks with such authority. He seems to be talking about the life in general but he is also talking about his own life because he wants to do what he really wants to but there are things that are holding him back.
5. As careful readers, we are, of course, aware that it is not really Hamlet speaking, but a character created by Shakespeare. Does Shakespeare seem like someone whose opinions and attitudes are worth considering? Why?
I believe that we should take Shakespeare's opinions into consideration because he provides us with incite to a whole new different and better perspective. The way he provides us with these characters we are seeing the way his perspectives are put into play.

Literature Analysis #2

The Circuit 

Francisco Jimenez 

 TOPIC(S) and/or EVENT(S) 

1. What my book is about was a young boys journey of coming to America. Francisco comes to America with his family. Things happen and his family and him have to move all around California to pick fruit and vegetables that are in season. He goes to school maybe at most three to four times a week because he has to help his family out with their financial situation. Money was always tight with their family that's why Francisco had to help out. 

2. The author chose to write about this story because it was his story of when his family and him came to America. 

3. I chose this book because it seemed like a good story. The first time it came to my attention was freshman year. My aunt was reading it and she told me that it was a good book. What made me want to keep on reading it was the different types of struggles that his family had to go through and how they overcame them. 

4. I did find the book realistic. It showed a lot of different types of situations that the average immigrant has to overcome. I did make connections to this book because my own family came as immigrants and had to overcome many of the same struggles that Francisco's family had to overcome. 

PEOPLE 

1.What the authors choices say to me is that he had to do the right thing in order to make ends meet. He had to choose basically between school and helping his family not get kicked out of a garage they were renting. He i think wrote this book because he wanted to show people the struggle of an immigrant family. The authors tone was very depressed. 

2. Francisco was a young boy who liked school even though he couldn't speak the language at first. He was forced to leave Mexico at a young age and crossed the boarder illegally. He hardly went to school and was forced to work to help out his family. His father (Papa) was someone that really cared about his family. He worked as much as he could and tried to work more so his children could go to school. 
3. whats interesting about them is them overcoming their hardships in life. 

More on Character and People     
1.One example of direct characterization is when Curtis accuses Francisco of stealing his jacket. one example of indirect characterization is when Francisco prays for the health of his baby brother. I think that he uses both of these devises because that way we can connect more with the characters and actually feel what they are feeling. 
2. The authors syntax/diction does not change throughout the book. 
3. the author is a little flat, he speaks in a very casual way. 
4. I felt like I met a person and they were telling me their story. 

Style 
1. The author used a journalistic style. 
2. The author used more dialogue. This is his way of letting the readers know what is going on. 
3. He used the tone of depression. Everything seemed really hard for the family. 
4. The authors attitude was sad. He made it seem like a struggle. 
5. He didn't offer resources. 

What i expect to remember for a long time is to never give up. Also that if I think I have it hard that is nothing compared to what he had to go through. I have it way easier then he did. I shouldn't take things for granted because not everything is given in this world. 
  

TO BE OR NOT TO BE

Everyone has heard the famous "to be or not to be" phrase. But what does it really mean?

TO BE OR NOT TO BE that is the question. Many would argue that this is Hamlet contemplating committing suicide. But then you get more in depth of the speech and then you realize that its him wanting to become someone new.  "Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles,And by opposing end them: to die, to sleep No more; and by a sleep, to say we end". He wants to become this new person by putting an end to all of the problems in his life. The level of meaning that spoke out to me was to act on what you know to be true in order to hold yourself in higher esteem. This is what I was saying. Hamlet knows what he must do to make his life better. The path that i will take in my own life is i will speak my mind more and make the right decisions to benefit myself in the long run. 

Vocab #7

1) Cursory-going rapidly over something, without noticing details

2) Impetus- a moving force; impulse; stimulus 

3) Pinnacle -the highest or culminating point as of success, power or fame

4) Contumely -insulting display of contempt in words or actions; humiliating treatment 

5) Bereavement -a period of mourning after a loss, especially after the death of a loved one

6) Cache -a hiding place, especially one in the ground, for ammunition, food, treasures

7) Consummation -to bring to a state of perfection; fulfill

8) Calamity -a great misfortune or disaster, as a flood or serious injury

9) Avarice -insatiable greed for riches; inordinate, miserly desire to gain and hoard wealth

10) Fortify -to protect or strengthen against attack; surround or provide with defensive military works.

11) Erratic -deviating from the usual or proper course in conduct or opinion; eccentric

12) Ubiquitous -existing or being everywhere, especially at the same time; omnipresent

13) Fortitude -mental and emotional strength in facing difficulty, adversity, danger, or temptation courageously

14) Nonchalant -coolly unconcerned, indifferent, or unexcited; casual 

15) Affect -to act on; produce an effect or change in

16) Effect -something that is produced by an agency or cause; result

17) Misappropriate -to put to a wrong use.

18) Pragmatic -of or pertaining to a practical point of view or practical considerations 

19) Metacognition -higher-order thinking that enables understanding, analysis, and control of one’s cognitive processes, especially when engaged in learning

20) Devoutly -devoted to divine worship or service; pious; religious

My Value

My life has always been a little tough. Even though I have had some trouble in my life I have always tried to make the best out of every situation. The value that I have on my life is a lot I treasure it dearly. I have always have done what's best for myself and I also think if what would benefit others. Something that I value everyday is the fact that my mother is with me. I never will know when her last day will be with me. Ever since i have found out what disease she has I have valued her more. Also something that is very important to me is the fact that I have a roof over my head and family that loves me. Valuing something like education can make each day go by easier. In the long run education is the only thing that will help and actually make you who you are.

Vocab #6

Adroit- someone who is quick and skillful in their thoughts, behavior, or actions
Amicable- friendly
Averse- having a strong feeling of opposition
Belligerent- Agressive
Benevolent- characterized by or expressing goodwill or kindly feelings
Cursory- done or made quickly
Duplicity- deceitfulness in speech or behavior
Extol- to praise highly
Feasible- possible to do easily or conveniently
Grimace-  a facial expression usually of disgust, disapproval, or pain
Holocaust- destruction or slaughter on a mass scale
Impervious- immune
Impetus- a moving force
Jeopardy- danger of loss harm, or injury
Meticulous- extremely careful and precise
Nostalgia- a sentimental longing of affection
Quintessence- the pure and concentrated essence of a substance
Retrogress- go back to an earlier state
Scrutinize- to examine or observe with great care
Tepid- lacking in emotion warmth or enthusiasm
Accede- to give one's assent
Brandish- to wave or flourish
Comprise-  to consist of
Deft- skillful
Destitute- deprived of
Explicit- clearly defined
Extirpate- to destroy completely
Inopportune-  occurring at an inconvenient time
Ironic- the opposite of what is expected to happen
Musty- to emit horrific odor
Officious- assertive of authority in an annoyingly domineering way
Ominous- giving the impression that something bad is going to happen
Pinnacle- the highest point
Premeditated- think out or plan beforehand
Rampant- violent in action or spirit
Solace- comfort in a time of distress
Supple- bending readily without breaking or becoming deformed
Venal- open to bribary

Rhetoric of the Op-Ed

Ethos, Logos, & Pathos 
The goal of argumentative writing is to persuade your audience that your ideas are valid, or more valid than someone else's. The Greek philosopher Aristotle divided the means of persuasion, appeals, into three categories--Ethos, Pathos, Logos.

Ethos (Credibility), or ethical appeal, means convincing by the character of the author.
Pathos (Emotional) means persuading by appealing to the reader's emotions.
Logos (Logical) means persuading by the use of reasoning.

Freedom of Choice

Making decisions is always a tough thing to do. There is always pros and cons to making a decision. The opportunities that this would present is that you would get control over what you want to do. Making your own decisions would make things easier because you get to do what you want to do. What I prefer to do is to make my own decisions. I don't like when people make decisions for me because it might be something that I don't want to do. Also when you make your own decisions you feel more in control of what you are doing.

Declaration of Learning Independence

I Alina, declare that i will try my hardest to earn an A in this course. I will try my best at every assignment given and try and turn it in on time.

No Child Left Untableted

I think that this is a great idea. New things are being created every day and why not use them. This would be a great thing for our future. After reading the article i see why people are concerned but it would be for the benefit of our generation as well of the newer generations. This generation revolves around technology. Some teachers from the article loved the tablets but not all of them did. I believe that overall this would be a benefit and that schools should allow it.

Vocab #5

1)adroit: skillful or dexterous 


The mom knew that he was adroit because he could tie his shoes at the age of 3. 


2)amicable: characterized by or showing goodwill; friendly; peaceable


The kids were amicable to the new girl in school, they made he feel welcome. 


3)averse: having a strong feeling of opposition, antipathy, repugnance; opposed 


Lawyers are averse, their job requires them to have a strong feeling of opposition. 


4) belligerent: warlike; given to waging war 


she was very belligerent with her argument today.


5) benevolent: characterized by or expressing goodwill or kindly feelings 


The church group was benevolent by giving away backpacks with school supplies in it to help out the people that cant afford it. 


6) cursory: going rapidly over something, without noticing details; hasty; superficial 


He was so cursory that on his test he forgot to write his name. 


7)duplicity: deceitfulness in speech or conduct, as by speaking or acting in two different ways to different people concerning the same matter; double-dealing 


The duplicity of her actions will cause something bad in her life. 

8) Extol: to praise highly, laud 

Most teenage girls extol Justine Bieber.  

9) Feasible: capable of being done, effected or accomplished 

That project is feasible, it can be done by tomorrow. 

10) Grimace: a facial expression, often ugly or contorted that indicates disapproval, pain

In cheer we did some grimace facials.

11) Holocaust: a great or complete devastation or destruction especially by firing

The holocaust killed a lot of people in Europe. 

 12) Impervious: not permitting penetration or passage incapable of being injured or impaired

Special trained agents are impervious to pain.

 

13)  Impetus: moving force, impulse, stimulus

As the roller coaster shot up i felt a strong impetus. 

14) Jeopardy: hazard or risk of exposure to loss harm, death or injury; peril or danger 

If he comes in late one more time he might be in jeopardy of loosing his job.

 15) Meticulous: taking or showing minute details; precise, thorough 

Her meticulous project earned her an award. 

 16) Nostalgia: a wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one's lives

A feeling of nostalgia hits us once in a while. 

17) Quintessence: the pure and concentrated essence of a substance

Wine is a form of quintessence. 

18) Retrogress: to go backward into an earlier and usually wise condition

Its better to retrogress and then do things right.

19) Scrutinize: to examine in detail with careful or critical attention 

I scrutinized the test to see if i knew any of the questions. 

20) Tepid: characterized by a lack of force or enthusiasm

The little girl had a tepid reaction when they told her they were going to go fishing.