My Opinion Is Not (A) Right Notes

• Interdependence : depending on others
• limbic : emotional part of the brain
• schema : framework/outline that helps organize and interpret info.
• We have the right to have an opinion and not necessarily the right to opinions.
• Political: entitled to any argument, even if it's groundless
• Epistemic: only entitled if it contains evidence and sound arguments
• people tend to claim the right to an opinion "just at the point in an argument when they would be forced to admit error."
• opinions do not solve all arguments because the right to your opinion does not oblige others to agree with you. "People seem to think their opinions are somehow sacred, so that everyone must handle them with great care."

Reflections On Week One

1. The only factor that will truly have an affect on my participation in this class is my hectic schedule. I have soccer practice, games, and tournaments all week long in addition to family obligations. Sometimes while I am away for those reasons I don't have immediate access to a computer and my phone isn't always the most reliable back up solution for accessing the class blog.

2. One of the best learning experiences I ever had was going to a student leadership conference called CASL. I went with my fellow ASB members and we got to stay in a really great hotel in San Jose, California. There were a lot of professional speakers there including Mike Smith who really made an impact on me. He was just the average guy throughout his life but at his young age he has accomplished so much. His message was mainly that you have no idea how much of an impact you can have on other peoples' lives. It made me start to think twice about every person I pass in the hallways at school or even just on the streets. Every person has a story and this experience really gave me a desire to try and figure them out.

3. I'm probably ( as weird as it sounds) most excited about the Shakespeare unit. It's been since freshman year that we really got a chance to dissect any of his work it's something that I really enjoyed. I'm most concerned about finding time to fit everything in. I know right now the homework is really intense and with my year round soccer and college applications coming up I really worry about finding time for it all.

VOCABULARY #1

1. adumbrate: To give a faint indication.

•  The author used the various symbols to adumbrate an upcoming turn of events.

2. apotheosis: The elevation of someone to divine status.

•  Hercules reached apotheosis upon completing his journey to becoming a true hero.

3. ascetic: characterized by severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of indulgence.

• The puritans were famous for their religiously driven ascetic lifestyle that left little to no time for mindless recreation.  

4. bauble: a small trinket or decoration.

• My Grandmother's house is full of little baubles with no real purpose but certainly add a lot of character!  

5. beguile: Trick or deceive someone into doing something.

• I couldn't believe I was beguiled into doing the group project by myself yet again. 

6. burgeon: begin to grow or increase rapidly.

• The amount of homework assigned each night is burgeoning as high school goes on.  

7. complement: a thing that completes or brings to perfection.

•  The cider served as a great complement to the Thanksgiving meal, adding just the right amount refreshment to the heavy spread.  

8. contumacious: disobedient to authority

• I cannot stand when children are blatantly contumacious to their parents wishes for no good reason.  

9. curmudgeon: a bad tempered or surly person

• Most teenagers are curmudgeons upon being assigned an excess of homework.

10. didactic: intended to instruct

•  The instructor had a didactic method of lecturing that often had students bored and uninterested quickly.

11. disingenuous: not sincere

• While talking to the witness the officer got the distinct feeling they were being disingenuous with the information.  

12. exculpate: show that someone is not guilty of wrongdoing

• with understanding of the evidence the jury found it impossible to exculpate the plaintiff.   

13. faux pas: error, misstep

• Letting your elbows rest on the dinner table can be seen as an extreme faux pas in many formal situations.  

14. fulminate: express vehement protest.

• The class was quick to fulminate against the teacher's decision to move the due date forward.  

15. fustian: pompous or pretentious in manner of speaking

• He was clearly well educated however I found the man incredibly fustian while speaking to him.

16. hauteur: disdainful pride

• The downfall of many gods in Greek myths is their display of unapologetic hauteur.  

17. inhibit: hinder, restrain, or prevent  

• My knee injury inhibited me from participating in the soccer tournament.

18. jeremiad: a long mournful complaint

•  After a disappointing stay the hotel guest left a jeremiad on a note at the front desk.

19. opportunist: a person who exploits circumstances to gain immediate advantage.

• Beckham was quite the opportunist when it came to expanding his brand.

20. unconscionable: not right or reasonable

• I had waited an unconscionable amount of time for the concert tickets and was still left empty handed.

Senior Resume

So I have my senior resume but I printed it out for easier editing...but I had it done on time!

Austen/Montaigne Essay

    Much like shooting stars, the thoughts of the human imagination can be extraordinary and fleeting.  Gone in the blink of an eye or even just built upon too quickly to be able to break down what the original trigger was.  In his 2001 story "Good Old Neon" David Foster Wallace wrote, "What goes on inside is just too fast and huge and all interconnected for words to do more than barely sketch the outline of at most one tiny little part of it at any given instant." When it comes to the essays of Montaigne, this statement is absolutely true. Montaigne wasn't focused purely on structure or even necessarily content. He was more focused on letting his writing be an outlet for each thought passing through his mind like a shooting star which he would then develop into one of his essays.
   
    In an introduction to Montaigne's essays by J.M. Cohen it is stated that Montaigne "does not proceed along the line of time; he does not tell us what event succeeded what other." This supports Wallace's statement to a tee. Thoughts are fast and constantly evolving. Montaigne used his writing to literally create "trials" of his thoughts. If and idea came to him he could write it down without the pressures of time or what happened when. As his thoughts occurred to him he would try to develop it  throughout his essay and as Wallace stated this could sometimes be barely an outline of certain ideas or develop all too quickly into a greater issue.

     In contrast Austen's Pride and Prejudice is completely oriented about the passing of time and chronological order of events. She did not say at the beginning that Elizabeth would marry Mr. Darcy and then in the middle showcase their stubborn resistance towards each other.  This is chiefly because Austen's style is about the use of plot development through showing how each piece adds to the puzzle that will eventually be whole at the end. Montaigne's style was more in correlation the process of thought where one second he could be contemplating "That our actions should be judged by our intentions" and in the next "Cannibals". One thought does not necessarily need to precede the other as it does in Austen's work.
  
    Montaigne's essays do in fact correlate with Wallace's statement. Though his statement does not remain true to every work such as Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Montaigne's almost erratic writing style definitely represents the position that some thoughts can just be too fast and complex to develop more than a basic outline of the inner workings of the mind.

1987 AP Exam Notes

• literature given was hard to understand.
• the poetry was really hard to understand because the language was so old I felt like I was translating it.
• question 9 was hard to answer due to the fact where it required some inferring into the character and wasn't easy to determine through the text
• I really need to keep up with AP vocab
• pious: devotedly religious
• patriarch: male head of family/tribe
• questions 32/61 referring to the poems were extremely difficult due to the fact that I had no idea what formats like pactylic hexameter and iambic tetrameter were.
• I hadn't read any of the listed texts for the essay portion (were we supposed to attempt the essay portion?)

Poetry #1

1. The poem sampled in the Levi's commercial is "The Laughing Heart" by Charles Bukowski.

2. This could be considered ironic because it uses phrases such as "dank submission" and "your life is your life" but is asking you to submit to wearing clothing by one of the biggest corporations in America. You're only "you" when you are wearing the same jeans as everyone else?

3. The poem most definitely reflects the author's reputation. Bukowski was adamant in his refusal to submit to the mainstream which is another reason the use of his work in a Levi's commercial was so ironic. He often said things that other people were afraid to say or would refer to as crass but he did it anyway.


4. My research process was fairly simple. First I listened closely to the words in the advertisement and took note of some of the more important phrases. Next I headed over to trusty old google.com and searched for any poetry containing the noted phrases. I was referred to thebestamericanpoetry.typepad.com where I was able to find the name of the poem and full text as well as the author. I printed the page and read it along with the video to make sure I had the right information. Next I used the same website and found some information on Bukowski.