Lest We Forget
Last night, Mr. Willis read “Mr. Rose,” “The Doorway,” “The Berrington Bunny,” and “Lest We Forget,” and this was a very moving night. ¶ To start, I picked up new inspiration during the discussion on “The Doorway.” The timing is nearly perfect, for I have a presentation on the progress of the project, The Doorway Movie, next week. I will use this inspiration in my speech. ¶ This was the first time I heard Mr. Willis read “The Berrington Bunny.” It sounded familiar, and I found out why when Mr. Willis read “Lest We Forget.” ¶ “Lest We Forget” is a very intense, benevolent, and emotional account of a very unique and beautiful story, the life of Mr. Willis’s son, Colin. “The Berrington Bunny” is referenced in the story. ¶ I had many thoughts today. I was particularly influenced by the idea of learning to accept yourself and others for who and how you or they are. In addition, the concept of giving with “no strings attached” struck a vibrant chord. ¶ Our last essay, number four, is due next week. This is the reflective essay. I’m not sure exactly how to approach this one, but I had some ideas during class. ¶ Also, during class a former realization was reaffirmed and escalated. This realization is that I thoroughly enjoy the class. It is a similar sensation acquired from my first reading of Les Misérables, the unabridged version over five years ago. I developed such a strong relationship with the book that I didn’t want it to end, and I had the same feeling in class. Now, I tell myself, Les Misérables hasn’t ended. Jean Valjean’s character continues to influence me. This class will find a way to live on in myself, just as Jean Valjean, in Les Miserables, inspires my actions and Colin, in “Lest We Forget,” inspires our hearts.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof & Author Quiz
Yesterday, I finished the Author Quiz and posted it on this page. Mr. Willis was very great full for and responsive to the quiz. He sent a link to the quiz in an email to the rest of the students. Mr. Willis playfully noted that he scored 100% on the quiz. ¶ In addition, Mr. Willis read over my class logs and was very entertained by them. He noticed that I incorrectly titled Long Day’s Journey into Night, changing it to Hard Day’s Journey into Night. I reviewed my notes and realized as the play progressed I went from the correct name, Long Day’s, to the incorrect, Hard Day’s. I believe this was due to the content and subject matter in the play as it developed, and it actually effected me to the degree that I changed the title in my logs! I initially corrected the name in the logs, but I think the mishap of the title suits for the progression of this journal and the play, so I will change the title back to the incorrect title with an added note. ¶ In class, we read Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. It was a fast paced play, very comical in many ways. The casting for the reading was great too. In addition to Mr. Willis masterfully playing Big Daddy, students outstandingly read for Big Mama, Margaret, and Mae. I read for Brick and developed a Southern accent. At some times I was strong into character too. We had just enough time to finish the play, and I wish we had more time to either hear a lecture or to share thoughts on the piece. ¶ I’m looking forward to our next class which, unfortunately, is not for two weeks. We were assigned a wealthy amount of reading, and this reading isn’t due for two weeks.
Finishing Death of a Salesman
Yesterday, we finished Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller. Mr. Willis played Willy Loman, and I played Willy’s son, Biff. This play was extremely intriguing and fun to preform. Mr. Willis wrapped up the play by sharing his life changing experience, dropping out of his pursuit for priesthood. He also explained how the story represents an American tragedy. In addition, he hinted towards the association to social and moral corruption resulting from capitalism. ¶ A couple of weeks ago, I questioned capitalism’s place in society, far beyond the present. And I had this idea, we, the people of the US, depend on competition based on consuming, or consumption. This resulted from the question, “Competition for what?” The consumer immediately popped in my mind, and I united the words “Consumer Economics” and also “Consumer Capitalism.” I then searched on Google and found some aspects of my vision similar to Wikipedia’s definition, see Consumer Capitalism at Wikipedia. Most importantly, in this definition, I found a very similar perspective to my vision by Bernard Stiegler. “Stiegler argues that capitalism today is governed not by production but by consumption, and that the techniques used to create consumer behavior amount to the destruction of psychic and collective individuation. (Wikipedia.com)” I’m not exactly sure what is meant by individuation, so I will have to research this later. Unfortunately, very little of Stiegler’s critique on Consumer Capitalism is translated. Again, more research is desired. ¶ Now, I can either write on this subject or choose to do 5 poems based on the characters of our recent poems and stories. Soon, I will decide.