Thursday, November 29, 2012

I'm not naming this "Thinking Outside the Box" because that's too inside the box

I recently set my Facebook status to "If I had three rats, I'd name them Inez, Estelle and Joseph Garcin. And then I'd laugh and say 'Welcome to hell.'"

This amused me.

It also evidently warranted a marriage proposal...to which my mother accepted for me.

So it goes.

I had heard of "No Exit" before I actually read it. The idea intrigued me, mostly because of the completely character driven staging. The set is simple, and no one enters or exits during the entire show. 

There's an episode of Family Guy where they use this concept and set it entirely in a bank vault where Brian and Stewie's dialogue carries the entire episode. 


Oddly enough, this episode's back and forth could be argued to even reflect the idea that hell is other people.

Which reminds me, there was supposed to be a point to this blog post right?

Something about Plato and Satre and how they relate.

The way I see it, in Plato's Allegory of the Cave, the idea of "hell" is ignorance and being shut out from the world. Hell is not being able to see what is real and tangible, much like the prisoners can not see or touch the things they see silhouetted on the wall.

By contrast, in "No Exit", hell is being forced to see reality. 

There's a scene between Inez and Estelle where Estelle is looking desperately for a mirror because there is none. Before she got to hell, she comments that mirrors became her reality and how she saw the world was through her reflection. 

Inez then tells her that she will be her mirror, which is a blatant metaphor for the three of them being put together to have to face the reality of what they really are. The reflections are similar to the prisoner's shadows, they are not real. 

In "The Cave" when the prisoner steps into the sun, it is uncomfortable and burns. Not unlike when the three characters in "No Exit" are with each other. In both of these stories, having to face reality is uncomfortable, but in the end necessary. And there is no going back once it is established. 

This can relate to life because sometimes you need to take off your rose colored glasses (or whatever that adage is) and see things how they really are before you can "find the exit" and deal with reality. It might not be pretty, but the gods will offer you chances and all that.

Know them, take them...the gods wait to delight in you.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Sonnet about the cave.


When you are born
You are born chained
Chained to what you’ve grown accustomed to
Facing away from what is true and new
There is comfort in the cradle
Of your mothers tender whisper
But even the smallest of babes
Learn to crawl away sooner or later.
In the cave it is safe and no one asks questions
But isn’t there more that you’ve heard in soft voice mentioned?
The fire is warm, bright, inviting
The sun will burn your skin, the clouds bring lightning
With that in mind it is time to be brave.
No turning back once you’ve stepped out of the cave.



I'm not much of a poet. But I'd like to hear feed back!

Monday, November 19, 2012

The Big Question. ((Rated PG-13))

My big question in life is, why aren't people more pissed off about this?



My big question right now in life is why we constantly allow ourselves to be patronized and objectified as human beings.

A woman is worth more than a body to sell a burger.

Or a frame to hang clothes on in hopes that preteen girls will beg their parents to buy the overpriced objects.

A gaggle of attractive women will not rip your clothes off if you purchase and then shortly after bathe with Axe body spray.

Seriously, have you seen these commercials?




Are you FREAKING kidding me??

I'm not just talking about women being objectified. Oh, no.

Oh heavens no.



What really gets me about these is the fact that these men are hardly wearing the clothes they're trying to sell.

What my big question really is...

Why do we, in our advanced society, use sex in such a demeaning and dehumanizing way to sell useless products?

Sexuality is a beautiful thing. Not when I'm sitting down to watch TV with a little kid and have to explain why so many women are chasing that man. Not when I'm with my family and see almost pornographic images flash across the screen. These are PEOPLE. Not BODIES.

I guess what I'm saying is, don't sell sex, unless you're ACTUALLY selling sex. But thats another problem.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

((Spoilers)) Wreck-It Ralph themed vocabulary studying.

This week, I chose to do sentences inspired by Disney's newest animated feature.

Affinity- relationship by marriage





Jane Lynch's character and Fix-It Felix develope an affinity for one another.

Bilious- of or indicative of a peevish ill nature disposition

Ralph went to a support group for other bilious characters.




Cognate- of the same nature

All of the characters living in the Penthouse were cognate in appearance and attitude.



Corollary- A proposition inferred Immediately from a proved proposition with little or no additional proof

Ralph received a corollary from the people in the penthouse that he would be accepted if only he won a medal.


Cul-de-sac - a pouch

The medal's room was a cul-de-sac of evil bug robot eggs ready to hatch.


Derring-do- a daring action

Ralph's choice to enter Hero's Duty was his greatest derring-do to date.


Divination- The art or practice that seeks to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge due to the interpretation of omens

No divination could have predicted Vanillope's role in her game.


Elixir- A substance capable of prolonging life indefinitely

In video games, sometimes there is an elixir available to extend your abilities.


Folderol- a useless accessory

Ralph's medal was a folderol and it was not what made him happy in the end.


Gamut- an entire range or series

Disney had been failing in the animation gamut until they unearthed this gem. 



Hoi polloi- the General populace

The hoi polloi of Sugar Rush were entirely edible.

Ineffable- incapable of being expressed in words

Ralph and Vanillope's affection was ineffable, as the two were inseparable. 


Lucubration- to study by night

Through a montage of lucubration, Vanillope learned to drive so she could race.


Mnemonic- intended to assist memory

The king used hacking to change the mnemonic ability of the people in Sugar Rush.


Obloquy- abusive language

The racers spat obloquy at the assumed glitch.


Parameter- an independent variable used to express the coordinates of variable point and functions of them

They used Vanillope as the parameter of the race.


Pundit- a learned man

King Candy was one of the only pundits in Sugar Rush.


Risible- provoking laughter

There were many risible moments for the audience in this movie.


Symptomatic- having the characteristics of a certain disease but arising of a different cause

She was symptomatic of being a glitch, but was not.


Volte-face- a reversal in policy

Sugar Rush had a volte-face when their memory was returned.

In Case You Missed It.





The guy from the assembly started off by saying these were his goals for the meeting:

1. prepare us for graduation
2. measure us for cap and gown
3. show us all of our options



IF YOU WERE NOT AT THE ASSEMBLY YOU CAN PICK UP ORDER FORMS IN THE BUSINESS OFFICE. He said he would leave extras there. I'm not sure if he followed through, someone will have to let us know.






Thursday the 15th in the Career Center is grad order day. We will be going during our English class, and he will be there until lunch. Rescheduling for sizing is available if you go in to talk to this guy on Thursday.







He said to bring the total amount you are willing to pay or $60.00. He also mentioned being able to make payments and use different ways to pay such as credit, check, etc.


For measuring gowns, he need your exact height, weight and whether you want a male or female gown.






The senior package consists of the top 10 purchased items. It contains graduation announcements (those things you send out to get nice things in return), class of 2013 paraphernalia such as your choice of hoodie and t-shirt. There's a catalog of things you can get. The only thing you CAN'T get is sweat pants, but you can order those separately. This deal is what they're attempting to sell to us, but it actually costs close to $200.

Here are some other "deals" available.





If you buy the senior package (the nearly $200 one), cap and gown is free.
If you do not, to order individually is $33.41 which actually is more like $44 dollars when shipping and stuff is added. It's cheaper if you don't buy the gown, but you should totes buy the gown.

I'm pretty sure that's the gist of what we needed to know. I hope so, because that's literally all that I know. Comment if I missed anything or if you have questions. I don't think I'll be able to answer, but maybe someone else will. K bye!

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Sonnet 130, a brutally honest love story.

SONNET 130

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far more red than her lips' red;
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
I have seen roses damask'd, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
And in some perfumes is there more delight
Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
That music hath a far more pleasing sound;
I grant I never saw a goddess go;
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground:
   And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
   As any she belied with false compare. 


by William Shakespeare


I LOVE this sonnet. 
Love it, love it, LOVE IT.
I googled "Sonnets by women", came across this instead. No turning back now my friends. NO TURNING BACK.

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Hamlet PLN

http://www.anthropoetics.ucla.edu/ap0701/hamlet.htm

This guy is actually reviewing a book that was written by ANOTHER guy about Hamlet's religious references (among other things.)

http://www.apu.edu/clas/faculty/jhedges/

This is a teacher from a school (Azusa Pacific) I'm looking at for after Junior College. He's apparently doing research in regards to this topic and developing course material on Shakespeare.

http://www.apu.edu/clas/theaterfilmtv/theater/requirements/

Also, at Azusa, they have Shakespeare classes from a theatrical perspective! Yay!

This is all I have found that sparks my interest so far.

And now, on to grander things!

((SPOILERS)) This is late, I am lame, But here is Cabin in the Woods told using these Vocabulary words.

aficionado- a serious devotee of some particular music genre or musical performer
browbeat- to discourage or frighten with threats or a domineering manner; intimidate
commensurate- able to be measured by a common standard
diaphanous- Of such fine texture as to be transparent or translucent
*emolument- Payment for an office or employment
*foray- A sudden raid or military advance
*genre- a category
homily- An inspirational saying or platitude
*immure- To confine within or as if within walls; imprison
*insouciant- carefree or unconcerned; light-hearted
*matrix- a substance, situation, or environment in which something has its origin, takes form, or is enclosed
*obsequies- A funeral rite or ceremony
panache- A bunch of feathers or a plume, especially on a helmet.
*persona- The role that one assumes or displays in public or society; one's public image or personality, as distinguished from the inner self
*philippic- a bitter or impassioned speech of denunciation; invective
*prurient- unusually or morbidly interested in sexual thoughts or practices
*sacrosanct- Regarded as sacred and inviolable
*systemic- Of or relating to systems or a system
*tendentious- Marked by a strong implicit point of view; partisan
vicissitude- A change or variation

The first scene starts out with an insouciant conversation between two coworkers immured in a matrix of white walls and hallways. But, in a twist that shakes the horror genre, they are not just waiting for emolument but are part of a sacrosanct ritual. In a systemic manner, a foray upon the youthful and prurient is about to begin. The five persona, the whore, athlete, scholar, fool and virgin, would each die and have a short philippic prayer for their obsequies. This tendentious route is not commensurate in different cultures because each one is different. There is a whole panache of ways for this ritual to be carried out. One thing is for sure, though; that  these gods were aficionados of pain and were browbeating these people for results. Without trying to make a cliched homily, this film will be remembered for being a vicissitude of all thriller and horror movies in the future.