End of the Year Writing Reflection

When I first walked into Ms. Nagi's 11 AP Language and Composition class, I knew it was going to be a long year, especially after hearing horror stories of in class essays every week. Of course, those first few essays were definitely a challenge, but as I was forced to write more and more, I got used to the demanding workload set by the class. In order to fully express the improvement that I have made as not only a writer, but also a student, I must share some examples of writing from both the beginning and end of the year.

The Nonfiction In Class Essay Rewrite on the summer reading

As you can see from the image above, one of the major issues with my writing that I was struggling with was expanding upon my analysis and utilizing evidence from the text to its fullest potentials. This failure to go further and deeper into my analysis resulted in an overall lower quality of writing. For some reason, I kept summarizing and repeating what the evidence said instead of thinking about the author's purpose and why they chose to use that specific rhetorical device. Although this early piece of writing is a rhetorical analysis essay, the same issue occurred with my earlier synthesis and argumentative essays as well. Perhaps it was the stressful environment of having only an hour to write a cohesive, well-planned, thoughtful essay, as I was constantly stressed and unable to think about the author's purpose in a deeper meaning. Thankfully, due to Ms. Nagi's constant barrage of essays, I was able to pull myself up by the bootstraps and improve upon this weak area.

2011 AP Practice Argumentative Essay

As the year progressed, I encountered more and more essays, which initiated the fight or flight response. I chose to fight and endure the dreaded day where we had less than 60 minutes of writing in the early morning. Thankfully, I grew as a writer and my essays included more in-depth analysis rather than mere redundant summary. All the hard work that I have put into learning and developing high quality analysis that leads to deeper meanings has truly paid off, and I feel much more confident in my abilities as a writer when compared to the beginning of the year.

AP Multiple Choice/Writing Log

Overall, 11 AP Language and Composition with Ms. Nagi has definitely taught me how to improve myself as a writer and how to formulate and organize my own ideas and thoughts about a wide variety of subjects ranging from the benefits of multilingualism to the essential skill of artifice into a cohesive, strong essay. Although I definitely did not enjoy the mountain of work behind this class, it has clearly expanded upon my world views and opened up my mind to the plethora of information in human society. 11 AP has taught me that one can argue about literally anything. Of course, I enjoyed the many times throughout the year in which we had fun and laughed about silly things such as one student's remarkable submission of an "essay" about polite speech involving the interactions between hypothetical persons A and B. Also, the thought-provoking topics that we have discussed in class have opened up my mind to unique and novel opinions and views that I myself would never have thought of. The many works of literature read over the course of the year have definitely impacted me as well, considering that they were pretty good reads with exceptionally profound messages hidden within them. Food Fridays were also a bonus, although drinking Mountain Dew at 7:30 in the morning is not exactly the best for one's health and well-being. Although 11 AP did not completely remove my disdain for writing essays, it helped build up my confidence and strength in writing so that an in-class essay isn't the end of the world, but rather just another hour of hard work to get through. This old adage sums up this class perfectly:

"When the going gets tough, the tough get going."

Tom Sawyer, the Innocent Purveyor of Evil

The ending of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has many, many different ways to be analyzed and inspected. However, to the general audience, the "happy" ending leaves the readers satisified that everything has been tied up, as we see Huck staring into the sunset, vowing to go on another adventure to the West. However, upon closer examination, the ending is incredibly unsatisifactory, and layers upon layers can be unearthed each and every time it is analyzed. After thinking more about the ending, it is evident that Tom represents the evil in society, as exposed by his selfish motivations to have a grand ol' adventure rather than just tell everyone that Jim is free. However, Tom is still a representative of that time period, and he is also a child who lacks a strong moral guidance because of society's ideas during that time. 

Another way that the ending of Huck Finn can be looked at is by viewing Mark Twain as the ultimate manipulator. Twain uses satiric deceit in the ending, as seen with the emotional dissatisifaction caused by Twain's "cheating." In the literary criticism by David Kaufman, "Satiric Deceit in the Ending of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," he claims that "how we perceive Twain's relationship with his readers and himself affects our evaluation of the ending's relationship to the rest of the novel, and our viewpoint at the end" (Kaufman 67). An interesting thing is that Twain makes a distinct difference between the speaker, Huck, and himself, evident ever from the beginning of the novel. This causes the end to become more real, in a way, because eventually the audience realizes Twain's purpose and message: to reveal the extent of cruelty that humans can do to each other, more specifically blacks, which was more relevant during that time period.

Twain's ending of Huck Finn can be compared to the interesting theory of Ash Ketchum being in a coma the whole time in the TV series adaptation of Pokemon. To summarize, the theory suggests that ever since Pikachu released its power and shocked Ash, he was then in a coma, so all the following episodes are just his dreams. This is sort of like when Tom reveals that Jim was free all along and Jim reveals that Pap was dead all along, as then Huck and Jim's travels were sort of wasted, even though the journey helped Huck grow emotionally and psychologically. 

One thing that can be compared to Tom's elaborate and useless plans to free Jim are these following images. They depict random time signature changes, key changes, and even clef changes, all with the singular purpose of confusing the musician and/or for satirical purposes. 

Fun piece for beginning musicians!

Happy birthday to music theory!

Fun rendition of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

In band we received this one song, titled "Postcard" composed by Frank Ticheli for his friend's mother who recently passed away. He wanted to commemorate her life, which makes me think what kind of life she must've had in order to have this mumble jumble of time signatures and difficult, random rhythms. Apparently this song is also a palindrome, so it sounds the same played backwards or forwards. More info on this song here. Maybe perhaps after listening to it, you can see why we turned it back in at the end of class.

Liberty and Justice For All?

Every day at school, in the beginning of second hour, we tune in to the morning announcements and stand up for the Pledge of Allegiance. Ever since we were children, it has been drilled into our heads: "I pledge allegiance, to the flag, of the United States of America...and liberty and justice for all." However, is that really a true statement? 

In the time period in which The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is set in, Antebellum America, before the start of the Civil War, slavery was legal and blacks were viewed as inferior towards whites. Liberty and justice was definitely not for all citizens, even though the United States was founded upon the basis of freedom from the tyrannical rule of Great Britain. Huck himself was born and raised with this viewpoint of oppressing blacks, but as he matures and begins to think more for himself than from society's expectations and norms, he comes into conflict with himself. His views on slavery drastically change as a result of having Jim as a companion as they adventure along the Mississippi River. This is evident when they encounter several slave hunters looking for escaped slaves, and Huck is deciding whether to turn Jim in or not. He decides not to, saying, "Then I thought a minute, and says to myself, hold on: s'pose you'd 'a' done right and give Jim up, would you feel better than what you do now? No, says I, I'd feel bad-I'd feel just the same way I do now" (Twain 102). He realizes that Jim is his friend and they care of each other, even though associating with blacks results in alienation from society during that time. Back then, freedom was definitely not obtainable for all people.

In today's society, freedom is more achievable to many, but still not for all. For example, even though prejudiced ideas against blacks have diminished by a large amount, there are still many individuals who have racist mindsets, especially among those of the older generations. There has been an increase in discrimination towards Muslims, the LGBTQ community, and some other minority groups. Even though they may be discriminated against, they are still able to achieve freedom, as today's society mostly allows individuals to fully express themselves. As history has shown, there will continue to be less and less discrimination as time passes and ideals change.

Now for the music part! In my freshman year, in symphonic band we played this piece of music titled "Freedom Road," written by James Curnow. This song was inspired by tales of slaves escaping to freedom along the Underground Railroad. Themes include a solemn flute and bassoon duet, which give impressions of sneaking along the Underground Railroad while "following the drinking gourd (Big Dipper)." After, there is a dramatic shift towards achieving freedom, as they have reached the northern states. I'll let you have a listen yourself, and you can interpret what the song means.

Real life Freedom Road

Note: I was not able to find an actual whole recording of the song, but there are some parts that you can listen to. 
Beginning and Middle
Beginning and End
Beginning and End (Press the play button above the purple currently viewing box)

Another song about the Underground Railroad that I found interesting: 

The Crucible Soundtrack

In order for a play to be fully enjoyed, it must be performed in front of an audience. In class we had the opportunity to watch the movie adaptation of The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, and that allowed us to fully appreciate his work of literary genius. The actors brought The Crucible to life on the screen, and we could watch their body language as they acted, along with the tone of their voices, the setting of the play, but a crucial component was the soundtrack.

When I was watching the movie, I noticed how the soundtrack played a very important role in telling the story of The Crucible and helping enhance scenes. For example, Abigail says "'Oh Mary, this is a black art to change your shape. No, I cannot stop my mouth; it's God's work I do'" (Miller 191) when she is testifying against Abigail in the courthouse. The music in this scene is high pitched, fast, and intense, in order to intensify the fast paced action that is happening. Without the music, that scene wouldn't be as intense, as there would just be the girls pretending to see Mary Warren as a crow attacking them.

Some other examples where the music is prevalent to the movie include when Elizabeth and John Proctor embrace each other after three months of imprisonment and separation. The music is slow and sad, with a sense of finality as they realize their relationship is nearing an end. Another example is when Elizabeth arrives at the courthouse and when she is questioned about John's relationship with Abigail. The music includes tremolos played by flutes, and also crescendos by string instruments playing a prolonged chord progression. Overall, the movie would have had much less of an artistic impact without its soundtrack. 

Here is a sad tune that I think would be effective in the last scene where John Proctor, Martha Corey, and Rebecca Nurse are hanged. 

The Evolution of the Devil

In the Bible, Christianity established the Devil as evil and full of malicious intent, causing the fall of mankind from God. Religion has and is still one of the most important factors in our society today, and it affects how we live, even if you aren't religious in any way. Religion established our moral compass and gave us the knowledge of good and evil (though unfortunately this led to our separation from God), such as not committing murder and theft. The Devil was embodied as the serpent, crafty and full of guile, attempting, and succeeding, to deceive mankind. 

Now let us discuss the evolution of the Devil into the mid 17th century, when Christianity was the cornerstone of life in Europe. However, there were differing views on Christianity, as exemplified during the 1500s by the Protestant Reformation, caused by the ideas of Martin Luther and other reformers. A century later, the Puritans were a group of English Reformed Protestants that believed that the Church of England was only partially reformed, and that they had too many Catholic characteristics. They were a minority, and were constantly under religious persecution by the Church of England. As a result, they departed upon a voyage to the New World in search of religious freedom. Once they arrived, they sought to establish a theocracy with the "city upon a hill" ideology. The Puritans were extremely pious and devout Christians, and if you didn't follow their rules, you would be punished severely, to the point of even death or ostracization.

Publick Notice: The observation of Christmas having been deemed a Sacrilege, the exchanging of Gifts and Greetings, dressing in Fine Clothing, Feasting and similar Satanical Practices are hereby FORBIDDEN with the Offender liable to a Fine of Five Shillings

Now, with some historical background, we can now discuss about the views of the Devil during this time period. As a result of their theocracy and strict rules, tensions began to build, and their society was on the edge of collapsing into anarchy. Unfortunately, this resulted in the Salem Witch Trials, in which 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and 20 were hanged, most of which did not have substantial evidence, with only "eyewitness" accounts. The Devil was viewed as sinister and malicious, taking victims' souls and possessing them. In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, "the Devil is out and preying on [Betty] like a beast upon the flesh of the pure lamb" (Miller 1047-1049). The Devil was viewed as a tangible being that directly affected people and could interfere with their daily lives, with mostly negative influences.

However, in today's society, the Devil is mostly viewed as an intangible being residing in Hell, rather than interfering with our lives. However, he is still viewed as causing sin, ranging from mass murdering to lying, in our lives. Overall, the view of the Devil has changed dramatically over time, from a malevolent being to a distant threat.

Now here's the interesting musical part: the Devil's interval, or tritone/augmented fourth/dimished fifth (the latter two depend on the notation, which is confusing if you don't know basic music theory, so don't worry about it). A major principal of music theory is intervals, which are the distance between two notes. For example, you may have heard of the most prevalent ones, such as major thirds, perfect fourths, and perfect fifths. The tritone is a distance of six half steps in between two notes, such as F and B. Played together would result in a tritone, creating discord. The dissonance sounded spooky, so if you played it back then, you could've been hung for associating your music with the Devil. However, the tritone is very important in establishing the mood and tone of a piece, whether rock or classical.

On the left, you see a tritone between F and B, as stated earlier. On the center and the right, you can see the difference between augmented fourths and dimished fifths.

More info on tritones, augmented fourths, and dimished fifths: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tritone 

Christopher Columbus: Colonialism's Centerpiece

In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. In elementary schools across the nation, schoolchildren are brainwashed to believe that Christopher Columbus was a hero for discovering North America. We were told that the Native Americans welcomed him gladly, and they lived peacefully ever after. The truth is quite blatantly different. Even though Native Americans were living in America 12,000 years ago, we still credit Columbus with discovering the New World. 

Christopher Columbus did establish a European presence in North America, which would eventually lead to the founding of the British colonies, which would in turn lead to the Revolutionary War and our country today. However, he did so in such a horrendous and terrible way, by enslaving a whole race of people just for his own personal economic and social gains. His actions have caused a multitude of suffering and grief that continues today. Indeed, Columbus's actions have truly been a decrescendo that started since he and his crew stepped foot off the Niña, Pinta, and Santa María.

Columbus singlehandedly caused a genocide of the Native American people, with an estimated 90% dead from the diseases the Europeans brought. The Native Americans were still prejudiced against centuries later, with being seen as inferior to white people. As Americans expanded west due to "manifest destiny," the Native Americans were pushed out of their home in which they had been living for centuries, to desolate, unwanted land. 

The most terrible tragedy known to the Native Americans was Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Policy, which forced many Native American tribes such as the Cherokee, Seminole, and Choctaw nations to relocate to designated "Indian Territory," in what is now Oklahoma. They were forced to march 2,200 miles in terrible conditions, and 4,000 died because of hunger, cold, and disease. They were uprooted from their homes, separated from their families, and lost most of what they had known. All of this was a direct result of Columbus. If he hadn't treated them like they were worthless, then perhaps there would've been a more symbiotic relationship between Americans and Native Americans.

Overall, Columbus Day should ultimately be replaced with Indigenous Peoples' Day in order to start the healing process. In the NPR article "Indigenous Peoples' Day Gains Momentum As A Replacement For Columbus Day," Lakota activist Bill Means sums it up in these sentences: "[Columbus] represents the mascot of American colonialism in the Western Hemisphere. And so it is time that we change a myth of history."