"Thinking Outside the Box"

In Jean Paul Sartre's "No Exit” and in Plato’s “The Allegory of the Cave”, both reveal the limitations of the human mind. Both pieces show how a narrow or closed mindset will enslave the soul and in the case of “No Exit” torture the soul and both show that a little courage or faith in the unknown can overcome that obstacle.

In Jean Paul Sartre's "No Exit", the souls were brought to a waiting room of sorts where each soul thought they would be awaiting for future punishment. They all knew they were condemned to suffer for eternity and this mindset helped bring them closer to that conclusion. At first they thought they were randomly placed in the room but as the play progressed and as the more they talked to each other, the more they realized that they were each others torturers and that the room was not actually a waiting room but the room of torture itself. Once accepting this fact, Garcin, who had the door to other passage ways and rooms before him, could not leave the room because he told himself that he was damned and that he wouldn’t be able to escape regardless. By this very act the play makes it clear that Hell doesn’t always have to be fire and brimstone if you are already suffering and already imprisoned in your mind. As long as your mind is suffering and you are trapped inside, you could be in heaven or any physical place you desire on Earth and still feel like you were in the deepest pit of Hell. If however Garcin did step outside, he would encounter a new situation, a reprieve of the room with Estelle and Inez, and this could at the very least give him hope that he had some control of the consequences of his actions in life. Although it’s not much, this would make his personal Hell less effective because as long as one has hope, one can never truly suffer.

In Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave”, none of the prisoners suffered but they were still enslaved by their own perception of reality. The one prisoner who was able to escape and tell the others about the world outside was put to death by the other prisoners because it was easier, simpler, and less bothersome to kill the one man than to have their perception of reality shaken or questioned in the least and disrupt their contentment. This killed any actual want to question what was being shown to them, any want to question the reality that they lived in and live in the cave that was preordained for them. If however one of the prisoners took him up on what he said however, he would see that the world is different and quite possibly convince the rest of the prisoners to walk free as well.

Both characters in Jean Paul Sartre's "No Exit” and in Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave” were trapped by their narrow mindsets allowing no hope for change to occur in their existence. This was shown in “No Exit” by Garcin never being able to walk out of the open door because he “knew” that he was in Hell and in “The Allegory of the Cave” by having the other prisoners kill the one freed prisoner who saw things differently. The possible only solution laid in the open door/entryway for both stories and that all the characters needed was a little courage or a leap of faith to get them out of the situation they were in.

AP Lit. Term

Evocative: a calling forth of memories and sensations; the suggestion or production through artistry and imagination of a sense of reality. Originating from Latin, the first traces of the word seems to be around the early 1600’s.  Something that is evocative is something that brings back events in your memory that no longer happening. The smell of a campfire might bring back childhood memories of roasting marsh mellows on a summer night. In The Phantom of the Opera, the raising of the chandelier brings back memories of the old man and lady at the auction when the opera house was still in full use and their experiences there.

1984 Literature Analysis

1. Summary

1984 by George Orwell takes place in the year 1984 although no one is truly certain about that. The world is divided by three super-powers: Oceana, consisting of the Americas and Britain; Eurasia, primarily made up of Russia, the rest of Europe, and the Middle-East; and finally Eastasia, which includes China, Mongolia, Siberia, Australia and some of the Pacific islands. All three nations are in a perpetual state of war against one of the other two and are controlled by a wealthy class that completely rules with tyranny over the middle and lower classes. This is where our protagonist comes in. Winston Smith is what people would call an average human being nowadays, meaning he has a decent memory and has a vague sense of right and wrong. Unfortunately for him though is that the police, or known in the book as the thought police, watch his every move like every other citizen in Oceana through the use of telescreens. These screens can hear every decibel of sound for a good twenty or so feet, can even watch what people are doing for up to ten feet and are literally everywhere in Oceana. There is no private space. Although there are no rules in Oceana, any hint of uprising against the wealthy class or “inner party” as the book puts it and any slightly suspicious activity gets you put on trial and then executed. Winston works in the Ministry of Truth which falsifies all documentation to fit the Inner Party’s definition of truth. This bugs him quite a bit, and when he finds another defector in the party, they go on to break as many party rules as they can without being found out by the thought police which mainly takes the form of adultery seeing how they are neither married nor having sex by Inner Party approval. They get by for a while but then are caught by the thought police. While Winston is in jail, his defective thoughts are exposed and then cured by methodical torture and starvation in the first stage. Terrorization by using his worst fears against him which takes the form of surrounding him by sewer rats completes the process. At the end of the book, when Winston finally loves the party’s iconic hero, Big Brother and truly believes the Inner Party when they say 2+2=5 does he finally gets executed. It is only by this method does the Inner Party leave no opportunity for rebellion because by changing Winston’s beliefs and mind, they leave no martyrs behind.

2. Theme

The theme of the novel is a warning. If people and the government do not change their act, then this fictional novel will take some form of reality.

3.Tone

The tone can be read as of bitter optimism. “But if there was hope, it lay in the proles.” (Page 73) The proles are the low class. I am stating this for clarification purposes.

4. Literary Elements.

Setting: Setting plays a crucial role in the book because it took place in the future of which it was originally written in 1949 and creates the basis of the warning.

Allusion: Allusion plays a big role in the story with how dates are continually being changed and how the Party is different from past tyrannies by referring to Communism and the Catholic Church’s Inquisition.

Imagery: By referring to the current state of Oceana, the reader gets a feel about how wealthy the Inner Party is compared to the middle and lower classes.

Theme: The warning that is the extended metaphor throughout the book really makes the events connect with current events going on in the lives of the readers’.

Diction: The word usage in the novel is critical because of the emphasis of the many lies the Inner Party creates and how they “bend” reality to their liking. The perfect example of this is in the second to the last page when the Thought Police truly makes Winston believe that 2+2=5.

Symbol Essay Make Up

We see symbols everywhere, we see them in brands, logos, and almost everything we touch or use, but they would all be meaningless if we did not attach some meaning behind them. Take the cross for example, it has been around for roughly 2011 years, represents the death of a powerful prophet known as Jesus of Nazareth and redemption of his followers through his death. Only people that are Christian or have knowledge of Christianity will ever get the reason why people respect two sticks or objects in the shape of a “t”.

            The whole story of Jesus in a nutshell is that he was a very powerful Jewish prophet that the high ranking Jewish priests did not like because he was preaching stuff and in some cases outright opposing practices that the Jewish synagogues performed. The high priests got with the Roman Empire and managed to kill him by crucifying him on a cross or “t”. Three days later he supposedly rose from the dead and by dying, redeemed the souls of all his followers. The key death happened on a cross, “t” and became a common symbol seen even seen today.

            Although the cross is probably one of the most universally known symbols known to mankind, only people who know the story will ever get the real meaning of the cross when they see it on a grave, building or jewelry. The cross also acts almost like an I.D card because the cross is seen as the one symbol recognizing Christianity just like how the Star of David represents the Jewish belief.

The Big Question

We have seen and heard people do amazing things by accessing parts of their brain to perform miraculous feats of all kinds. Most of us have seen someone who has been completely in control of their mind and body while performing an act of skill and grace if they haven’t felt like they “were in the zone” as athletes put it. My question is this: How can we reach enlightenment and once there, stay there and remain the master of our being?

My revised Big Question:

My question is how can people reach the conditions under which people achieve a state of mind that enables them to perform at high levels in circumstances others might consider stressful and what are those key conditions to begin with?

(The first part of this question was directly copied and pasted from Dr. Preston’s comment, thank you for your wording, it was just the right way it needed to be phrased.)

Hamlet vs Beowulf Comparison Essay

Hamlet, the prince of sighs, and Beowulf, the great hero of the Geats and slayer of Grendell are two classic heroes from Britain only separated by a millennium in their creation. People may argue that both died tragic deaths killing their hated enemy, both are old and hard to understand and that they are pretty much the same character so let’s move on already. Contrary to popular belief, Hamlet could never be so different from Beowulf and it all boils down to how Hamlet sets himself almost into a league by himself by the use of his language and words.

Hamlet is often seen performing soliloquies to the audience for no other apparent purpose then just to say them. He is actually saying this to gather his thoughts and reflect on past events just like how many of us talk to ourselves, verbally or non-verbally, to help figure out what to do next.  “To be, or not to be--that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing end them.” Hamlet is reflecting how he must kill Claudius even though death itself looks like a pretty good option right now. He is not contemplating suicide; he already swore to the ghost that we would try to carry through with avenging him. More or less he is commenting the fact that he is stuck between a rock and a hard place. This makes Hamlet is one of the first characters in British literature to actually voice what is going on in his head.

Beowulf is classic hero of ancient Britannica, the youth who set out for a quest of glory and matured into a wise and heroic ruler. More or less Beowulf is integral by the fact that most of what he says is either a statement of what happened or a promise that he will fulfill. Other than the description of him and the actions that happens where he openly laments or is proud, there is no reflection, no second guessing or overly analytical speeches or mental notes going on in diction. “That this one favor you should not refuse me, that I alone and with the help of my men, may purge all evil from this hall.” It is a promise just like how Hamlet promised the ghost but different in how very quickly Beowulf disposes of Grendell compared to Hamlet who takes an entire play to kill Claudius. Beowulf is a man of action as dictated by his diction while Hamlet is a planner and a thinker.

There are multiple times throughout Hamlet where Hamlet is seen as second guessing the true nature of reality of which he lives in. He knows the social games being done all around him, all the manipulations that people try to do to each other to gain influence and get higher up in the scheme of things. “The spirit that I have seen may be the devil: and the devil hath power to assume a pleasing shape; yea, and perhaps out of my weakness and my melancholy, As he is very potent with such spirits, Abuses me to damn me: I'll have grounds more relative than this: the play’s the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king.” This reveals how Hamlet is not readily to be deceived and how well he can find purge the truth from the king without openly revealing himself that he knows that Claudius killed his father. By coming up with this intricate plan, Hamlet will have confirmed what the ghost has said as well as place the perfectly laid trap on Claudius.

            Hamlet and Beowulf are both similar in the fact that they were both tragic heroes in British literature, but that is where the similarities end. Through Hamlet’s use of language we clearly see that Hamlet is the manipulator and the planner while Beowulf is the man of action who gets things done in the moment and worries about the consequences later, as seen when he has to fight off Grendell’s mother.  Hamlet made every action count and twisted the reality around him through what he said to achieve his goals. Beowulf created the reality around him by committing great acts of strength and let his actions speak louder than his words. Beowulf is a lot easier to predict from a reader’s stand point while Hamlet is always a wild card because what he says and how he says those things to the people around him, including the audience.

Major Concept

The major concept that I learned in class was that we are essentially training ourselves for the world of tomorrow. We are getting educations for jobs that do not even exist in the present. It’s all about handing down the torch to our generation. “We look to reincarnation to explain our lives.” This class has taught me that after everything is said and done, the older generations are going to die off and it will be up to us to shape the world. “As if a child could explain our lives” I have learned that this is not going to be easy, far from it. There is a lot of pressure on our generation and what we are learning and experiencing must be strong enough to meet the demands of an ever changing society. We are not learning to pass the test; we are learning to succeed in our lives for the older generations, and the generations that taught us. These are the very people that we will be representing when we do change the world. “We rise again in the faces of our children; we rise again in the voices of our song,” We are the success of the past living in the present working to change the future. That’s all what I have learned in Dr. Preston’s boiled down into a nutshell.

Roy Christopher's Video Chat Notes

He first got started in social media in the late 90’s through magazine making when he was BMXing.

Balance between Analog and Digital time

It’s only a struggle only when he is trying to get important things done because facebook, twitter and other online things can be distracting.

How will Mash-Ups and the Web mix?

He has no idea how mash-ups will be taken/mixed when they hit the web more often. It’s anyone’s guess.

Hip Hop culture has now converged with the mainstream culture.

The Advent Horizon

A time where the environment we live in changes in such a way that it changes or impacts our lives. It is a time when we truly realize that we have lost the need for an older technology.

Will the Advent Horizon create or destroy opportunities?

It will do both, the older generation will have a harder time of it while the younger generations will pick things up more quickly.

The medium is the message. What happens when the medium is the medium?

He has no idea what technology will be able to surpass that when we have come to that point. That is the best that things will ever get.

In today’s world, you have to either program or get programmed when using the web. People do not need to know how the web works to use it but it is a whole lot better if one does because they will be able to pull themselves out of more difficult situations than not online.

Roy’s prediction for 5-10 years from now for himself

            He hopes he will have a place in academia but also in writing.

Everything is going mobile

Internet is taking over T.V. He is wary about that fact a little because of the affect it may have on our attention spans.

Mobile will probably be used for trivial stuff while bigger things will always be learned/done at home or at a place of learning.

How will the network grow and change? Will it take over analog time?

Digital could squeeze out our analog time in an instant but it is probably not going to happen though. A balance will be met.

Should we be embarrassed about how we are using technology?

No, the older generations have to trust us because we have been growing up with this for most of our lives. We are quick learners.

Multi tasking, ok or not?

            More focused creates better quality work but multi tasking is ok.

We are digital natives now; will that change in five years?

            No, we are still going to be natives. The process of change will take some time.

How do the students like the internet use in class?

We like it; it gives us more tools to express ourselves. It is nice to have real time responses and social groups to help understand the material and each other.

Technology can be used for learning.

Our professional and academic lives will be heavily impacted by technology.

We are going to have to create our own jobs. This is an exciting time.

You do not have to adapt to technology however, you do not have to be “plugged in” if you choose not to.

Technology is the means to an end. What is the end?

            No one knows for sure.

This class is one of the few classes students have outside of the arts or hands on crafts that have escaped the standardization noose. People in this class have chosen to go beyond the minimum requirement.