Friday, January 18, 2008

Parting is such sweet sorrow

1) I think the best thing about the essay (and I suppose this applies to everyone else as well) is that it is original. Everyone sees things in a different light and I just try to shed my own light onto everyone to show them my perspective. I think the real difference with fiction is that with an essay like this, we try to emulate fiction which can be hard to do with a real life experience. I think that the personal essays real show what someone has learned/experienced from their lifetime and how it has shaped/affected them now. I think of my essay as just one chapter in the book of my life and no one else will ever be able to write it like me.

2) Reading is essential in writing because of what you learn. With the outside perspective of other writers and also their critics, you are able to learn many things from reading such as a writing style, how something is told/explained, the imagery, the themes, symbols, and also where the writer is coming from/why they wrote this. Many film directors strive to be like their idols, the best directors that they wish to model their style after. I think the same really goes for writers, striving to become the best and also may homage to the greats of literature.

3) I think that the poetry unit/poems that I wrote were the best pieces I have ever written. I feel a sense of more emotion that is involved in poetry in comparison to actual stories. I don't have a single poem that I was especially proud of, but most of them I felt really expressed how I was feeling and thinking at the time. I think that I really have poor skills in writing short stories, mostly I feel that in comparison to an actual novel, everything has to be rushed in a few pages in order to convey a point. With a novel, the reader is able to feel the downfall of the hero, feel the joy of their accomplishments, and understand and wish for the life that only exists in stories.

4)
coke
unknown
both
both
neither
neither
NYC
unknown
unknown
well technically SK (Korea)
unknown
5) not aladdin, not cinderella, not snow white, and not jungle book. I don't know where from there though.

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Boring Title (cont.)

2. I think one news event that has had a large impact (mostly on the US in comparison to me) is/was the Iraq War. Frankly, I don't see the justification in this war other than to get rid of a tyrannical dictator, of course. But having done this, I see no more justification in being in Iraq when there are many other problems (dictatorships and threat of nuclear weapons) in places such as Iran, North Korea, Afghanistan, and also the Al Qaeda itself. A key issue for the future politicians of this country (specifically presidential candidates) is their strategy for the "war." "What can be done" and "when will we leave" are two questions that politicians need to answer. However, I think that it is more important to find out what the people of this country believe to be as part of the solution for this "war on terror." Yes, politicians should come out strong and have a strong sense of what they want done and how they will/can accomplish that, but in a democratic society, the voice of the people is what counts. And no, this does not suggest that the President should ask the random guy off the street what he thinks of the war and do what he says. And as an "under-the-counter" sort of issue, I believe that if this war was partially (or solely) for oil, how come the price of gas is still climbing and possibly could be more than $5 a gallon within the next 20 years? If this war was for oil, how come the american people aren't reaping any of these benefits?

3. Frankly, I don't believe in goals for specific reasons:

A) I don't want to accept the responsibility and obligation to myself in completing something (especially when I decide to put it off for later in the year). I mean, yes I do intend to graduate from school and be off to college in the coming fall, but as far as specific things that I want to accomplish, complete, or even attempt, I have no such list.

A.5) Again, with responsibility and obligation, the sense of failure can only be a consequence with something, I dare to call, so trivial. While I was in a large rutt for some time, I didn't see any light at the end of the tunnel and thusly, thought nothing of my future. My philosophy on goals became "have no goals because if you don't complete them, there is no dissapointment." Still being a rut (different than before), I still wish to live in the present rather than plan and schedule for the future. Also, part of my reasoning is that with plans/goals and a set time for things, something will go haywire at the last moment and I'll feel a sense of failure and dissapointment in myself more than anyone else and thusly sink deeper into a rut. I still believe in my "have no goals because if you don't complete them, there is no dissapointment" philsophy because "life is a game and we are the gamblers", meaning that we have to life as it comes and not expect, wait, or plan for anything. Just take life one moment at a time. "Every passing minute is a chance to turn it all around."

Monday, January 7, 2008

Boring Title

1. I pretty much live by four different principles that are some of the reasons behind my actions.

A) Never rat on your friends-Whenever someone is to blame, never be the anchor that brings everyone else down as well. It's what I live by and thusly gets me in trouble in more than others. The reason as to why I live by it is because when a finger is pointed, it doesn't help to keep pointing. I just end the game and just say I acted alone.

B) Don't take any crap from anyone-Pretty self-explanatory I think. I live by this because, as blunt as the principle may seem, it really says "stand for what you believe in." I believe very strongly in independence and the right to free anything pretty much.

C) Live without regrets-Simply that if you spend too much time dwelling on your mistakes, then nothing will be accomplished for the future. Also, I believe in living without regrets because it creates a sense of liberation in you that shows that you really have nothing to lose when push comes to shove.

D) Honesty-As simple as it may seem, I think honesty is still one of the most important things that helps you get through life and can sustain a friendship (or any relationship) for a long time.


2.

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Future/Past

1. Writing a play is very different from anything else to say at the least. With a play in mind, it hinders the specifics of a stage set and the locations in which a play can be set. With my play in mind, I tried to keep in mind an actual stage and so many situations (sets, number of settings, changing of settings in between acts/scenes) I thought of wouldn't have been suitable for the stage.

2. I would enjoy writing about any of the significant (good or bad) moments in my life and then reflect about how it was overall a positive experience (even the bad ones) because of what I learned from it in order to improve my thinking about the world around us/life.

One experience that really has had a great impact on my life, was my experience at this camp that I have gone to for the past 5 summers. It's called Sup Sogui Hosu (Lake of the Forest in Korean) and it's located near Bemidji, MN. Each year, I learned more korean, met new people, and always left satisfied with everything that had happened. This story could span pages and pages because of everything I learned, everything I experienced, and overall just the story of what happened and even a basic introduction about the camp itself.

Another experience I had that greatly impacted my life was the time I spent with my (now ex) girlfriend (whom I had met at camp). I could write a lot about my emotions towards her and the entire story of our relationship and everything, but the thing I think is odd even after she broke up with me was the fact that I didn't hate her for it. Anyway, that's another story for another time so I won't ramble.

3. The problem I see with giving a 5 or 10 year kid advice about things such as the world, life, religion, and other things of the sort, is the fact that they most likely won't understand the reasoning for things with the grasp of more than just fun, school, and toys. Frankly, when I attempt to give my 13 year old sister advice, she sometimes gives looks quite confused as to what I'm talking about and claim that she's more informed about the world/life than I give her credit for. But as a cynic, I wouldn't spoil the whole enjoyment of childhood for either the 5 or 10 year old explaining things such as santa claus isn't real, puberty, driving, work, life, racism, politics, religion, technology, and many other things that they aren't able to grasp yet. I would just tell either of them to enjoy the time that they have as a child, having fun, being excited for holidays, and living for themselves in the moment.

Monday, December 10, 2007

Untitled

1. I think that theme really helps to convey messages and an author's thoughts perhaps about life, society, love, friendship, or people and can be shown through experiences. The experiences can help make the character relate to modern/real world situations (not always though) in order to give the reader a link to the character and can help in learning life lessons. One piece of literature considered to be one of the greatest pieces of american literature is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and I think it has stood the test of time as a great piece of american literature of because of what it teaches. The experiences, however, such as travelling with a black slave and floating on a raft don't really relate to today's times but can still be experiences that everyone can relate to (importance of friendship with Jim).

However, perhaps the author does not intend for such a deeper meaning to be taken with the "themes" that critics, teachers, and fellow writers think the story is illustrating. I highly doubt that in many stories by some of the (considered) well-known writers think that their writing should only be read at the literal level of a basic story board (exposition-rising action-climax-falling action-resolution). However, with the normal story board, something HAS to be learned by one of the characters about something. Even in the most basic of children's stories, a lesson is learned, a moral is taught, and something is taken away from the story after it has been read.

2. I think the major thing that helps to maintain a story and stand the test of time, is what is being taught. The contents of the story (brick roads, spaceships, wagons) may not be relative to the time in which the story is being read, but the lesson, the theme, the message, the author's commentary of the world is taken away and spread to many people to hopefully make a difference in the world for the greater good. In world lit., we read a book called Brave New World and even though it was written in the early 1940s, the story speaks of a future not so far from the present time. A movie called Equilibrium that came out in 2000, I think is very related to Brave New World and it just goes to show the importance of lessons learned (specifically society in Brave New World). Another thing that recently has been helping to keep old books alive, is books being adapted into movies. Lately, many stories (LOTR, Harry Potter, Golden Compass, Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe) have been adapted to movies and have been renewed to the younger generation of people (although the stories won't exactly be flying off the shelves (because why read a book when you can see a movie?)).

3. I think that in order to make a difference, the cause must be widespread. A cause involving killing small animals won't exactly be the population of china in comparison to a cause for curing cancer. As far as personal impact on the world though, I think that indifference is the main thing that I would stand for and help to get rid of in this world. I don't exactly know how I would help to stop indifference, but I would try and go to schools and talk about it in order to help a generation grow because "the children are our future."

Monday, December 3, 2007

Thinking

1. RACISM and INDIFFERENCE and IGNORANCE

I think racism is largely one of the reasons why there will never be world peace. Race really is the most common form of indifference; looking at someone differently because of their skin color. I think racism is derived from the combination of indifference and ignorance. Ignorance leads to indifference and thus leads to racism. "We fear what we don't understand." Ignorance shows that people don't want to "read the book once they see the cover." It's the assimiliation that creates the main problems in the world.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Happiness

1. Happiness is a very hard concept to describe because it is so hard to attain. But generally, people are able to attain happiness for a few brief moments but happiness can be attained in different ways; success and love.

2. The only time that I remember happiness that seemed better than anything else, was when I was hanging out with my former ex-girlfriend. When I was with her, I lost all my stress and only appreciated the time that I was spending with her.

3. My mom and my sister are generally the biggest influences during my day. During the day, my mom can disrupt my "happiness" while I watch tv or something and bother me about something.

4. I think my actions really affect my mom and my sister the most (during the normal weekdays). Usually, I don't really try to affect their happiness because I'm most likely on the computer, in my room, or in my basement.

5. I need people. The interaction with others can be very helpful to me mentally, psychologicaly, and emotionally. It is essential need for humans, communication, and I need it for moral support and to add to my excuse to make jokes.