Dishonesty in The Importance of Being Ernest

             Whether it is a negligent vacationing under the false name of Ernest, escaping the tedious trivialities of domestic life by Bunburying, or simply moments of "mental abstraction" that lead to life altering mistakes, all the characters in The Importance of Being Earnest have potentially devastating secrets of some kind. Coping with the treacherous battlegrounds of the Victorian society has lead each of them to evolve into complex individuals with equally confusing lives, to the point where the lines of reality and unreality blur together into a cacophonous, variegated blur of deceit and absence of truth. No longer is it necessary to judge characters by their earnestness, but rather to the degree in which they thrive upon deception.
              For instance, Algernon and Jack both adapt their lives to the ideology of the Bunburyist. However, Jack uses his imaginary brother as a method of attaining the life of hedonistic asceticism that he feels he has been denied. On the other hand, Algernon only plays into the preconceptions of others in pursuit of a woman he feels an outlying attraction to. This, paired with his charming, "Wilde-esque" wit and dashing good looks, make him a more likely protagonist than Jack. Ironically, the inventor of "Ernest" appears to be the least earnest of the play, not necessarily because of his actions (which are reciprocal of Algernon's), but rather because he has the moral foundation to recognize that the life of his concoction is wrong.            
            In the end, it seems clear that the pressures and stress of moral and societal conventions during the Victorian Era lead the character's to their paths of deceit. In firm recognition that morality does not always lead to happiness, they have brought themselves to paradoxical zeniths of unreality and, when reality returns, cataclysmic lows. Whatever their social standing, occupation, moral foundation or marital status, they all respect and understand the importance of not being earnest.

Animal Farm Project Evaluation

Ragan
Project: Photo
I believe that Ragan successfully portrayed the prominent themes of the novel through her photograph. Besides a pleasing composition, it offers details that effectively communicate her perspective on the book. For instance, the way the pig bows to the photograph parallels their eventual succumbing to the luxuries and corruption of human power. It also shows Napoleon's intimate similarity to the Russian tyrant, Stalin. Furthermore, since the windmill was such a powerful symbol, I appreciated how she managed to artistically include it as well. Encore!


Levi
Project: Movie
Levi's project is (as always) a cerebral achievement that inspires its viewers to sip a spot of tea and discuss the irony of equality, as well as inner relationships in the proverbial "crapper". Besides being well made, it covered practically all the nuances of the novel in one dryly humorous conversation. As a project it demonstrated his understanding of the book itself, as an video it was entertaining and engaging. Bravo!


Leanna
Project: Poster
Leanna's poster was very well done and translated the relationship between Napoleon and Stalin extremely well. I appreciated her use of both photos and art to engage the viewer and draw them in to her project. Clearly she appreciated the parallels between Animal Farm and the Russian Revolution as one of the strong themes of the novel. Bravo!


Connor F.
Project: Comic Strip
By far one of the best projects I have seen thus far, Connor's comic strip showed his understanding of the novel as well as his artistic ability! From a detailed template, to stunning pictures, I really appreciated the obvious time he had invested on his project. Well done Connor, and I look forward to seeing more of your work in the future!


Daniel
Project: Poster
Daniel did a very good job on his poster. The only one I have seen to actually apply cut and paste heads on the animals, I believe he made it easy and accessible for people even if they have not studied the novel. I appreciated his use of dynamic color to intrigue his audience. Well done!

Kelsey
Project: Comic Strip
I think Kelsey did a wonderful job creating a "comic strip" version of the relentless idiocy that is the saga of the windmill. I think she correctly informed her viewer on its monotony and repetition, while maintaining a fun and colorful style that carried her audience from strip to strip. She clearly enjoyed the novel and had fun creating her project. Encore!

Daniel M
Project: Poster
Perhaps one of the most polished projects of our class, Daniel did a wonderful job presenting the general themes of the novel. His cartoon animations were fun and interactively portrayed each element that surfaced throughout the book. I enjoyed his use of template as well, which satisfyingly presented his work. Well done!

Emily
Project: Comic Strip
Emily did a wonderful job on her project! Her drawings were both fun and amusing, while still intelligently presenting the parallels between the Russian Revolution and Animal Farm in a way I have not seen before. I look forward to seeing more of her work, which shows understanding of the concepts of the novel as well as her enjoyment of producing a creative interpretation of its themes. Bravo!

Sidney
Project: Poem
Sidney's poem did a fine job of both presenting the themes of the novel and its plot. I appreciated that she chose to create a poem, as that seemed to be a minority in our class. Her writing shows both conceptual understanding as well as comprehension of the provided assignment! Well done!

Emma
Project: Movie
Emma's movie was fun and engaging. She wisely chose to make a trailer, which was a more direct way of attacking all the individual themes of the story. I appreciated her dynamic and artistic use of medium to more professionally show her comprehension. Bravo!




Andrea
Project: Strip/Movie
I don't want to compare myself to other students in my class. I believe English is not only about mastering and harnessing linguistic skills and capability, but also about presenting a unique and individual perspective. We all have different ways of doing this, some of which are more widely appreciated than others. I believe my project was not my best work, and not my worst either. While it might not have had the visual charm of some of my peer's work, it wasn't an eyesore either. I strongly believe individual improvement begins with looking objectively at oneself, not critically at others.

Animal Farm Project

This is only a part of my project, over the next day I will be uploading two videos.

Video 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzBXBzTIXeM

"The life of an animal is misery and slavery, that is the plain truth".

                                    

      

My Poem: Requests for a Toy Piano

          Requests for a Toy Piano by Tony Hoagland is a poem in which nothing is as it seems. Classic and often romanticized situations are juxtaposed by their darker counters. If the woman in love is wearing a sweet perfume, the author is sure to mention it is made from the destruction of a hundred flowers. In the modern world of affluence and materialism, where society is based upon principles of capitalistic business rather than the rudimentary, concrete basis of moral evolution, the motivations of people are similarly translucent. Infiltrated by corruption and blind ambition, displays of supposed altruism are often projected from individuals eager to reap the psychological rewards of reciprocation. However, just as the rare acts of true character can be convoluted, it would be irrational to speculate that they do not exist. Just as the water rises within the daffodil, these anomalies represent a "flushed conviction" of the goodness within man, even in the face of his garish flaws.
         I connected with the poem because of its accessibility. One does not require prerequisite knowledge of the subject matter, because the events are so current and relevant to modern life. This is a rarity and something of extreme importance in a world where most famous poems address antiquated subject matter. This accessibility made it convenient to draw a relationship with the poem. Its harsh and dark critique of society is one that you feel a connection with at the end of the piece.
          Similarly, I was also lucky enough to distinguish my own morality within the poem. So many of Hoagland's ideals mimic those I have grown up with. As a young person, I find many of his metaphors holding a strong symbolic message for the flaws in our society. These issues are artfully concealed within a beautifully sinister poem of human error.

Fun with Poetry

 Part One

1. Agoraphobia

by Linda Pastan

2. Requests for Toy Piano

by Tony Hoagland

 

3. Clothespins

by Stuart Dybek

 

4. The Tyger

by William Blake

Do Not!

by Stevie Smith

Part Two

1.        Out of the poems above, I most enjoyed Requests for a Toy Piano by Tony Hoagland because of its criticism of the modern societies that are plagued with hypocrisy.

 2.       I enjoyed least Linda Pastan's poem called Agoraphobia, which, while beautiful, failed to instill upon me a greater message other than appreciation for the environment.

3.        I would definitely choose Tony Hoagland's poem because it is relevant to the flaws and fallacies of our society today.

4.        I genuinely believe in the message of Requests for a Toy Piano. It evokes a liberalism which is relevant and poignant in today's society that is based upon fundamental values of hypocrisy. 

Part Three

1.       I believe the criteria in which I will achieve the highest scores will be in Physical Presence and Level of Difficulty. This is derived from my extensive acting experience and fearlessness in accordance to memorization.

2.       The two criteria which will be most difficult for me will be Dramatic Appropriateness and Voice and Articulation. I generally consider poems not as monologues to be performed, but as hidden codes to be deciphered. This could impede my ability to perform the poem dramatically. Furthermore, when I am nervous, I can talk very fast. This could make me unintelligible to the audience.

 3.       Overall I believe I will impose a strong recitation upon my audience through good posture, confidence, evidence of understanding and subtly dramatic projection.

Part Four

Stanley Andrew Jackson

Writ on the Steps of Puerto Rican Harlem
by Gregory Corso 

     Jackson did an incredible job of subtly portraying the tone and mood of his poem through his acting. He eloquence did justice to the poem by presenting it clearly and concisely, maintaining the integrity of the piece.

 

William Farley

Danse Russe
by William Carlos Williams

      Farley demonstrated his clear understanding of the poem's direction through his manipulation of pause, drama and time. By stretching every second of the poem, he had the audience hanging on his every word, relishing every instant of this William Carlos Williams classic.

 

Part Four

       My experiences today on Poetry Out Loud enlightened me with a sense of the expansive choices I have in choosing a poem for this national competition. By not taking the time to truly appreciate the vast resources of the site I failed to understand the complexity of the project, and the many directions that I can take it. Lost upon the academic treadmill, I failed to take advantage of the enormous opportunity I have been presented with. Instead I will choose a poem I haven't studied before (not The Tyger by William Blake as I had originally planned), and so expand my understanding of literature and creative writing.

Is It a Bird? Is It a Plane? Or Is It Just a Lobster?

                    

      (Should be read in the voice of David Attenborough, though with a more sarcastic tone. Note: none of what is stated below should be taken seriously as criticism. I thought y'all were fabulous!)

              
                  Never has a humble crustacean been the subject of such heated debate! Never has the worry of plagiarism made us twitch in our seats,incessant, nervous energy manifested in the prospect of a peer bringing up our own idea before we have a chance to interject into the heated battle of literary wills. The stress of discussion is magnified only by the separation of groups, wherein one fraction inevitably feels like the lobsters in the Super Duper holding tank that we are meant to be analyzing. Perhaps the venerable poet, Howard Nemerov, foresaw such angry mobs of overrated Honors English students verbally pummelling each other with under thought theories on the significance of the lobster. What a clever fellow! Such postulation certainly prophesied the events of our latest discussion, in which some intelligent ideas were declared, but for the most part was a morose occasion of philosophical dribbling. However, the few poignant perspectives should be awarded credit. A night is, for me at least, too little time to spend really understanding a poem, so their quick witted bamboozling was greatly appreciated.
             It was projected immediately that the lobster must harbor some further meaning. Poems about crustaceans are a bit generically domestic for a classroom of our stature. But what could they possibly symbolize? Everyone expelled confident propaganda that the metaphor of the cadaver indicated the most likely suspect of the lobster's alter ego was a human. Though a bit obvious, this idea took us a step in the right direction. Because the lobster symbolized a human, it was clear the crustaceans in question must play some role in society. Lured away from the poem's truth by several far fetched dogmas, including my own in which the lobster represented a community of people mutually exploited by and for the benefit of their society, I watched in a state of a postponed snooze. It became apparent that an individual may analyze a poem for whatever theme they want and find support. I might find an allusion to Winnie the Pooh, but that doesn't mean the prose is about an overweight, yellow bear. This allowed me to realize that however convoluted some answers might be, the purpose of the poem had to be much simpler. This moment of penetrating light showed me a glimpse of the true intention of the poem, to represent the inevitability of death. This is the purpose of discussion. However hectic or even dull it can be it allows us to share and exploit the ideas of others so that we may find our own truth within any work of literature.

Paragraph Analysis

In my class there was an expansive range of diction, creativity and success within the paragraph assignment. Most of the paragraphs possessed unique topics supported with commentary and concrete details that effectively expressed their individual opinions. However, this being said, there were consistent errors within each paper. Transitions seemed to be the most difficult aspect of the piece for my classmates to remember. Without calling people out over a blog, which I find to be a fairly low way of expressing criticism, it can be said that transitive sentences and phrases posed a unique challenge for my peers. Word choice prevailed as another insecurity for the writers of the class. This could have been because of the myriad literary voices in our group. As we are all individuals with distinctive challenges as writers, we express our personality uniquely on paper.

It cannot be fair for me to criticize my fellow comrades without sharing my own weaknesses. In the paragraph assignment I was critiqued for my use of “this supports the thesis”. While personally I find this to be a fine, if analytical, way of portraying my intent, it was mentioned on the rubric. This indicates that my main difficulty as an in-class writer manifests itself in my unwillingness to sacrifice voice in order to conform to the assignment given.

My weaknesses, as well as those of my peers, pose a unique opportunity for individual improvement. We as students can take advantage of each failure we weather and improve our technique and quality of writing. For those who rose to the top of the class during this assignment, and for those who feel they did not do their best, we all eventually find ourselves on the same level: individually talented and challenged students with continual prospects of self and literary improvement.