Thursday, November 10, 2011

fairy tale 2

in normal fairy tales its usually a knight in shining armor, not a green ogre.
robin hood is bad in this story, not a hero.
parody: the merry men when they were snapping were like west side story
fixing her hair when she was fighting
fighting like matirx, slow mo
merry men were pretending to be tough but then they start singing and dancing.

fairy tale

Now you decide: what makes a fairy tale a fairy tale? What are the characteristics? What do the heroes look like? What does the setting look like, etc?

the characteristics of a fairy tale are....

has knights, in that time period
guys are chivalrous
bad people are almost always ugly
good people beautiful
A fairy tale is a type of short narrative that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments

wife

Wife essay

1. Does this essay have an explicitly stated thesis? If so, what is it? If you believe the thesis is implied, paraphrase it in your own words.
No. The way society views wives is ridiculous.

2. Throughout the essay, Brady repeats the words “I want a wife.” What is the effect of this repetition? 
 
To show ridiculous the whole thing is.

3. Brady never uses the personal pronouns he or she to refer to the wife she defines. Why not?
Brady doesn't want to use gender words. Instead, she wants to emphasize the point that the "wife" stereotype should be redefined.
4. Do you think Brady really wants the kind of wife she describes—does this ideal spouse actually exist? Explain why you think Brady wrote this essay.
No she doesn't actually want the wife she describes, she is not lesbian.  The ideal spouse may exist somewhere but its like 1/100,000,000,000,000,000,000.  She wrote this essay to try and redefine the meaning of a "wife" and show how crazy the conotation of wife is. 

5. How does Brady define what it means to be a “wife”? How does she organize the many services a wife provides her husband and family? What do you think of Brady’s characterization of a wife and her responsibilities? How do you think she wants her readers to respond to this characterization? Why?
Brady defines the "wife" as being a "do-it-all" in this writing. She organizes the services in order of necessity.  I think that her portrayal of this kind of wife is unrealistic.  I also feel that she wants her readers to change their perspective on wives, because people view wives as "do-it-alls" and as people who should be at a man's every whim.


6. Write a letter to Brady responding to “I Want a Wife.” Let her know what you admire or don’t admire about the essay and the extent to which you consider it effective and/or persuasive.

Dear Brady,

I feel that your persuasive essay, Why I Want a Wife, did an effective job at persuading me to rethink about how we portray wives in our society today. I think that everyone should reconsider how they view women in general. While women have gained many more rights today, they still don't fully get the respect they deserve at times. Wives especially, are viewed as having to be "superwoman" and are expected to be perfect. I just hope those who think this way change their perspective.

Sincerely,
Eric
7. Write your own piece entitled “I Want a/an X.” You can use Brady’s essay as a model, and in the process, imitate some of her stylistic techniques. Or, alternatively, write an essay about the role of a “wife” in the early twenty-first century, explaining how a wife’s responsibilities complement and are complemented by those of a spouse.

The Role of a "Wife"

The role of a wife in today's society has changed since past centuries.  Back then, wives were mostly stay at home moms that took care of the children, cooked, and cleaned, while the men went out and worked. Today, some women are now the ones who go out and work, while the men take the opposite role.  The view of the wife in general, however, has still not changed much. The role of the wife is used in a stereotypical way and the things that pertain to that role are never associated with men, but only to women. Instead, the role of the man and the woman in a marriage should complement each other.  For example, if the wife feels like she needs a night to go out with her friends, the husband could stay at home and baby-sit the children. In conclusion, there needs to be a balance in marriages and each spouse should contribute to the well being of the relationship and of each other.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Light Switch

Chapter 1

I opened the door, it was pitch black inside i couldnt see a thing.  i was terrified to go in there, i had a feeling somebody was about to jump out from the darkness and kill me.  i was feeling my hand on the wall for the light switch.  i just couldnt find it.  i heard a creek come from the back corner of the room and my heart started pounding even more.  adrenaline flowed through my veins and time moved so slow.  i felt the frame of the light switch with my right hand and quickly moved my fingers to the switch.  i hesitated a second before i turned it on because i didnt want to see what was on the other side of the darkness.  the room lit up with light and i was momentarily blinded by the sudden light.  my eyes finally focused and i peered into the room from the cracked door, i could only see about a quarter of the room right now.  i heard another creak and if my heart wasnt racing enough, it started beating faster, sweat was coming from my hair line and i was really scared.  i slowly pushed the door open, gaining visibility with each inch the door moved.  i was about to be able to see where the creaking came from and the door suddenly slammed into my face.  it knocked me down and i screamed so loud.  the door was closed but then it started to open back up again, very slowly.  the door opened and my worst fears were realized.  i was staring into the eyes of.... 

Friday, October 28, 2011

Scary Story?

once upon a time there was a little boy that went trick or treating on halloween.  he dressed up as an orange eagle monster.  he was so bloody that it was quite terrifying.  the little boy was going around getting candy from all the people in his neighborhood.  whenever they would open the door the little boy would say 'boo' or if it was somebody he knew he would 'what up doh?' then when he was running from house to house he would go up to the girls that were walking and pretend to be an evil ghost and clock them in the head with his shoe and try to make them scream.  if they would scream he would treat himself to a candy corn, his favorite candy.  this happened all night and he had a great time. 

happy halloween

Friday, October 7, 2011

MLK Jr.

They say: We deplore the demonstrations taking place in Birmingham.

MLK says: It is unfortunate that demonstrations are taking place in Birmingham, but it is even more unfortunate that the city's white power structure left the Negro community with no alternative.

They say: You were illegally protesting

MLK says: I’m here in Birmingham because injustice is here

They say: Separate but equal laws are justified in our country

MLK says: Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds

They say: Nonviolent campaigns will not be tolerated and will be dealt with accordingly

MLK says: In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps.  Collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exist, negotiation, self purification, and direct action.

They say: Your activity in Birmingham is extreme

MLK says: At first I was rather disappointed that fellow clergymen would see my nonviolent efforts as those of an extremist.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Exercise 2

In the introduction to "they say/I say": the moves that matter in academic writing,Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein provide templates designed to help you but the principles of writing into practice.  Specifically, Graff and Birkenstein argue that the types of writing templates they offer will make you into a better writer.  As the authors themselves put it, "this book will make you a better writer, helping you formulate your thoughts."  Although some people believe there are better templates and Graff and Birkenstein are wrong, Graff and Birkenstein insist that these are the best and they have the best templates.  In sum, then, their view, the types of templates that the authors recommend are their own.  For instance, the templete about forming an argument is the best.  In addition, all their other templates are incredible.   Yet i would argue that there may be other great templates out there, and Graff and Birkstein might not have ALL the best templates.  Overall, then, i believe this is a great book with great arguments.