1. My favorite work we read was "The Open Boat" by Stephen Crane because it was surprising and I really felt like I was out there on that dark sea.

2. I think the most meaningful assignment for me was memorizing the poem for Poetry Out Loud, it reminded me of a simpler time when I was younger and I had a lot of fun doing it.

3. From Poetry Out Load I learned I have a strong voice and I can captivate an audience, its just very hard for me to stay focused and motivated, but when I do I can accomplish greatness.

4. From the "Of Mice and Men" essay I learned that a lot of works that are not related on the surface can share very similar underlying themes, its important to recognize and make these connections.

5. I think I became a speaker this year more than I really have in any other English class, not just literary analysis but actually getting in front of an audience and delivering poetry or stories, its a very important part of literature I think. I still need to work on motivation and procrastination.

I think an important theme throughout the bodies of work we have read this year is the general transience of life and how unexpected things can be. Life can be pretty absurd and a lot of what determines how successful, how happy you are everything, is how well you react to the roadblocks life can throw in your path. Life is short, demonstrated in "The Time You Have in Jellybeans" and its important to utilize the gift of life to its fullest extent, whatever that means to you, don't waste it. For me, some of the "traps" you mention, can waste a lot of time, I think this year has given me a new appreciation of the beauty of life, the wonder and joy of unpredictable circumstances, and most importantly, good literature of course. I think my favorite story we read this year was Stephen Cranes "The Open Boat". I loved the somber foreboding imagery and Crane really put me out there on the water i thought it was a genius story. I also really enjoyed reading "Catcher in the Rye" a second time when I had a little bit of a more mature viewpoint, and "Famous All Over Town" was another favorite.

My favorite part of ZeFranks "The Teenage Brain" video is all the different diagnostics by adults on why teenagers act they ways they do, "different species, aliens etc". It pretty much sums up the drastic difference between a teenagers developing brain and an adults fully mature brain. Particularly underdeveloped in the teenage brain is the frontal lobe, which as Rainn Wilson puts it is the "wisdom" part of the brain. This explains why teenagers are so impulsive, reckless, you name it as well as overly emotional. ZeFrank says teenagers always "run at 100%", which is a large advantage in many situations but can be extremely detrimental in others. I think the focus of EQ is to limit these detrimental setbacks common in teenagers, and help children and adults alike manage relationships and learn about their brain chemistry. It is just particularly important in teenagers because of their developing brains. My EQ is pretty low and ZeFrank's video showed me the importance of trying to build EQ at a young age.

I think there's several elements of satire in Gogol's "Overcoat". One, the cruelty of the other government officials. The ridicule and humiliate Akaky, but at the same time Gogol makes it known to the reader, to the extent that there "simple wits" would allow. This is satirical in the sense that the government officials see themselves as better than Akaky when in actuality there just a pack, no individuality or character. Two, the coat itself is a satirical symbol. Akaky works so hard to get the coat, its all he thinks about, etc. and just like that it gets stolen-the first day he has it nonetheless. Immense tragic irony. I think Gogol is mostly critiquing the attitude of the upper middle class in Russia. The night the coat gets stolen there is immense contrast between the officials bright, fancy residence, and Akaky's dismal part of town. The other officials look down on Akaky because he is different and keeps to himself, clearly this is not the way to treat people. I think Akaky haunts the people of St. Petersburg after his death to get even with all the pompous officials who made his life so difficult. Also maybe to have a little fun.

Willy Mac is my George. He is always a voice of reason when I am about to do something stupid. He is wise beyond his years and he usually knows when something is a bad idea and isn't afraid to stand up to me. He holds everyones best interest in mind and is able to keep me on track.

I think what Sartre means when he says "hell is other people" is the tragic flaws we inherently adopt are brought out by others and their own flaws which clash with ours. At the beginning of "No Exit" Cradeau and Inez or the Boy I dont know, but their talking about how their particular situation the room there in, the statue, the people there with, etc is completely planned. There all together because this is there perfect hell, combined with these three people in this room is all there worst hell. Whether there is an escape from this hell or if they are doomed for eternity I think depends on whether they can look into themselves and identify why they are there. When they describe their past lives nothing they did is what you would think would land you in "hell" but the core sadistic nature of their being makes it impossible for them to find salvation without being able to identify what that trait is. Who knows maybe were all just in fucking hell and this is a dream

sorry for cursing Mr. Rowe got carried away.

I think Crane has a pessimistic or maybe just a very realistic view of the world. The quote above represents the irony of them making it so far and the oiler dying when they are so close to the shore. And its messed up too but thats part of life and Crane's story is unlike so many with a happy ending, thats why this story is so fascinating, you kind of know its gonna happen, but you never really believe it till it happens. Cranes a crazy mofo.

The Montressor coat of arms embodies the theme of the story. Fortunado has "done him a thousand injuries" and Montressor is driven by vengeance to appease these wrongs. No one gets away with attacking Montressor without paying for it. The serpent is Fortunado fangs deep in the heel of Montressor, but in the end the gold foot of Montressor crushes and kills the serpent. Its a metaphor for the story. No one attacks the great Montressor without consequence.

First comment SWAG. I think Sammy quits his job cause he's fed up with people. He is tired of dealing with the long string of "sheep" that come through the store and his interaction with the girls and Lengen pushes him to the brink and he gives into his desires. He's rebellious, as are all teenagers, and Lengel's authoritative and demeaning personality obviously doesn't sit to well with him. I think the last sentence, "my stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter" is a thought on his internal attitude rather than the outside world. I think in the end Sammy basically says 'fuck it', but he's standing up for his ideals! And he's very noble and brave! And maybe to an extent this is true but, he's young and impulsive and and the last sentence is a reflection on his inability to persevere in his job or society. Good for him.

The gift he sees himself giving her is a ticket. In his fantasy he imagines himself finding a wonderful gift for her and somehow this will lead to a relationship or something, I'm not sure he really knows what. The gift represents much more than a material object, it becomes an idea which consumes his thoughts. This girl is so angelic and mysterious to him the gift and bazaar becomes his one material connection to her. When he arrives at the market and the stark reality of the bazaar procures itself, his fantasy is shattered. The perfect gift he foresees, the perfect world that was the bazaar, is dreary and desolate. His misconceptions tumble around him and the realization that the girl will never be his leaves him reeling and confused.

My first kiss. Inside the cool concrete tube on the playground we sat and fantasized about knights and castles. She was a princess, and I breathed fire. But I was a good dragon, not an evil one, and I always saved the day. Her name was Allie. She had short hazel hair that framed her, soft olive skin, piercing green eyes and she was a year older. She was the prettiest girl in kindergarten and everybody wanted to hang out with her, but I always got to be her dragon. We'd run around for hours throwing rocks and rolling in the grass. During nap time I'd always sleep next to her and she'd give me her slice of bread on soup day. On some days we'd fight. And even though according to kindergarten love 101 if a girl is mean to you she likes you, I'd always regret my stupid retaliations. When she moved to first grade I asked my mom if I could skip a year, I told her I didn't like my kindergarten teacher. Allie and I would still play during recess and I still was madly in love with her, or perhaps just the idea, but things were never the same between us when she went to first grade. The butterflies gradually faded away and she became just another friend. When I was expelled from that school in third grade she said she'd never forget me, that things wouldn't be the same; and we parted ways. I saw her at a party my freshman summer for the first time in 5 years. We laughed and reminisced on our kindergarten romance, but even brash and giddy with memories, there was nothing sexual between us. And I awoke the next morning with a clear mind despite the liquor from the night before.