Short Stories

                So in my English class, we read about eight short stories together as a group and discussed them as a class. In addition, I had to read three short stories on my own. I read "The Sniper" by Liam O'Flaherty, "The Catbird Seat" by James Thurber, and "A Worn Path" by Eudora Welty. I liked "A Worn Path" the most, but I'm going to do my thesis on "The Catbird Seat" because they have a strong man vs man conflict.
                The man vs man conflict in this story is important because that's basically the foundation of the story. The man doesn't like the woman, and he plots a plan so she can get fired from the company. She tells her boss, and he doesn't believe her so she gets removed from the company because people think she's psycho. I don't know what my actual thesis statement is going to be yet, but it's definitely going to have something to do with that.

Reading Times: "The Catbird Seat" 10/23/12- 35 minutes, "A Worn Path" 10/25/12- 35 minutes, North of Beautiful 10/26/12- 90 minutes
Total: 160 minutes

Reading Times

North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley: 135 minutes
The Sniper: 25 Minutes

Total: 160 minutes

Literary Elements

      In "Dry September" by William Faulkner, characterization seems like a strong literacy element because through each character you see how a lot of people were during those times, specifically 1931 like it says at the end of the story. There's also a social aspect to it  because they acted the way they acted because they believed in the hierarchies that probably was kind of like this:
      Rich white man
      Middle class white man
      Poor white man
      Rich black man
      Middle class black man
      Poor black man
     Anyway, this type of scale was what they based everything off of. Well, they brought the white women before the black men, but after the white men because back then, the white men didn't think the women could make their own decisions or have their own opinion which was complete discrimination. In this story, a black man was accused of doing something to a white woman whether it was raping her or just give her a look, but it doesn't specifically say it, but you can infer. One white man stood up for the black man because he knew the guy was good and didn't think he would do anything to harm anyone, so, of course, the other white men get on his case about it. This shows that, socially, a few of the white men actually cared for the blacks, but most didn't. In this, they characterized each person by what they had to say on the fact of the matter, and how they felt about certain things.

    Reading Times:
"Waltz of the Fat Man": 25 minutes, "Harrison Bergeron": 25 minutes, "And of Clay we are Created": 35 minutes, "Dry September": 35 minutes, North of Beautiful: 50 minutes

    Total: 170 minutes

Participation in Class this Quarter

       This year in English class, I have participated in the activities and things we're doing. I'm always prepared and have all the materials we need, except once I just finished my free reading book at home the night before, and I had class first thing that morning so I had to go to the library to get one. I've never asked to go the the bathroom, locker, or to get water during class, and I don't plan on it unless it's an emergency. I check my email every other day so I don't have any problems with that. I am guilty of packing up a little early, but I only pack up one or two minutes before the bell is going to ring and no earlier. I always have a positive attitude, and I've never been pessimistic during the class.
       Whenever there is a lecture in class, I always pay attention and take notes. I'm on my A game in those situations because I need to make sure I have all the things I need in order to study for certain things or do well in a certain assignment. I don't really ask questions about the things Dr. D has taught, but when my other peers ask questions I listen to what they ask and her answer to the question. I stay on task, and I really don't talk much in English.
        The only weak area I had in English class was the papers I turned in. That's where I mostly scored the lowest, but I don't know why yet because I don't think I have received my score for the finished products of my papers to see where I did wrong or need the most improvement.

Reading Times

 Short Stories: 10/2- 25 min., 10/3- 20 min., 10/4- 20 min.
North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley: 10/5- 87 min.