Writing Reflections - Julius Caesar and The Alchemist

IDEAS AND CONTENT

In my Alchemist essay, I displayed organized and good ideas and content. This is shown because throughout the essay, the content flows nicely, allowing the reader to understand how Santiago's traits aided him throughout his journey. I started all paragraphs with a sharp topic sentence, which shows my true understanding of the topic itself. After that, I had thoroughly explained my reasoning that supports the topic sentence to further develop the reader's understanding. Other than that, I also used quotes from the book to enhance my explanations, and I attempted to give the reader of visual of Santiago's traits by using excerpts from the book. Overall, maybe using more detailed quotes and topic sentences would allow me to improve my statement and give a clearer topic.

Comparing the Julius Caesar and the Alchemist essays together, there is a somewhat improvement in my overall writing skills, as my grade had increased. Similarly to my Alchemist essay, I had a sharp topic sentence, and a flow of explanations to keep the reader engaged, and allow the reader to fully understand my statement(s). Also, I had brought in certain parts of certain scenes from the play, and I analyzed it and explained it thoroughly to show how the parts were related to my statement. Throughout the essay, I had repetitive explanations, which decreased my grade. If I had looked at certain quotes in different views, maybe I would have had different explanations for each paragraph and I would be less repetitive.

ORGANIZATION

In my Alchemist essay, explanations were stated, but they weren't very 'smooth' as the essay went along. I didn't have a lot of transitions and sometimes the reader was left wondering where my explanations went, because sometimes I didn't seem to have explained thoroughly. Every paragraph was started with a good topic sentence, and explanations followed right after. My overall conclusion was strong, because I had summarized my statement and my ideas within a paragraph. In my conclusion, I was able to sum up why Santiago's traits enabled him to continue on with his journey. Overall, I think the place where I need improvement is smooth explanations. Get the reader engaged and get them to enjoy reading the essay and get them to understand my overall statement.

In my Julius Caesar essay, I was more organized and I understood all of my evidence clearly. This had enabled me to easily explain my evidence to the reader, making it smooth explanations unlike my Alchemist essay. My topic sentences were engaging and it hooked the readers into the essay, and my explanations were overall easy to understand and follow. The main problem on my essay was my repetitiveness, and maybe if I added different types of evidence would allow me to be less repetitive, thus improving the essay.

PERSONAL GROWTH

From my Alchemist essay to my Julius Caesar essay there is a slight improvement in overall writing and grade. This is probably because I prepared more for my Julius Caesar essay than my Alchemist essay, allowing me to be completely ready for the 80 minute write-up in class. Also, the fact that I enjoyed the JC unit more than the Alchemist unit usually enabled me to understand more, because I was more enthusiastic about it. I liked my grade for the JC essay, and I just think that I need to be less repetitive in my future essays.

SLR REFLECTION

The SLR that represents my overall growth in writing is Learning Enthusiastically. As explained above, I had enjoyed the JC unit more than the Alchemist unit, which made me want to learn more of Julius Caesar. This had helped me gain evidence to explain in my essay, and I think that's what helped me improve from my Alchemist essay to the Julius Caesar essay.

ISKL Mission Statement

The International School of Kuala Lumpur provides an exceptional education that challenges each student to develop (SILENCE) the attitudes, skills, knowledge and understanding to become a highly successful, spirited and socially responsible global citizen.

I personally think that adding the silence between "Develop" and "The Attitudes" is the best way to create a void within the ISKL Mission Statement. This is because the development of students is the most important part of school to most parents as well as teachers. By adding a void between the list of development skills and the word develop itself, most parents would be eager to hear the list because they want to know whether ISKL is a good school to go to and they want to know whether their children would learn a lot at ISKL. By adding this void, you would engage with the audience and usually, you would get them to ask questions. The moment you continue on with the list, you would 'release' the audience of the void and finally understand the development skills.

Marc Antony: Furious, yet loyal

‘Here was a Caesar! When comes such another?’ As Caesar triumphed over Pompey, he had many supporters that followed him. However, among those many supporters, there was one man that would truly never leave his side. A man that would perform exactly as he was ordered. A friend. This man was Mark Antony. Antony had loved Caesar as a friend, and when Caesar was brutally murdered by the Conspirators, Antony was engulfed in anger. Antony’s goal of avenging Caesar’s death was driven by revenge and loyalty.

Antony’s motivation of revenge was triggered by the murder of Caesar. Throughout the play, Antony had followed Caesar and he had endless respect for him. When he died he desired nothing more than revenge against the Conspirators and to avenge the death of Caesar. ‘Domestic fury and fierce civil strife shall cumber all parts of Italy’. Antony’s formerly noble behavior was soon transformed into furiosity. At the corpse of Caesar, he had predicted that a civil war would break out in Rome, and that blood and destruction would be so in use, that people would dream of death. With those words he described how Rome would crumble without Caesar, and that he would take action against the Conspirators, and with that, he signifies his motivation of revenge. ‘Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war’. Many years ago, in a battle, the leader of the winning army would announce ‘cry havoc! And let slip the dogs of war!’ Meaning, that his army would enter the city and steal it’s treasures for their benefit. As Antony describes that Caesar’s death would cause a civil war, he says that Caesar would return with the goddess of war and announce Cry havoc! Indicating that Caesar would return and haunt those that had killed him. Antony continues to show his motivation of revenge by listing the events that would occur in line after Caesar’s death. Antony’s furious motivation of revenge had signified not only his anger towards the Conspirators, but it also signifies his loyalty.

Despite the fact that the Conspirators had murdered Caesar, Antony remained loyal to Caesar by continuing to gain supporters for him. During Caesar’s reign, Antony had served him and respected him. After Caesar’s death, Antony showed no difference as he continued strong on Caesar’s side. His loyalty gave him a surge of confidence and leadership, as he became the main leader of Caesar’s side. ‘I shall remember; when Caesar says “do this”, it is performed’ In this quote, Antony shows his loyalty and his responsibility for Caesar. He also shows his respect as he said himself that he would do anything Caesar would ask him. This symbolizes his motivation of loyalty, because he indicates that he’d never leave his side, and he would perform what he is asked. When Caesar died, Antony was enraged, however he continued to remain loyal to Caesar by staying on his side. ‘O pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth, that I am meek and gentle with these butchers. Thou art the ruins of the noblest man’, Before stating this quote, Antony had engaged in conversation with the Conspirators, shaking each of their ‘bloody’ hands and asking to make peace. Once they had dispersed, Antony revealed his true feelings, and had apologized to Caesar’s spirit for being so friendly with his murderers. This symbolizes Antony’s loyalty to Caesar because despite the fact that Caesar’s dead, Antony persists on avenging his death and by taking action against the ‘butchers’. Throughout the play, Antony shows that he is a true noble Roman to Caesar, supported heavily by his strong loyalty.

When Caesar was murdered, Antony was furious at the Conspirators, and he desired their deaths, and to avenge the death of Caesar. His main motivators; revenge and loyalty, served him well, as they completely changed his personality from a regular noble Roman, to a leader. His anger and his loyalty gave him reasons and supporters, and by the end of the play he had finally achieved his goal of avenging Caesar’s death, as all of the Conspirators, including Cassius and Brutus had died. His goal was a noble one, as he attempted to bring justice to Caesar’s death, and he showed integrity as he never stopped in his goal, despite the many problems that encountered him along the way.

Collage Reflection

As I was working on my collage, I attempted to add different and creative elements inside. I felt if I could be able to arrange my pictures in a certain way, I could be able to send the audience a better message, and give them a better visual of the lives of the Lost Boys of Sudan. The organization of my pictures is mainly related and pointed towards my six word memoir; 'War Broke Out, But Hope Emerged'. With my images, I attempted to display those six words by amplifying the word "War" and yet send a small message with the word "Hope". I emphasized the word "War" by adding many different pictures of the civil war, as well as genocides and the lives that the Sudanese people struggled to live through. Along with that I sent a small message of "Hope" by pasting few pictures of the new opportunities they were given. As you see from left to right, my collage slowly transitions from war, to peace. Using this strategy, I attempt to show the reader what the lives of the Lost Boys were like, and the little hope they had through that time.

Most of my images resembled the devastation of War they faced, and the pain they had to go through and suffered. Around the word "War" there are different types of pictures which resemble the aftermath, or the civil war itself. A couple of pictures show genocides, and people suffering and struggling through their lives. But otherwise, I showed my understanding because I added in little pictures of Hope, symbolizing the "slimmer of hope" they had through their hard times. These pictures resemble the journey and the story they went through: Suffering the 21-year civil war, and given the new opportunity to live in America and restart their lives.

My pictures mainly show awareness for the Lost Boys' plight. Some of the pictures show the positives the Lost Boys have as well as the negatives they had to go through. In some pictures, it shows people having fun with their culture. After the 21 year civil war, most of the people wanted to move on with their lives, and leave the haunted memories of the war. A picture that resembles this is Peter entering High School. Peter arrived in America wanting to get an education and a job that would allow him to send money back to Sudan. As one of the Lost Boys, Peter also tried to escape his haunted past, and restart his life in America and make a living.

On the back of my collage, there are websites which enable readers to learn more about the people in Sudan, and perhaps aid them. Most of the sites are sites which hold a lot of information, which makes it easy for readers to research about them. I emphasized War with my pictures, because I also wanted the reader to realize that they've been through so much pain and destruction, and maybe that would drive them to help. My six word memoir shows the lives of the Lost Boys, and all the pain that they went through to get their slimmer of hope.

Peter; A Lost Boy of Sudan

26 years ago, in the area of Sudan, a civil war broke out that lasted for 21 years. During this time, 20,000 young boys had their homes destroyed, and the lives of their families threatened. Under these circumstances, none of them had any other option but to flee and to escape. These 20,000 young boys, known as the "Lost Boys", without their families, ended up in a refugee camp in Kenya.

Spending 10 years of his life in the refugee camp, a lost boy named Peter was given an opportunity to travel to the United States of America to get an education, to make a living, and to aid the rest of his people who stayed back in Sudan. Many of the people, including Peter, considered this a wonderful opportunity to travel to the land that was seen as 'Heaven on Earth'. However, as Peter arrived there, he realized that there's no such thing.

After spending his whole life living the ways of the Sudanese culture, trying to fit into the the newly experienced American culture was never easy for Peter. Many of the tasks he and the rest of the Lost Boys encountered was to manage his money, get a job, get a driver's license, speak fluent English and use technology. Among these tasks, none of them were ever experienced back in Sudan. However, one thing that made Peter different from the others was his thirst and his determination to get an education and to go to school. Annoyed and tired by his fellow Lost Boys in Houston who didn't care about education, Peter traveled to Kansas City in search for education.

As he arrived in Kansas, Peter was engulfed with work and activities that included attending school, supporting his funds with a job, completing his homework as well as attempting to send back money to those in Sudan. Amongst all this, Peter was also able to join a basketball camp, and he was also able to make friends for himself. However, some of the dilemmas Peter encountered was racism and stereotypes. The fact that he was an African American caused many people to assume that he would attack them or steal from them. His High School teacher had instantly thought that he would attend a Community College and would not need to take College Entrance Exams. Peter faced these problems alone, but that did not stop him from being determined. He came to the United States confident and determined to do well. He was dedicated to his work and to the activities he attended, and he was passionate in everything he did.

These traits of his had allowed him to exceed and to solve many of the tasks he was given as he arrived in Houston. He was able to join a standard college, he was able to learn English, he was able to complete his homework and he achieved his goal of succeeding in education. He was able to fit into the American culture and also remained believing in his Dinka culture back home. His determination allowed him to achieve all goals, no matter how difficult they seemed to be.

Performance Assessment Passage

This passage is mainly a scene that takes place during Caesar's return to the feast of Lupercal. Cassius and Brutus are engaged in conversation, and Cassius attempts to convince Brutus to turn and side with the Conspirators against Caesar. This is a significant passage because it introduces Cassius' cunning and manipulative ways with other people. It's also significant because it shows and solidifies the Conspirators' strength, because with Brutus as their leader they're alot stronger and more organized and the chance of killing Caesar increases.

Our passage takes place in Act 1 Scene 2 lines 75-175
BRUTUS

What means this shouting? I do fear, the people
Choose Caesar for their king.

CASSIUS

Ay, do you fear it?
Then must I think you would not have it so.

BRUTUS

I would not, Cassius; yet I love him well.
But wherefore do you hold me here so long?
What is it that you would impart to me?
If it be aught toward the general good,
Set honour in one eye and death i' the other,
And I will look on both indifferently,
For let the gods so speed me as I love
The name of honour more than I fear death.

CASSIUS

I know that virtue to be in you, Brutus,
As well as I do know your outward favour.
Well, honour is the subject of my story.
I cannot tell what you and other men
Think of this life; but, for my single self,
I had as lief not be as live to be
In awe of such a thing as I myself.
I was born free as Caesar; so were you:
We both have fed as well, and we can both
Endure the winter's cold as well as he:
For once, upon a raw and gusty day,
The troubled Tiber chafing with her shores,
Caesar said to me 'Darest thou, Cassius, now
Leap in with me into this angry flood,
And swim to yonder point?' Upon the word,
Accoutred as I was, I plunged in
And bade him follow; so indeed he did.
The torrent roar'd, and we did buffet it
With lusty sinews, throwing it aside
And stemming it with hearts of controversy;
But ere we could arrive the point proposed,
Caesar cried 'Help me, Cassius, or I sink!'
I, as Aeneas, our great ancestor,
Did from the flames of Troy upon his shoulder
The old Anchises bear, so from the waves of Tiber
Did I the tired Caesar. And this man
Is now become a god, and Cassius is
A wretched creature and must bend his body,
If Caesar carelessly but nod on him.
He had a fever when he was in Spain,
And when the fit was on him, I did mark
How he did shake: 'tis true, this god did shake;
His coward lips did from their colour fly,
And that same eye whose bend doth awe the world
Did lose his lustre: I did hear him groan:
Ay, and that tongue of his that bade the Romans
Mark him and write his speeches in their books,
Alas, it cried 'Give me some drink, Titinius,'
As a sick girl. Ye gods, it doth amaze me
A man of such a feeble temper should
So get the start of the majestic world
And bear the palm alone.

Shout. Flourish

BRUTUS

Another general shout!
I do believe that these applauses are
For some new honours that are heap'd on Caesar.

CASSIUS

Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow world
Like a Colossus, and we petty men
Walk under his huge legs and peep about
To find ourselves dishonourable graves.
Men at some time are masters of their fates:
The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that we are underlings.
Brutus and Caesar: what should be in that 'Caesar'?
Why should that name be sounded more than yours?
Write them together, yours is as fair a name;
Sound them, it doth become the mouth as well;
Weigh them, it is as heavy; conjure with 'em,
Brutus will start a spirit as soon as Caesar.
Now, in the names of all the gods at once,
Upon what meat doth this our Caesar feed,
That he is grown so great? Age, thou art shamed!
Rome, thou hast lost the breed of noble bloods!
When went there by an age, since the great flood,
But it was famed with more than with one man?
When could they say till now, that talk'd of Rome,
That her wide walls encompass'd but one man?
Now is it Rome indeed and room enough,
When there is in it but one only man.
O, you and I have heard our fathers say,
There was a Brutus once that would have brook'd
The eternal devil to keep his state in Rome
As easily as a king.

BRUTUS

That you do love me, I am nothing jealous;
What you would work me to, I have some aim:
How I have thought of this and of these times,
I shall recount hereafter; for this present,
I would not, so with love I might entreat you,
Be any further moved. What you have said
I will consider; what you have to say
I will with patience hear, and find a time
Both meet to hear and answer such high things.
Till then, my noble friend, chew upon this:
Brutus had rather be a villager
Than to repute himself a son of Rome
Under these hard conditions as this time
Is like to lay upon us.

CASSIUS

I am glad that my weak words
Have struck but thus much show of fire from Brutus.

BRUTUS

The games are done and Caesar is returning.

CASSIUS

As they pass by, pluck Casca by the sleeve;
And he will, after his sour fashion, tell you
What hath proceeded worthy note to-day

Tim Challis is my partner.

The Power of the Void

1) If I could, I would name this story 'The Brutal Box', because throughout the whole story you're engulfed in a story of a lottery, and a story of a box. As I finished the story, I realized that the box was a tool that led to a brutal ending of one who had a black dot on his envelope. It creates a void because you honestly wouldn't expect a death at the end of a story of a lottery.

2) I knew there was going to be a dark ending toward the story, because the people's reactions to the black dot on the envelope hinted that it was a dark consequence. However, despite that fact, I had never expected death to be the actual result.

3) It created a deep void within me, and an urge to rip open the envelope and read it. But after a while I was able to get rid of the void, and I had the ability to wait till 5pm.

4) I honestly knew that it was the end of the story, mainly because the story was too empty to have been finished. The result of the black dot didn't end yet, which hinted me that it was the end of the story. Yes, I followed the instructions till 5pm, although it was hard at first because of the long void.

5) I thought the result of the black box and the black spot was pretty brutal. I never expected Mrs Hutchinson to get beat to death with a stone.

6) The void was released from me, after all the waiting till 5pm. I guess it was a good feeling because you get rid of all the suspense that's within you.

7) No. As I said before, I never expected death to occur. It was unbelievably surprising.

8) Honestly, the best way to get the most accurate prediction is to re-read the reactions extracted from all of the people toward the black dot. The restless reactions may or may not make you predict death as the final result.

9) It affected the story in many ways. It gave you this whole suspense within you, and made you restless to find out the end, and then the author releases you of all this suspense by giving you the end. Honestly the whole process is a fun feeling.

10) A. The fact that there's no title gives no clues of what the story is about. It creates a void and it gets you wondering what the story is about.

B. It immediately got you asking yourself questions, and thinking that the story was too empty to have been finished. It may or may not cause you to create your own ending to the story, and you open up your mind to all these possibilities.

C. This gets you to go on with the story, and to be hooked. It also causes you to see if your predictions were correct.

D. Gets you to ask questions about the end, or what lies inside the paper itself.

E. It builds all these voids and intensity, and it gets you asking questions of what's going to happen at the end, and once you finally read the ending you get an instant relief.

F. I had a restless feeling of opening the mystery paper before 5pm. It was pretty frustrating because you had to wait for so long.