Hmm....

Sooo...Everyone is pretty much finishing up on their blogs and comments, and expressing their opinions on Mrs. Watson's class as a sort of "Last Post". So I thought, why not? I might as well write my own little review of the class also.
Im not going to lie, this class was most definitely a struggle for me. It had its ups (watching people make fools of themselves trying to act out a scene in the plays we read) and its downs (the number on the top of most of my quizzes), but overall I really liked how the class worked out. I've never been in a class where the students actually teach each other for the WHOLE semester, but I thought it was a very original idea.I think having to plan out our own assignments really made us think deeper into the meaning and themes behind what we were reading, which is something every literature class should aim to do. For the most part, I enjoyed everything we did in class. Unfortunately, I dont have Mrs. Watson for English 242 next semester, but to all of you who do....have fun!!! :)

Mary Queen of Scots

When I was thinking about something to write about Mary Queen of Scots, I didn't want to take the same path that most of the other blogs took by writing about how she is a great role model  for women or something like that. When doing a little research about her life story, a simple but deep quote of hers came up that I decided would be a perfect thing to blog about. This quote was, "In my end is my beginning". When I got to thinking about what she possibly meant by saying this, I realized just how famous and influential she really was not only during her actual lifetime, but even after it, even now. This reminded me of how ironic it was that well-known people such as Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson seemed to become even more famous after their death than they were when they were alive. I thought about the gruesome scene of Mary Queen of Scots being beheaded and how much of an impact that must have made not only on those who witnessed it but even on people who hear or read about it today. Then it hit me. Mary Queen of Scots accepted her sentence to death so willingly because she knew she would live on in people's hearts and minds and make an even greater impact on society after her death. She probably would have never imagined that she would be read about in literature or history books centuries after her death. However, she found strength and courage in the fact that her legacy was just beginning. Physically, Mary Queen of Scots is dead, but in the hearts and minds of many, she is still alive.

Final Paper Topic

For my final paper I'm writing about the author John Bunyan (not to be confused with Paul Bunyan) and I am focusing on his most well-known work Pilgrim's Progress. I remember learning a little about that story a few years ago and I found that the actually events in the story were something that everyone should be able to apply to their own life in some way. Therefore, I thought it would be cool to connect the main character in Pilgrims's Progress to John Bunyan himself. There is no way John Bunyan could have written such a powerful and deep story without having most of it apply to his own life and what he was going through.

Everyman

While reading a few of the blogs about people's opinions on the play Everyman, I noticed that most of the comments talked about the themes present in the play such as "Live for Tomorrow" and "Material vs. Spiritual Gain". However, none of the blogs really talked about probably the most important theme of the play which is God's mercy. In the play, the character Everyman is caught up in the pleasures of life and the pursuit of material possessions, yet he neglected to ever stop and think about the future and where he would spend eternity. Because of this, he had to undertake a final journey which showed what little he had done with his life up to that point. God's mercy is shown primarily at the end of the play when God basically gives Everyman a second chance to repent of his sins and escape the fiery pits of hell. However, not " every man" gets a second chance at salvation, so don't take the opportunity for granted.

The Beggar's Opera

While reading The Beggar's Opera, one thing that really "stuck out" to me was the role that most of the women played in the story. Most of the women were portrayed as sluts and prostitutes, which really  bothered me because it made me wonder if John Gayor even society at that time really thought that sexual things was all women were good for. Also, all the different terms that were used for slut in the story made me think that that was all the women of that time were known for. Although this aspect of the story was very disappointing, I thought the overall plot of the story was very original, and the fact that it's an opera made me curious to see what this story would be like when preformed by professionals.

Legion: Deeper Meanings

While I was watcing the movie Legion before actually showing it in class for my presentation, one part that really stuck out in my mind was when Percy (the man with  a hook for a hand) told the story of what his father would always tell him when he was a little boy. He said, " If you dont wake up tomorrow, if it turns out today is your last day on earth, would you be proud of what you've done in this life?". I thought that was a very powerful and important question that everyone should ask themselves. Whether, as we discussed in class awhile back, you think life is something that should be taken day by day without really caring about the future, or you think life should be taken more seriously with your future always in mind, when you get to the end of the road, dont you want to be able to have something to show for your time on earth? Dont you want to be remembered and missed? Whether you'll admit it or not, I think you do. I think we ALL do.

Mashed Potatoes

This is kind of a random post, but the other day I had bought a prepackaged container of Bob Evans mashed potatoes. When I got them out to heat up, I noticed that the front of the package said "Win a free trip to Walt Disney World", and you had to go to some website to enter youself into the contest. When I read this, I immediately thought of our modern day Canterbury Tales stories that we wrote, and I thought it would have been funny if someone had used the Bob Evans mashed potatoes carton as a way for their character to win the Walt Disney World trip in their story. If I would have seen it sooner, I probably would have used it for my own story. haha