Tag: english

Dystopian Societies

In my new high school, they’ve assigned us summer work. Part of our English work was to read one out of four dystopian books and answer some guiding questions about them. I ended up reading The Grace Year by Kim Liggett and Feed by M.T. Anderson. These are the questions and answers for those two books!

THE GRACE YEAR:

Q: What things in this society seem wrong to you? Why?

A: In this society, women are valued even less than they are in today’s world. They are treated as devices, used only for giving birth. Women are also considered to have “magic”, which on further inspection turns out to be the result of hallucinations caused by poisoned well water. 

Q: What things in this society might be similar to the world we live in?

A: This society expands on the sexism often seen in the world we live in. While the society seen in this world is incredibly exemplified, our world too, often faces problems of not being accepting and open-minded enough.

FEED:

Q: What things in this society seem wrong to you? Why?

Everyone in this society relies on a stream of information called The Feed that is constantly being streamed into their brain. It tells them everything they need to know and is how most people function in this society.

Q: What things in this society might be similar to the world we live in?

A: This book seems to take people’s total reliance on the internet to an exemplified level in this society, drawing on how some people can base their whole life off of what they find online. 

What are some good dystopian books you’ve read?

Black-Out Poetry

Recently, in my English class, we learned about Black-Out poetry. Black-out poetry is when you take an article, books, existing poetry, or any written material and black out some of the words to create new sentences and poetry. It’s a really fun creative exercise and I enjoyed it a lot! Here’s some of the black-out poetry that I did.

Poem 1:

Poem 2:

Poem 3:

The first poem was created out of an article about basements, the second was about a musical, and the third was about wild turkeys. As you can tell, none of the poems really stick with the themes of those articles, which is what makes black-out poetry so fun. You can play around with your topics and what’s important in your poem.

If you’d like to try black-out poetry here are the simple steps!

  1. Find an article or piece of writing that you enjoy or would like to try writing with. This can be any article and does not have to align with your end product!
  2. Start blacking out swathes of text so you are left with words or phrases that you enjoy and you think add to your poem.
  3. If you find yourself getting stuck or are not sure what to black out, try a pattern! Maybe black out every ten words, then save the eleventh! Even just by trying, you can create something extraordinary.
  4. You can also try to be artistic! Many poets who do black out poetry drawing pictures or make illustrations out of their work and it can end up looking beautiful.

Have/Will you try blackout poetry? What other kinds of poetry do you like?

British Colonization

In our English class, we got the assignment to write a non-fiction essay about any topic we wanted. I decided to write about British colonization and the extremely negative impacts of it. I hope you like it!

British colonization has left a negative imprint on all the countries affected by its invasion. Many ideas that define the countries were lost to this colonization. Countries’ progressive ideas were lost because of British colonization, like female rights in India, Two-Spirit in many indigenous cultures, and samurai and generals in Japan.

In Indian mythology, there have been many instances of strong female characters, such as Devi, Parvati, Saraswati, Kali, and many, many more. These characters are all incredibly powerful and have been the reason wars are won. This inclusiveness shows how powerful they can be and how they are a part of everyday life and culture.
The Vedas themselves state that, “Where women are worshiped, there the gods dwell”, showing how important and deeply rooted women are in Hinduism. Strong female characters emerge from all corners of the mythology to prove time and time again that women and men are equal.
However, all of these myths and livelihoods died down because of British rule and are not very popular today. Now, in India, many women feel persecuted and have to face abuse and poverty, going against what is defined in the Vedas, the ancient and sacred script, meaning that the effects of British colonization live on today in India.

In Japan, during the 1500s-1600, all men who had a high rank had a boy/male lover accompanying them in the battlefields. All men of rank had these lovers documented, except for one example only. As Keiko Akagi, someone who is originally from Japan has said, “It was almost mandatory custom to have a male lover [for feudal lords], especially for higher ranking ones”,and “It’s almost men’s etiquette to have it [a male lover] at that time”.
While Japan was never formally colonized by the British, it was incredibly influenced by western culture, especially through the period of the 1800s- 1900s. During this time, many of these traditions were taken away, almost purged. Even today, same-sex couples are not allowed the same legal protection that opposite-sex couples are allowed to have and Japan is known to be extremely homophobic.

Two-Spirit is an Indigenous term, where a person might have diverse cultural, spiritual, sexual, and gender-wise identities. It is an umbrella term that varies depending on each nation, but encompasses one main idea of someone who is not cisgender or heterosexual.
As the Provincial Health Services Authority says, “Before colonization, Two-Spirit people were included and respected as valued community members, often holding revered roles”. However, the main keyword here is before colonization. With the British values that came along with colonization, so came the erasure of Two-Spirit identities. They were cast out and occasionally killed, leading to a harsh environment for many people who identified as Two-Spirit.
Today, increased amounts of homophobia and transphobia exist because of this colonization, which can harm Two-Spirit people quite a lot.

Opponents might say that the British didn’t actually mean to spread these ideas and never wanted to in the first place. However, when in India, the British solidified the caste system and placed women at the very bottom of it. So, the British did in fact spready sexism/homophobia where they went. Many countries’ progressive ideas were lost because of British colonization, like female rights in India, Two-Spirit in many indigenous cultures, and samurai and generals in Japan.

Vignettes

Recently, in my English class, we read the House of Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, a book which is filled with vignettes. Each chapter is written in the style of a vignette, some short and some long. Based on this book and the writing style of Sandra Cisneros, our project was to create 5 vignettes, about anything we wanted. Here are some of my favorites!

The Track:

Walking alone through the grass, my jacket dragging behind me. A group of friends rushes past me, leaving only a breeze behind, causing me to shiver and dig deeper into my jacket. But I can’t get warm again. A red table, filled with teachers, watches me carefully. I know they like me, that they want me to play and have fun. I smile at them and move on, the smile dropping as soon as I move out of range. As I walk to the edge of the field, the blades of grass slicing my ankles as quickly as a sharpened knife, the sight of a friend catches my eye. Refuge.
As I bound across the grass, they disappear, leaving only a blank spot where they were standing. Were they ever there? Or did they choose to leave me behind? The track around the field is wide, boundless, but it is my only friend, the only one who stays with me as I carve wide roads into it recess after recess. The only one who cares even a little. The only one who is mine.
Yet as an older girl runs across the track with her friends, I’m reminded, yet again, of the fact that I’m alone, lonely, surrounded with no one except the cold wind, whipping through the air, rustling the trees.
I scan the playground, catching my friends laughing together- Aurelia, Maliha, Zoe playing family and Saveri and Selena chasing each other. And yet, none of them look at me. Was it me? Did I do something wrong? Do they wish I were cast down to the deepest depths of Tartarus?
The fluffy fleece jacket, lined with faux fur, does nothing to prevent the sting of the wind combined with the sting of betrayal.
And so I walk, alone, lonely, hoping next recess, my friends won’t desert me again.

An Idea of Love:

Birthdays. Cakes, gifts, presents. The spoken words, “Happy Birthday!”, faded to a dull note as they are uttered by person after person, year after year. 

Birthdays have never been incredible in my life. I’ve brought cookies, cupcakes I’ve baked, to receive nothing more than a 
“Thank you!”
or a 
“Happy birthday!”

This year, though. I’m the one being brought the cookies and cupcakes, the one being treated to the perfect blend of sugar on sugar. The one who gets celebrated, the one whose birthday is today.

And I’ve never felt more loved than in the moment. My friends around me. Their gifts piling high in my hands, a sugar high already making its way to my brain. And I couldn’t care less, because now I have an idea of love, of happiness, of what it actually feels like to be loved and have people who care about you.

Would it be wrong of me to expect this every year? Or will it all fall away to nothing just as quickly as it built up?

Watch with me:

Is it too much to ask to want to watch the sunset with someone? Watch the giant ball of gas in the sky sink down into the grass and watch the moon come up, two total opposites, yet somehow taking up the whole sky?

I want to watch the stars go up with someone by my side. Someone who cares, who matters. Someone who, like me, wants nothing more than to watch those stars, those flaming, flickering stars. Built out of nothing more than hydrogen and helium, yet thriving. Thriving on their own in an ecosystem of space, of planets and comets and asteroids and meteors and beauty.

Why can’t we be like that? 

Look up with me at the sunset, the stars and just stay. That’s all I need. That would be enough.

I hope you liked my vignettes! If you could write a vignette, what would it be about?

6 Word Memoirs

Recently, in my English class, we created 6 word memoirs. They were really fun and easy to create and so, I thought it would be nice to share that over here! 6 word memoirs can either be 6 words that sum up a big part or your whole life, or they can describe one specific event. With the way that my English teacher led us through it, there are 4 main steps to writing a 6 word memoir.

Step 1. Take anywhere from 3-5 minutes and write down a big list of life events. These events don’t have to be in order or make sense to anyone but you. Make sure you keep writing and let your subconscious bring up some of the major events you have experienced.

Step 2. Pick any one of the events and write 2-3 sentences about it. You can add any details you want, but don’t let it become a full paragraph.

Step 3. Cross out any unnecessary information. This step can sometimes be hard, but try to think of the main points of your event. Also make sure to keep the mood of the event intact when you cross things out (for example, if you’re writing about a scary moment, don’t cross out all the scary parts of it).

Step 4. Using the words or phrases you have left, experiment with different wording choices and ideas. When you have one you think that fits best, congrats! You’ve written a 6 word memoir.

Here’s an example that I made in my English class:

Step 1. I had around 32 events written down in the span of 5 minutes. Some of my most important/memorable were the Austin trip, COVID/google classroom, online lunch, PUPS potluck (all grades), my mock algebra STAAR, Murder on the Sea (my group’s theater production), and getting into leadership. All of these events definitely influenced me a lot and helped me become who I am today.

Step 2. I chose to write about Murder on the Sea, a theater production my and my ensemble created last year. My 4 sentences were:
My first look at theater performances. I had practiced all weekend and probably wore my grandfather out as he listened to me practice. I remember being extremely nervous, but also ready before the performance. It was the time I decided to join UIL theater.

Step 3. The next step was crossing out unnecessary information. Below is what I had after step 3.
My first look at theater performances. I had practiced all weekend and probably wore my grandfather out as he listened to me practice. I remember being extremely nervous, but also ready before the performance. It was the time I decided to join UIL theater.
At the end, the main phrases I had left were “first look”, “practiced all weekend”, “extremely nervous, but also ready”, and “decided to join UIL theater.”

Step 4. Some of my ideas included:
– practicing all weekend, UIL the goal
– first look at theater, in love
– never forgetting shining on the stage


Finally, I chose this one- “Memorizing done, am I good enough?”

I picked that specific one because it not only ties into theater, but also dance, a huge aspect of my life.

Have you ever written a 6 word memoir? If not, will you give it a try?

Women in the Workplace

Recently, for my English class, we had to write a research paper on a topic we were passionate about. I decided to write about women’s rights, more specifically women’s rights in the workplace.

Women in the Workplace

64% of women in the workplace face discrimination and deal with microaggressions every day. With no enforced laws by the government, gender becomes an obstacle and makes it harder for women to thrive in their jobs. Gender discrimination is not a new thing, especially in the workplace, where women are often seen as “less”. They are asked to prove their position more often and are frequently mistaken for having lower level jobs. People might point out how, in the past, women have been known for having the “home” jobs. While it’s true that in history, women have often been confined to their homes, they forget that if we never strayed from the past, we would still be years behind modern society as it is today. While the government has certain gender equality laws in place, they often don’t enforce them, meaning they are useless. The government should enforce their old gender equality laws and create new ones because of the parental leave rules, the pay gap between genders and women being overlooked in the chance to move up in the work hierarchy.

One reason why the government should enforce their laws is because of the parental leave rules. The United States is populous, powerful, and considered to be a global superpower. Yet, women still don’t have the right to take paid maternity leave. As of 2020, the United States was the only wealthy country in the world that didn’t offer paid parental leave and that hasn’t changed. While the US as a whole doesn’t offer paid parental leave, 9 states and the District of Columbia do. These states are California, Connecticut, Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Washington, and Oregon, along with Washington D.C.. According to each states’ government, new parents are guaranteed (on average) 12 weeks of paid leave. While that is a step up from the US as a whole, many other countries’ governments are fairer with their policies.

In countries like Canada, Estonia, and Russia, parents are guaranteed a year or more of paid leave. According to the World Policy Center, most of Europe gives anywhere from 26-52 weeks of paid leave.  Additionally, in Africa, parents get anywhere from less than 14-25.9 weeks with guaranteed paid leave. Depending on the country, in South America, parents are guaranteed less than 14-51.9 weeks. Asia varies greatly, with anywhere from less than 14 weeks to more than 52 weeks. Oceania gives either no paid leave or 14-25.9 weeks of paid parental leave.

Another reason the government should create new equality laws is because of the pay gap between genders. As of 2022, women earn 80% of what men do. While this might not originally seem like a big difference, the year-round salary a woman earns is drastically different than her male counterpart. In 2018, a full-time, year-round woman worker made $10,194 less than her male counterpart. Research by the Pew Research Center done in 2021, based on how much the average man and woman made, shows that it would take 42 days of work for a woman to earn a man’s salary. Emma Watson, at the UN, said, “Because the reality is that if we do nothing, it will take seventy-five years, or for me to be nearly 100, before women can expect to be paid the same as men for the same work.” As stated by the UN Secretary General, the latest research shows that it’ll take 257 years to close the gap between what men and women get paid. 

A final reason the government should enforce their old equality laws and create new ones is because of the low chance of women getting promoted. For every 4 men that get promoted to CEO, only 1 woman earns that same promotion. The same “equality” is also shown for managers. For every 4 men, only 2 women are promoted to the role of manager. Because of this, only 20% of women in the workplace ever reach the rank of CEO. Research conducted by Professor Kelly Shue shows that the higher the job type was, the less and less women there were to be found. In a specific retail company, the bottom level started out with 56% women employees. As the corporate ladder climbs higher though, women start to disappear. In the example of the retail company, it starts out at 56%, but as it climbs higher, it decreases to 48%, 35%, and at the highest level, 14%. This means there is a 75% decrease in the amount of women employees  from the bottom level to the top level. 

With all these facts, it might not seem like the United States is really doing anything to combat gender discrimination, but this isn’t exactly true. In the Civil Rights Act, Title VII prohibits descrimination based on gender. Even if state or local laws have different views on the matter, Title VII still stands. The US also passed an Equal Pay Act in 1963. This act requires employers to pay all their employees the same amount of money for the same amount of work. While these acts and laws sound perfect and exactly like what we need, the government hasn’t made any moves to enforce them. If these laws were enforced, they could make a major difference in the way women flourish at work.

As a result of all of this, gender discrimination is still very an active enemy. In the US, most states don’t allow for parents to take paid parental leave and this is true for a few countries outside the United States too. Women earn around 80% of what men earn and this 20% shortage can lead to almost $10,000 slipping away. Lastly, women are often overlooked when promotions come around and this shows in the amount of women in each level. To stop gender discrimination from becoming an obstacle in the workplace, the government should enforce their old gender equality laws and impose new ones as well.

What is a topic you’re passionate about?

We will Survive

Recently in my English class, we have been writing a poem for the Peace Festival in our school. This year, for the Peace Festival, our theme is A Healthy World. I hope you enjoy my poem!

Where is the world?
Is it crumbling away,
hidden in a corner?
Cobwebs, thick and dusty
littering the surface?

Where is the world?
Is it falling apart
as we humans pick, poke, and prod at it?
Are chunks of rock and dirt and earth
breaking off, falling through space soundlessly?

Where is the world?
Is it disappearing, melting away
because of our actions?
Drops of blue and green
mixing together as they fall?

But…

Is the world getting better?
Is it being restored
from the actions of the new generation?
Are the plants blooming again, 
opening up their buds of pink, yellow, red?

Is the world getting better?
Is it slowly rising up,
shaking off the sludge we have covered it with?
Can you see the clear waters,
glittering from the sun?

Is the world getting better?
Is it getting ready to shine 
no longer polluted?
Do you see the white, cotton ball clouds,
blissfully floating by?

We are bringing back the world
Just as we have with the many species
Brought back from the brink of extinction
Haven’t you seen the towering trees, frigid waters?

Hopefully one day,
the world will be better

And hopefully one day,
the world will rise up

Hopefully one day, one time,
You and I will stand and look up
And marvel at the peaceful sky, the cotton ball clouds
The towering trees, the springtime plants

And we will survive.

Feelings as Poems

Recently, in my English class, we started our poem unit. We have to pick a general topic and write a few poems under that topic in different styles. My main topic was feelings. I hope you like my first poems!

Joyful- Couplet:

Feel so ecstatic like I’m breaking through
glad, eager, I’ve turned into someone new

Feel so jubilant, powerful, and free
cheerful and playful, I’m free to be me

Feel so confident, I’ve never felt so good
I can’t be dignified, it’s impossible

I’m happy, free, and so, so joyful
Passionate, me, it’s so delightful

Disappointed- Cinquain:

Disappointed
Not enough
Falling down, down
I always feel so
Empty

I hope you enjoyed these poems!

My Outsiders Project

Recently, in my English class, we read the Outsiders by S.E Hinton, then we did a project on it. I chose “Loaded Language,” where I had to choose a major event from the story and write a newspaper about it from a Greaser and Soc point of view. I hope you enjoy!

The Output- A Greaser View

The most important news from the most trusted Greasers in town!

A Killing in the Park
Reported by:

Last week, there was blood in the fountain of the park. There was a switchblade lying next to the body, blood coating its handle. Dried blood pooled on the pavement, leading to a dead body. This body was of Robert Sheldon, a 17 year old Soc. A Soc in a Greaser park is highly unusual as most of the time each group follows their own boundaries. But it isn’t strange that a Soc would be the first one to break the treaty.

Today, Johnny Cade, a 16-year old Greaser, has confessed to killing Robert. As of this time, he is in the hospital and we were not able to get a statement from him. Johnny is a part of Dallas Winston’s gang, though we were unable to get a statement from him either. We did learn that 14-year old Ponyboy Curtis assisted in the crime and he was open to giving a statement for us.
“It was late and Johnny and I were just hanging at the park. Suddenly this car pulls up and out comes 5 of the Socs for just the two of us. One of them was drowning me and I was almost dead when Johnny, well Johnny saved my life. He just pulled out his switchblade and killed their leader. They all ran off after that,”

Self-defense was all it was. When someone you know is getting drowned, what else would you do? Our next story is…

Platinum- A Soc’s Newspaper

We get you your news with the straight facts.

Robert Sheldon, Dead
Reported by:

Most of the Socs were worried when they didn’t see Robert Sheldon on Sunday last week. Then on Monday, when he didn’t come to school, they knew something was wrong. Most of them wondered what could have happened to Bob, a steadfast Soc. Well, wonder no further.

Robert Sheldon, a 17 year old Soc, was killed on Saturday by Johnny Cade, a 16 year old Greaser. Yesterday, Johnny admitted to killing Robert. He is in the hospital now and we were unable to speak to him. We did get a statement from David, a Soc who was there at the time.
“So Randy and Bob came up to me and 2 others. They were drunk and angry and wanted revenge on these Greasers for picking up their girls and I said yes. I was just frightening the other one a bit, nothing much, when the one you called Johnny stabbed Bob. We all ran off after that, because everyone knows never to fight a crazy Greaser,”

So there it is. Johnny Cade killed a Soc with absolutely no reason other than a bit of frightening. On the next story…

Test Day- a Short Story

In English class, we had to write a short story with the prompt I was digging through all the junk in the attic when I found a button that…. I hope you like my story!

On October 8th, the day of my biggest test, I was trying not to panic. I was frantically digging through all the junk in the attic, searching for a button, occasionally pushing my tangled brown hair out of my face, my emerald eyes scanning the old, worn-down boxes relentlessly. An orange, pulsing glow filled the attic as I staggered backwards, throwing my tanned hands up over my eyes. As soon as the glow had faded, I wandered over to where it had come from, my curiosity getting the better of me.

Inside an old and faded purple silk bag was a bright orange button that whirred when I touched it.
“Yes! A button, at last!” I ran my blistered fingers over the plastic surface, deeming it perfect. I ran downstairs, slipping the button into my messenger bag as I did so.
“Late again, Ari?” Mom’s voice was sharp and disapproving. I almost showed her the button, but what was the point? She wouldn’t understand, she never did.
“Sorry Mom,” I looked down at the floor, hoping she wouldn’t drag it out.
“Let’s go,” her tone was brisk and unforgiving, her high heels clicking acroos the floor to the car.

She didn’t speak to me as we drove to school, letting me out of the car quickly. No one greeted me when I walked in, their eyes glued to the front of the classroom in anticipation. I took a deep breath, laying the button on my desk as I found myself adopting the same posture as my classmates.

Today was Test Day, the day that would determine your success or failure in the world. Out teacher, Ms. Zarrah, would call us up to perform out craft, granting us with either a pass or a fail. I worked with buttons, magicking them to my will. Glancing at everyone’s desks, I saw an array of objects, none of them as interesting as mine.

Suddenly, the small, nervous side chatter that had been collecting came to a halt as someone entered the room.
“Greetings, students,” Ms. Zarrah’s warm auburn eyes twinkled as she surveyed our class, “We’ll get started now,” Every second felt like an hour as my friends were all called up. Most people passed, blatantly showing their relief. I shifted at my desk impatiently, my hands itching to do something.

“Rancock, Arianna. Please come up with your object of choice,” I stood up, clutching the button tightly. I was slightly shaking and my heart was pounding, though I tried not to show it.
“Will you need anything?” Ms. Zarrah’s comforting voice put me at ease.
“Yes please, some fabric,” I asked politely. She beamed, handing a piece to me.
“Let me see your object now….” she gasped as she examined my button, then turned and announced to the class, “No magic items are to be used. Disqualified,”

Everyone let out gasps as I trudged to the back of the class, tears stinging my eyes. I couldn’t concentrate for the rest of class and it took all my willpower not to run away as soon as the bell rang. The only thing that stopped me was Ms. Zarrah.
“Ari, come back here please,” I gathered up my courage and walked back to her desk.
“Yes Ms. Zarrah?” I said sweetly, awaiting her lecture. She sighed.
“Your mother had predicted that something like this would happen, and so she asked me to give you a do-over,” I let out a small gasp, daring to hope, “There’s just one problem,” my shoulders slumped again and I looked away, “Your mother wanted you to do cooking,”

This “cooking vs. button” thing that my mom had created was the exact reason I couldn’t show her the button. She had always wanted me to have a craft in cooking, never seeming to understand what a dead skill it was.
“I can’t give you many hints, but think Ari. Why can’t you cook on a button?” My eyes widened as I understood what Ms. Zarrah was trying to say. She gently pressed an ordinary pale blue button into my hand and closed my fingers around it.

The next few hours were a blur as I baked my way through 3 desserts on the button which I had enchanted to do the work. Mom had taught me the recipes over the course of several exhausting days. Ms. Zarrah hummed with delight as she tasted my decadent brownies, perfectly balanced cupcakes, and my fresh and fruity apple cake.
“These are delicious! You passed with flying colors, Ari, great job,”

I beamed. I had found a way to make everyone happy in a style that was uniquely me. I had finally done a good job and done it well.