May 2007 Archives

href="http://blogs.setonhill.edu/DennisJerz/EL150/018234.php">Portfolio 3 -- Jerz: EL150 (Intro to Literary Study)

This is my third and final blog portfolio for my second semester of my freshmen year. This portfolio includes reading, discussion, and comments that I have made in class and online through the webblogs. I have to admit that I fall into a habit of occasionally missing an agenda item here and there, but through this course I have learned to stay on top of my work and catch up as soon as possible, or even better work ahead. I feel that these webblogs have helped a great deal in engaging me in the class and the readings.

1. Coverage: (contains all the agenda's I have completed since the previous blog portfolio):

Shakespeare, King Lear Acts 1, 2:
Name of Pure Evil: I talk about how the names symbolize the character’s personalities.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/name_of_pure_evil.html

Shakespeare, King Lear Acts 3-5:
Sweet Yet Tart: I reflect on the expectations of happily ever after.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/sweet_yet_tart.html

Kennedy, “Shakespeare’s King Lear”:
The Jolly Green Giant: I begin to realize that knowledge of history could further literary understanding.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/the_jolly_green_giant.html

Zunder, “Shakespeare and the End of Feudalism”:
Ding Ding Ding…I think I have the right idea!: I discuss in further detail the importance of history while reading and analyzing literature.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/ding_ding_dingi_think_i_have_t.html

Blogging Checkpoint for Portfolio #3
I refer back to my four first blogs of the third portfolio.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/blogging_checkpoint_for_portfo.html

Card, Enders Game Chapters 1-6:
Isolation Equals Creativity: I discuss the strange ways creativity is supposed to grow in the novel.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/isolation_equals_creativity.html

Card, Enders Game Finish:
Peter vs. Valentine: I look into the similarity of Ender in his brother and sister.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/peter_vs_valentine.html

WIT:
Difference Between Life and Your Life’s Work: I focus on the parallel between Vivian and Jason and the life lesson they learned through the events, which occurred.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/05/difference_between_life_and_yo.html

2. Depth (the blogs I felt were my best and most interesting):

Shakespeare, King Lear 3-5
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/sweet_yet_tart.html

Kennedy, “Shakespeare’s King Lear”
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/the_jolly_green_giant.html

Wit
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/05/difference_between_life_and_yo.html

3. Interaction (blogs that helped other students and discussion):

Derek Tickle
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/DerekTickle/2007/04/what_bad_daughters.html

Jennifer Prex
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/JenniferPrex/2007/04/irony_at_its_finest.html

Jennifer Prex
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/JenniferPrex/2007/04/true_lies.html

Maggie Jones
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/MargaretJones/2007/04/friend_of_manipulator.html

4. Discussion (interaction with my peers that helped support and challenge my blogs):

Shakespeare, King Lear 3-5
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/sweet_yet_tart.html

Kennedy, “Shakespeare’s King Lear”
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/the_jolly_green_giant.html

Wit
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/05/difference_between_life_and_yo.html

5. Timeliness (more often my earlier blogs, but they were posted early and let to discussion):

Shakespeare, King Lear 1,2
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/name_of_pure_evil.html

Shakespeare, King Lear 3-5
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/sweet_yet_tart.html

Kennedy, “Shakespeare’s King Lear”:
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/the_jolly_green_giant.html

Zunder, “Shakespeare and the End of Feudalism”:
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/04/ding_ding_dingi_think_i_have_t.html

Wit
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/05/difference_between_life_and_yo.html

6. Xenoblogging (things I did to help others with blogging):

Comment Primo:

Derek Tickle
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/DerekTickle/2007/04/religion_and_literature.html

Corey Struss
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/CoreyStruss/2007/04/the_day_the_sun_went_out.html

Matthew Henderson
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/MatthewHenderson/2007/05/smart_people_are_vulnerable_to.html

7. Wildcard (the one I want you to see!)

Wit
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BethanyMerryman/2007/05/difference_between_life_and_yo.html

I picked this blog entry as my wildcard, because I think it showed the most thought, helped others the most, and started the best discussion. I also enjoy Wit the most out of all the readings this semester and was surprisingly excited to blog about it (don’t let that information out). Over this semester I feel that this blog would show the most growth in my analysis of literature and reading more closely.

Wit -- Jerz: EL150 (Intro to Literary Study)

Vivian:
"I know. I can't figure things out. I'm in a...quandary, having these...doubts."

I couldn't put this play down. I thought that the most interesting part of this play was the connection between Vivian and her former student Jason. Both Vivian and Jason lived almost completely for their work. Vivian for her teaching and research and Jason for his research of cancer.

It wasn't until Vivian was diagnosted with the worse stage of ovarian cancer, recieving the strongest treatments, and completely alone, that she realized there was more to life than work. She was lonely, nobody visited her, and nobody cared that she was dying. She had nobody to share memories with and had no one to leave her personal memories to.

Through the transformation in Vivian's character, she also helps Jason realize that there is more to life than research. We see in the final scenes that Jason wants Vivian to live longer, just so his research may continue. He had almost monsterous qualities as her went against Vivian's no code, but it hit him like a ton of bricks, that Vivian's wishes were more important than furthering his knowledge.

This is probably my favorite piece we have read all semester and I think it has a great message, but it also has irony, even some humor, within the serious meaning.