Reflection

   Well, it looks like this year has finally come to a close. Laawwwd, it seems like just a few days ago I was just coming into this school for the first day of high school in 2010. I've had a great journey from coming in as an eager and young freshman to getting ready to leave as an advanced and accomplished senior. I've had great times while I was here and I've certainly had terrible experiences as well. I've accomplished being an honor and AP student my whole four years as a high school student and I've made a name for myself as far as being an advanced student, performer and club member. I used to regret being here at this wretched school for a plethora of reasons, but I'm actually glad I did because I probably wouldn't have come up to be as well-rounded and have had as many memorable experiences. I've had bad teachers and good teachers as well. I had one amazing teacher, in particular who was the best teacher I've had since I've been here. She was very helpful and instrumental in helping us AP students learn bigger and better things that would definitely help us in the long run. She was always cool and fashionable, yet very hardworking and on top of her game..oh and I almost forgot, she's CRAZY(in a good way). Of course, I'm talking about Mrs.Day!! She's one of the very few teachers I can truly say I'll miss and not think twice about it. We always had a good time  in her class, but we also would have to work our butts off and we were ok with that. I took her last year and this year and it's been a very intriguing journey coming into her class this year. I've really learned alot about writing prose essays and literary analysis and much more things. I also learned more about archetypes and writing critical analysis also. I'm really going miss this class, honestly. This class was like a big dysfunctional family. We all helped each other out when we needed help, we all got a severe case of senioritis at the same time, we all procrastinated but made sure we all had our work done. We've had crazy talks and discussions as well as serious debates. It was just one of those classes that I enjoyed very much and plus it helped that alot of my friends were in the class as well. I'm really going to miss it. Well overall, my high school experience has been craazzyy, yet great. I can't believe that I've done four years of high school, it's like time just flew. I've come a long way since 9th grade and I'm proud of the ambitious young man I have come today. Even with the accomplishments and education that I have gained throughout these four years, I know I'm going to be questioned and ridiculed because of where I come from here. I also know that I haven't always received the proper education here, however,I can use that same education and accomplishments to get me to where I need to be in order to seek more education and to get more accomplishments done that to help me get to where I'm dreaming to be. Well my time as a high school student has come and gone and I for one am certainly glad it is.!

An Interview with August Wilson

During the interview with David Savran, August Wilson discusses African Americans and how they have come up short. However, he never puts a blame on anyone. He also talks about the society of today. Wilson is stating in the interview that we need to find a way to fix things for black people, and implying that it doesn't matter who's to blame for anything. He mostly speaks on how blacks don't really have a place in society but are mostly being institutionalized. He also talked about how we are products of our parents and that they give us tools to prepare us for the real world. That interested me, because it is very true, though some people don't think so. It also really interested me that he is all about making things better for blacks, instead of trying to blame things on people. He is much more interested in broadening the opportunities and horizons for blacks in society. The whole interview was very intriguing to me.

Tragedy of The Common Man

 In Arthur Miller's passage, "Tragedy and the Common Man," he outlines his ideas on what a tragedy and tragic hero are today. He argues that the tragic hero does not have to be a king or of a noble background, but instead, the common man can be considered a tragic hero. Miller makes the point that the tragic flaw is the idea that the tragic hero is unable to accept anything that may affect their status or self-image. Miller also states that tragedy is not supposed to be pessimistic, but rather an optimistic display of human qualities. In his first argument, Miller states that the tragic hero does not need to be royal or noble, for the common man can fit the role as aptly. Miller explains that this is now obvious through the concepts such as the Oedipus complex, which were originally "enacted by royal beings, but which apply to everyone in similar situations." He believes that if tragedy were to only apply to kings, then it would be impossible for everyone else to cherish and comprehend it. The only quality needed for a character to be a tragic hero, according to Miller, is the readiness to "lay down his life, if need be, to secure one thing-his sense of personal dignity." This concept of the average man being a tragic hero is evident in The Crucible, for it is portrayed through John Proctor, a local farmer. Proctor makes use of the same mental processes as kings in previous tragedies when making his decisions, and he fights to keep his name, which holds his sense of dignity, from being ruined. The common man, according to Miller, is capable of "questioning [...] what has previously been unquestioned," which is the key quality that gives them this tragic flaw and sets them up to work dynamically in a tragedy. John Proctor exhibits this quality throughout the novel when he resists the ideas of the Puritan community around him. In the end of The Crucible, Proctor's tragic flaw is completely exposed when he tears his confession in order to preserve his good name, even at the cost of his life.