Metaphor

Hatred is a Giant Cane Toad, because it is invasive to Australia, much like how hatred can invade a mind and grow bigger and stronger. Just as hate breeds more hate, Giant Cane Toad females can produce up to about thousands and thousands of eggs in one sitting. They are also volatile like hatred, with the ability to produce an agitating liquid from glands behind their shoulders. This liquid can range from irritating the skin to causing death from the multiple toxins. Hatred, too, can range from simple annoyance to the motivation for causing the death of one to many people's lives. It can be damaging to things around you- be it people, items, animals, much like how the Giant Cane Toad, being an invasive species to Australia, has done more harm than good to its surrounding environment. Hatred can appear fine at first, but can easily grow out of control, just as the Cane Toad did in Australia when it was initially sent to deal with agricultural pest beetles, but quickly became an invasive species and forced other native species's populations to decline.

Sleeping Beauty

I do not agree with anything Jordan Peterson says because literally have you seen the other things that man says. Terrible. Incredibly transphobic. Anyway, I don't think Sleeping Beauty is meant to be anything relating to feminism- it feels more like a simple story to tell to kids instead of having large symbolism behind the character. Sleeping Beauty has no autonomy, and seems to simply "go with the flow" of the story. Every decision is made for her, as if she weren't a person, but a catalyst for the story.

Fairytales

I don't really know if there's an exact definition for a fairy tale, but I feel like I could easily recognize one. Often it's in a "far far away" place, in a land not in our own dimension, and with mythical creatures like unicorns or dragons. There is often a hero or heroine who foils the evil plot of a villain, and lives "happily ever after" in the end. But they don’t always have these elements and range as much as any kind of story.

I remember having a book of old fairy tales as a kid- I remember the Mouse and the Lion, about a mouse helping a lion and proving the strength of such a small creature. There was one where a girl was turned into a swan and had seven brothers. My favorites were often tales that included animals, and especially people turning into ones. I always wanted to turn into some cool fantasy creature with supernatural powers as a kid.

If I was in a fairy tale I would love to be a dragon. Often they accompany a villain, but I feel like they are simply doing their job and are not the villain theirself. I don’t know what specific fairy tale I would be a part of but I would prefer to live in the end. Maybe I could even fall and love with the knight that comes to slay me after we have a long battle laced with homosexual subtext. Perhaps afterward we could defeat a corrupt king and rule over the land together.

The Origin of Ants

I'm always a fan of older, almost silly folktales like these, so I did enjoy The Origin of Ants. The ending was surprising and almost came out of nowhere, mostly because I forgot the story was even about where ants came from. I believe the moral is to not lie, as then you need to keep making bigger lies to cover up the first one. Each situation is more extreme than the last, until the man straight up gets turned to dust (and then ants) in the end. Later I looked up how well ants could smell, and it turns out the farthest they could smell food from was about three meters. But I guess for something as small as an ant, that's pretty impressive.

Folk Song

"The Sound of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel can be considered folklore, as it tells a story, is oral, and is well remembered in people's consciousness. It tells the narrative of someone walking through the streets, describing almost mystical-like sights of neon and silence. The song itself discusses the culture of people being unable to communicate with each other emotionally, instead, "People talking without speaking/People hearing without listening".

Personally I chose this because it's the meme song. Could that be considered folklore too? This isn't a joke that's only been around for a few months, I'd guess it's been a good few years since this was passed around the internet, and it's still being used. Anyway, I love the culture that has developed around it, even if I haven't seen it as a meme in a while.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fWyzwo1xg0

Journal Question 3

Journal 10:

Winston is saying that, when compared to the mass of The State, one person alone cannot do anything, whatever their objective may be. If one strives to stay human, it makes no difference in destiny. Even when Winston, later in the book, swears to stay human to spite the State, he is tortured and brainwashed until he is no longer "human", as he defines it. No matter what, the Inner Party is able to track a rebellious citizen down, torture and convert them to their desired ways, release them back into society, and continues on as if nothing happened.

Journal Questions 1 & 2

Journal 2: "Every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it."

I always found it strange, that after seeing countless posts and such complaining that the older generation made fun of ours so much, that we would then make fun of younger kids for their own interests. When Fortnite was first bursting into popularity with kids, they were soon made fun of for copying the dances or simply enjoying it. It's an easy habit to fall into, though; I was doing the same exact thing when those kinds of jokes were popular with everyone online. It is an easy habit to fall into when you aren’t specifically looking for it, as simple jokes online will always appear to be so. It is always important to make sure your jokes aren’t hurting anyone, whether it is intentional or not, especially when they can be accessed by the people they are making fun of.

Journal 9: What was Winston like as a child growing up?

Winston was the epitome of bratty- he was constantly demanding more than his fair share of food, even when his sister and mother were starving. Even when he is given a bigger share of the now rare commodity of chocolate, he then goes to steal his sister’s piece of chocolate and runs away, ignoring his mother’s protests. He still wanted attention from her, wanted love, but seemed to feel no amount of empathy for any of his family. Instead, he took what he wanted and begged for what he could possibly get.

Who are YOU?

Answer the following:

1. A book that made a lasting impression ; made me think ; etc. is _________________ because........... (150 words minimum)
2. Who are you, and where are you going? (150 words)

1. Phoenix is a series by Osamu Tezuka, known as "the Walt Disney of Japan" for his numerous works and revolutionizing the animation industry in Japan. The series spans thousands of years and dozens of characters- each book alternatively takes place in historic Japan or the distant future. Despite how distant these times may relate to each other, every book is centered around one character: the immortal Phoenix, who is said to grant immortality by drinking its blood. Reincarnation also comes into play, one character seen again and again, from past to future, recognized by his comically large and bumpy nose. 

The second book in the series,  Future, depicts an apocalyptic, radiated Earth, and after the five last cities have destroyed each other in war, three survivors are left to live within a lonely scientist's animal cloning lab. The Phoenix visits one of the three survivors, gives him immortality, and the task to recreate the human race. The cloning lab is eventually destroyed by an earthquake and the now immortal Yamanobe, who eventually lives hundreds of thousands of millions of years. He grows desperately lonely, even as the Earth slowly heals, and tries to create some form on companionship- through robots, cloned animals, etc. After literal billions of years, when radiation is far gone from the Earth, he realizes he must create life from the very beginning, by pouring a simply mixture of oxygen, carbon, and hydrogen that will become the new primordial ooze. He then watches, over three billion years, as life evolves and humans slowly come back to make primitive societies. By then he has lost his physical form, and is visited by the Phoenix one last time to become one with the universe and reunite with his lover, who had died soon after the cloning lab was destroyed. 

2. I am Zachary Quinn Jones. I am an artist. I am a man. I am going forward, because that's the only direction life can go. I am going to graduate and hopefully get into the colleges I want to go to. I don’t think I’m truly sure of where I’m going, though, because no one can predict the future. I want to be going away from Tennessee one day, and towards somewhere where I can actually be myself. 

I currently live in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, and it’s my fourth and final year at the Webb School. I am currently down to owning only eleven Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches, due to the tragic deaths of Big Salad and Flintstones Gummy Vitamins Complete Supplement For Healthy Heart And Mind. It’s a good thing I will never die. Anyway, I hope to become an animator later in life, or at least make a living in art.