Mid-Term Break essay

a)
The speaker feels a little embarrassed and very upset in the first five stanzas of the poem.

The poet described the speaker’s embarrassment by writing that the speaker was the eldest child in the family but he was not present when his baby brother had the car accident, thus showing that he must be embarrassed to return after not being present when the baby brother met with the car accident.

The poet also described the speaker’s grief after losing his baby brother in an accident. The poet had described the funeral in the speaker’s point of view and had also shown the grief the other family members are experiencing. The father was ‘crying’ and the mother ‘coughed out angry tearless sighs’. This shows the sadness that they have after losing their child. Thus, the persona will also be upset as he had just lost his baby brother and he was not there when the accident happened.

In conclusion, I think that the persona embarrassed and he is also very upset about what had happen to his baby brother.

b)
The literary devices had described the gloomy mood which shows sadness in the poem by using words which appeals to our emotions.

The poem started with ‘I sat all morning in the college sick bay’. This shows that the mood of the poem right from the start is not good. The poet also described that the persona’s father crying and his mother ‘coughing out tearless sighs’. This shows that the parents were overwhelmed by the death of their child and were definitely heartbroken. The ambulance also arrived and the corpse were ‘stanched and bandaged’, showing sadness yet again in the poem.

The poet also described the baby’s death as it is written that ‘Snowdrops and candles soothed the bedside’. This description signals that the child had died peacefully.

In conclusion, the poet had used literary devices to appeal to our emotions and successfully bring out the grief in the poem.

English Poem

English Poem

My School Life

Time flies,
In a blink of an eye
Half a year has passed,
Since we graduated.

Now in a new school,
With a bunch of new friends,
We get along together,
Communicating with one another.

A hectic school life begins
With tons of tests
Coming our way.
Oh Gosh…

Results came back,
Both good and bad.
Strive to work harder,
And try to bounce back.

When holidays come,
It’s time to let loose.
But the teachers will say,
Work hard or lose.

My favourite poem

Fast rode the knight by Stephen Crane
Fast rode the knight
With spurs, hot and reeking,
Ever waving an eager sword,
"To save my lady!"
Fast rode the knight,
And leaped from saddle to war.
Men of steel flickered and gleamed
Like riot of silver lights,
And the gold of the knight's good banner
Still waved on a castle wall
.. . . . .
A horse,
Blowing, staggering, bloody thing,Forgotten at foot of castle wall.
A horse
Dead at foot of castle wall.

Q1) The figurative languages used are mainly personification but there is also a little mention of simile.
The sword was personified and described as eager to save the knight’s lady and being eager is one of the human’s emotions. There was also mention about the banner on the castle wall was waving. Waving is an action only humans can do, thus the banner on the castle wall was also personified in the poem.
I think that the poet personified the sword as the knight is going to save a lady, thus his weapon is important to him, and so personifying the sword is just the right thing.
There was also simile used in the poem as in the poem, the poet compared the knights when they are battling to riots of silver light. I think that the poet compared the knights to the riots of silver light as when the knights fight against each other, their swords create sparks when they clash against each other, and thus the poet chose to compare the two of them.

Q2) I like this poem as the poem is easy to understand as the figurative language used is not too difficult and I can easily understand what the poem is writing about. The poem also used personification and to personify the sword, making it looks real and simile was also used in the poem to compare the knights fighting with the riots of silver light. Personally, I think that this poem is a romantic poem between the brave knight and the lady whom he is trying to save. Although there are many difficulties along the way, he still did not give up. However, I find it sad when the horse died when the knight was trying to save the lady.

Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver's Travels - Satire

Gulliver went to four different places: Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa and Houyhnhnm and the book ‘Gulliver’s travels’ is a satire in two ways….

It was first seen as a satire through a fight between Liliput and Blefuscu. In Lillput, the Lilliputians used to break their eggs on the big end but an incident when the grandfather of the present King once cut himself because he broke an egg on the big end changed the law. The Lilliputians, refusing to follow the new law, decided to seek refuge in Blefuscu. Therefore, Lilliput and Blefuscu were no longer at war. This is clearly an example of the unnecessary war between France and England.

Secondly, when Gulliver travelled to Houyhnhnm, there were “people” called the Yahoos. They are actually quite similar to humans, just that they are dirtier and did not wear any clothes on them. This is one of the satires of human behaviour and thus making the horses look more inferior to humans.

Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland

After watching Alice in Wonderland, I find that the movie was quite a disappointment as it was not as nice as the one I had read in the book. Here are the reasons…

Firstly, the movie was not well- planned and the plot was all messed up but I could somehow get a picture what the movie is showing.

Secondly, I find that the movie lacked excitement and actions as some of the parts in the movie were supposed to be more exciting than other parts of the movie. One of the examples is when Alice was challenging Jabberwocky, the monster which belongs to the Red Queen. I find that the battle ended too soon as it only lasted for minutes without bring out much action and excitement and as most people know that Alice won, she wanted to know how she did it, thus the director had failed to grab hold of such an opportunity to create more action and life to the movie, making the movie somewhat a letdown.

However, I found that the graphics and animations were better for that movie, so I think that the director may have paid more attention to that area, making it slightly better in my opinion.

Overall, this movie looks quite of a failure to me and I think that the director could have done a better job if he had paid attention to the plot and added in more action and excitement in the movie.

Animal Farm Chapters 8-10

Animal Farm Chapters 8-10

Life for the pigs:

-Sleep on beds
-Worked shorter hours than other animals
-Have more food to eat
-Drink the milk and eat the apples

Life for the other animals:

-Sleep in the farm
-Work longer hours than the pigs
-Have less food to eat
-Cannot drink the milk and eat apples

Personal Response

What is your reaction to the novel’s ending? For example, do you find it uplifting, depressing, cynical?

Ans: I find the novel depressing as after the animals chased Jones out of the farm, the pigs took over and the life of other animals are still miserable.

Analysing Literature

1. What dealings does Napoleon have with Frederick and Pilkington? How does the battle over the windmill affect the animals? What events Soviet history is Orwell highlighting?

Ans: Napoleon started trading with Frederick and Pilkington. The other animals started obeying Napoleon even more than before. Orwell highlighted about Stalin taking over the Republic.

2. What happens to Boxer and how do the other animals learn of his fate? How do they come to a final conclusion about these events?

Ans: Boxer was sent to be slaughtered and the other animals learnt his fate by looking at the van carrying Boxer and realised he was going to be slaughtered. Squealer convinced others that Boxer was sent to the hospital to be treated.

3. What changes are made to the Fifth and Sixth Commandments? How is the entire list of Commandments ultimately refashioned? What point is Orwell making about the role of communication in Soviet society?

Ans: The Fifth Commandment is changed to “No animals shall kill other animals without cause” and the Sixth Commandment is changed to “No animals shall drink alcohol to excess”. The leaders in the Soviet society changed the rules for themselves and made the whole society in a mess.

4. In Chapter 10 the pigs began to walk on two legs. In your opinion is this evolution a sign of progress? Explain.

Ans: No, it is not a sign of progress. The pigs were becoming like humans by walking on two legs and that defeats the whole purpose of Animalism.

5. Some critics believe that, at the end of the book, Orwell suggests that the pigs and human political leaders are interchangeable. Do you think most government rulers are interchangeable? How might power change those who have it? Explain.

Ans: I think that they are interchangeable as some leaders abuse their authority and those leaders should be changed.

Animal farm chapters 5-7

Animal farm chapters 5-7

The words: In future all questions relating to the working of the farm would be settled by a special committee of pigs presided over by himself.

What they really mean: Napoleon is going to make all the decision from now on.

The words: I trust that every animal here appreciate the sacrifice that comrade Napoleon has made in taking this extra labour upon himself

What they really mean: Napoleon is doing more than he should for the farm

The words: This work is strictly voluntary but any animal who absented himself from it would have his rations reduced by half.

What they really mean: Working on Sunday afternoons is compulsory

The words: From now onwards Animal Farm would engage in trade with neighbouring farms: not, of course, for any commercial purpose, but simply in order to obtain materials which were urgently necessary

What they really mean: Napoleon is starting to trade with humans.

The words: The hens, said Napoleon, should welcome this sacrifice as their own special contribution towards the building of the windmill.

What they really mean: The eggs of the hens must be used.

The words: It was absolutely necessary, he said, that the pigs, who were the brains of the farm should have a quiet place to work in.

What they really mean: The pigs were getting better treatment.

Personal Response

What was your reaction to Snowball’s expulsion from Animal Farm?

Ans: I was quite surprised that Snowball was expelled from Animal Farm as Snowball was an intelligent pig and he fought bravely at the Battle of the Cowshed, so I was quite surprised at Napoleon’s decision.

Analysing Literature

1. What happen to Snowball during the meeting about the windmill? What events in Soviet history does the scene suggest?

Ans: Snowball was chased out by Napoleon’s dogs, which Napoleon had secretly reared. It refers to Stalin overthrowing Trotsky.

2. Identify three ways that Napoleon tries to solidify his leadership position on the farm. How does the process of decision-making on the farm change under Napoleon’s leadership?

Ans: He chased Snowball out of the farm, had Squealer to convince the animals for him and had dogs to scare other animals. He threatened to kill other animals with the dogs if they did not obey him.

3. Why does the execution take place? What message do these events send to the animals about their role in a future society?

Ans: Napoleon wanted to make sure that there were no animals in the farm still communicating with Snowball. The message is that if anybody was found betraying Napoleon, they will be killed.

4. How does Orwell compare Animal Farm under Napoleon’s leadership, to its exploited state under Jones’ rule? What attitude about totalitarian do you think Orwell conveys?

Ans: Orwell proved that the animals’ life under both Napoleon and Jones are both very tiring. Orwell conveys that totalitarian government is not good as it causes a lot of problems.

5. Do you think it’s fair that those who are more educated or more skilled – like the pigs in Animal Farm—have more influence in decision making? Consider how decisions are made in your community, state, or in the nation.

Ans: I do not think it is fair as I believed that everybody has the right to make decisions, not just the cleverer ones. In Singapore, the ministers make most of the decisions, however, the citizens are able to make their decisions during some events too.