I have done the interview with my uncle.
Q: What is Racial Discrimination and Racial Prejudice?
A: Discrimination is something that leads to Prejudice. Racial Discrimination is the act of looking down on people, while Prejudice is a thought that links these “people” to something bad.
Q: What was the condition of Racial Discrimination in the world in the past?
A: Racial Discrimination was rampant in the USA a long time ago. The whole racial status was marked by a set of Jim Crow Laws, which claimed that Coloured people were to be treated as 3/5 of a whole person.
Q: Then what were Jim Crow Laws?
A: They were a set of laws that controlled the social status of people.
Q: Yeah, but why were they called Jim Crow Laws?
A: I think I was told that Jim Crow Laws were named after a song.
Q: In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, a coloured man accused of raping a white woman was guilty even though the evidence against him was not sufficient and he was innocent.
Because of Racial Discrimination and Racial Prejudice, how did the coloured people suffer in the real world?
A: I read To Kill a Mockingbird. Tom Robinson’s case was similar to that of a real event, the Scottsboro Boys Trial. They were accused of raping 2 women even though they were innocent. They were eventually hanged or jailed until a very old age.
Q: Are there any more notable events that happened?
A: I think another big incident occurred because of Racial Discrimination and Racial Prejudice. It was the Montgomery Bus boycotts. It happened because a coloured woman, Rosa Parks, stood up for her rights when she had to give up her seat to a coloured man. It led to a boycott of the bus company and affected the economy.
Q: Are there still any cases of Racial Prejudice or Racial Discrimination left in this world today?
A: Fortunately, I do not think there is any left.
Max thanks his uncle for his time in the interview!
Monday, March 1, 2010
Task B: A Poem of Trial
Here is a 500-word long poem. It took 3 hours. Enjoy!
I tried to make every 2 lines rhyme to make a rhyme scheme, so in some places words have to be read in an unusual way to rhyme with the other word.
Trouble brewed at the Trial scene
As tension amounted within
A simple case of racial prejudice
Would take a toll on the discriminated community
People began filing into the room
As the accused prepared to face his doom
It seemed as if all was planned
As to how this case was going to end
The court took position to hear out the case
Judge, Solicitors, Defenders and Accusers all in place
The silence was deafening
As the first began Testifying.
Mr Tate began to recall the set of events that night
About how Bob Ewell ‘s so called plight
Atticus acted smart, listening to the speaker
And asked if they actually cared for her
Tate tried to explain how her injury was real
But the Defendant wanted to make things clear.
Having a life-saving clue in mind made
Atticus smiled and continued to wait.
A new witness walked onto the stand
And took the oath raising his hand.
A background of the family status formed
As the court told him to speak on.
He spoke from his POV what had happened
And blamed the accused with a rude comment
The audience grew more serene and prepared
For Atticus’ verbal counter attack.
The Judge briefly interrupted to deny a request
And the tense climax was back.
There was a barrage of questions towards Ewell
All which were answered without a doubt.
The jury wanted a clear picture of what occurred
But the fact that this portrayal was corrupt had not yet surfaced
The witness when asked to write his name got a fright
And he was proven to be left-handed instead of right
The witness thought that was unrelated
But Atticus turned that into a clue revealed
In the audience, I realised what he tried to state
That the person least likely could have the blame.
With that he retired and sat down in the court
And left on the stand the actual victim with no support
She remained staring at the entire jury with dread
Until a prompt for her side of the story was said.
Bursting into tears as a result of horror
Her fear for Atticus left Judge Taylor shocked
Trying his best to keep order
He comforted the sobbing girl
Who then talked about Tom’s Job earlier
And how the accused took advantage of her
She spoke accusingly like her father
Who had pointed a threatening finger.
Atticus took on a very intelligent approach
To tactfully obtain from Mayella how it occured.
Slowly but steadily starting with irrelevant probes
A picture of the Ewell’s home life was shown.
She nearly said something which would prove “someone” ‘s guilt
But her father’s threatening look made her decided not to
No matter how much effort Atticus would put in
The case would not be easy to win
The atmosphere was looking much worse
After Mr Underwood from the Press spotted us
The trial continued with Tom Robinson’s depiction
Which to the previous speakers, was total contradiction.
Declaring that he had once gotten into a fight
Atticus proved that he had nothing to hide
The true, actual story cast in stone
But racial discrimination took its toll
Then Mr Gilmer asked the questions
And Tom was in quite a situation
Tom courageously spoke the truth about feeling sorry
Yet the jury took it that he was guilty
Atticus with all he had fought for the innocent
And made a deep impression with his conclusion
However it was obvious the cast was a lost one
And Tom faced up to what he had not done.
I tried to make every 2 lines rhyme to make a rhyme scheme, so in some places words have to be read in an unusual way to rhyme with the other word.
Trouble brewed at the Trial scene
As tension amounted within
A simple case of racial prejudice
Would take a toll on the discriminated community
People began filing into the room
As the accused prepared to face his doom
It seemed as if all was planned
As to how this case was going to end
The court took position to hear out the case
Judge, Solicitors, Defenders and Accusers all in place
The silence was deafening
As the first began Testifying.
Mr Tate began to recall the set of events that night
About how Bob Ewell ‘s so called plight
Atticus acted smart, listening to the speaker
And asked if they actually cared for her
Tate tried to explain how her injury was real
But the Defendant wanted to make things clear.
Having a life-saving clue in mind made
Atticus smiled and continued to wait.
A new witness walked onto the stand
And took the oath raising his hand.
A background of the family status formed
As the court told him to speak on.
He spoke from his POV what had happened
And blamed the accused with a rude comment
The audience grew more serene and prepared
For Atticus’ verbal counter attack.
The Judge briefly interrupted to deny a request
And the tense climax was back.
There was a barrage of questions towards Ewell
All which were answered without a doubt.
The jury wanted a clear picture of what occurred
But the fact that this portrayal was corrupt had not yet surfaced
The witness when asked to write his name got a fright
And he was proven to be left-handed instead of right
The witness thought that was unrelated
But Atticus turned that into a clue revealed
In the audience, I realised what he tried to state
That the person least likely could have the blame.
With that he retired and sat down in the court
And left on the stand the actual victim with no support
She remained staring at the entire jury with dread
Until a prompt for her side of the story was said.
Bursting into tears as a result of horror
Her fear for Atticus left Judge Taylor shocked
Trying his best to keep order
He comforted the sobbing girl
Who then talked about Tom’s Job earlier
And how the accused took advantage of her
She spoke accusingly like her father
Who had pointed a threatening finger.
Atticus took on a very intelligent approach
To tactfully obtain from Mayella how it occured.
Slowly but steadily starting with irrelevant probes
A picture of the Ewell’s home life was shown.
She nearly said something which would prove “someone” ‘s guilt
But her father’s threatening look made her decided not to
No matter how much effort Atticus would put in
The case would not be easy to win
The atmosphere was looking much worse
After Mr Underwood from the Press spotted us
The trial continued with Tom Robinson’s depiction
Which to the previous speakers, was total contradiction.
Declaring that he had once gotten into a fight
Atticus proved that he had nothing to hide
The true, actual story cast in stone
But racial discrimination took its toll
Then Mr Gilmer asked the questions
And Tom was in quite a situation
Tom courageously spoke the truth about feeling sorry
Yet the jury took it that he was guilty
Atticus with all he had fought for the innocent
And made a deep impression with his conclusion
However it was obvious the cast was a lost one
And Tom faced up to what he had not done.
Task A for LA Elearning
MI Test:
I have taken the Multiple Intelligence test. I think that through this test, I know the areas that I am strong in and improve on them. I will also look at the areas that I am not doing well in and work towards self improvement. For example, my top areas were Musical, Interpersonal and (amazingly) Spatial/Visual. I will find areas that I can do, like ACE topics that make use of these skills. My weaker areas were the Naturalist thing. Ok, I admit that I am sort of an indoor person and allergic to pet fur. However, I am going to improve on that factor by learning more about my environment and working with it.
Now, see my later (above) post for Task B!
I have taken the Multiple Intelligence test. I think that through this test, I know the areas that I am strong in and improve on them. I will also look at the areas that I am not doing well in and work towards self improvement. For example, my top areas were Musical, Interpersonal and (amazingly) Spatial/Visual. I will find areas that I can do, like ACE topics that make use of these skills. My weaker areas were the Naturalist thing. Ok, I admit that I am sort of an indoor person and allergic to pet fur. However, I am going to improve on that factor by learning more about my environment and working with it.
Now, see my later (above) post for Task B!
Hello.
Hello! This blog will become active again and I will post my elearning stuff here. Check back regularly for updates!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Blog Term 3 Week 10
Blog Term 3 Week 10
My Primary School Life… Viewed from the perspective of Poems
A good experience of my school life then was writing poetry. I was often in solitude as I did not have any friends then. Boredom struck me and I decided to start writing poetry. Whenever I had experienced unique occasions in my Primary school days, I penned it down in a poem. I was always seen writing them, during recess, silent reading, and even in Chinese class.
Once, my school leaked due to what I thought was Acid Rain. I went on to write a poem about it. What started as a first verse sparked interest in writing poetry in me and I went on to write more. It was very fun and exciting. My sarcastic classmate called the Acid Rain Poem completely meaningless, but my literature teacher seemed to like it.
Another incident I experienced was the “Mugging” incident. I had forgotten about a test the next day. I panicked upon finding about it but it was too late. I ended burning midnight oil and slept for only 2 hours! The test ended up being very easy and I realised that I should not have burned midnight oil for it! Again, I wrote a poem on it. Apart from the poem, I learnt to organise and plan and revise my work consistently.
Me and my friends occasionally did the “homework chain” in which we passed completed homework around and copied each other’s answers! I usually was the source of the chain, giving out answers to lazy people who never bothered to do their homework. Our teacher caught us doing that once during silent reading. Next we got a really bad scolding. That was the only incident I did not write a poem about.
My Primary School Life… Viewed from the perspective of Poems
A good experience of my school life then was writing poetry. I was often in solitude as I did not have any friends then. Boredom struck me and I decided to start writing poetry. Whenever I had experienced unique occasions in my Primary school days, I penned it down in a poem. I was always seen writing them, during recess, silent reading, and even in Chinese class.
Once, my school leaked due to what I thought was Acid Rain. I went on to write a poem about it. What started as a first verse sparked interest in writing poetry in me and I went on to write more. It was very fun and exciting. My sarcastic classmate called the Acid Rain Poem completely meaningless, but my literature teacher seemed to like it.
Another incident I experienced was the “Mugging” incident. I had forgotten about a test the next day. I panicked upon finding about it but it was too late. I ended burning midnight oil and slept for only 2 hours! The test ended up being very easy and I realised that I should not have burned midnight oil for it! Again, I wrote a poem on it. Apart from the poem, I learnt to organise and plan and revise my work consistently.
Me and my friends occasionally did the “homework chain” in which we passed completed homework around and copied each other’s answers! I usually was the source of the chain, giving out answers to lazy people who never bothered to do their homework. Our teacher caught us doing that once during silent reading. Next we got a really bad scolding. That was the only incident I did not write a poem about.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Poem analysis for E-learning 4/9
1. The poet brings out his frustration and impatience, anger and boredom clearly in the first 3 stanzas through a series of well-selected puns, metaphors and alliteration.
A good example of pun : “ I am sick…” expresses his anger and dismay of teaching the students as he sees that they are no longer interested in the pursuit of knowledge. He could either be literally tired of long years of teaching the students without any improvement on their part, or could be actually having a headache or sickness. Another pun is “I will not!” It seems to tell the readers that the persona has reached his limit and is already very stressed up with the students.
Metaphors are abundant in this poem. “Unruly hounds” refer to the restlessness of the students and the boredom they experienced. The teacher referred them to dogs, who were put on a leash, and trying to free themselves not wanting to learn. “Tugged the leash” tells us that they very much wanted to “escape” from the dull lesson. They have certainly lost all interest to learn.
“Fuel of life”, another metaphor, refers to the efforts the teacher tries to press on with the lesson, though he felt very dull, monotonous and discouraged. He uses every bit of his will to kindle and motivate himself. However, he does not think that he would make a positive difference to the students even if he uses all of his efforts in teaching these students as they are simply uninterested in acquiring knowledge. This metaphor highlights the passiveness felt and brings an interesting texture to the poem.
2. How is the tone of anger expressed in this poem?
The poet expresses his anger through a choice of carefully-selected words and poetic devices. He has composed a very interesting rhyme scheme to spice up the poem. For example, “ My last fuel of life to heap on my soul, … and take the toll” creates interest in the reader.
Symbolisation is also present. The poet stresses that the knowledge” Goes down the same abyss.” I think he means that all that has been painfully taught to them has been wasted, and disappears from their thoughts. It might also mean that the teacher’s efforts are wasted and the students have not gained anything.
A good example of pun : “ I am sick…” expresses his anger and dismay of teaching the students as he sees that they are no longer interested in the pursuit of knowledge. He could either be literally tired of long years of teaching the students without any improvement on their part, or could be actually having a headache or sickness. Another pun is “I will not!” It seems to tell the readers that the persona has reached his limit and is already very stressed up with the students.
Metaphors are abundant in this poem. “Unruly hounds” refer to the restlessness of the students and the boredom they experienced. The teacher referred them to dogs, who were put on a leash, and trying to free themselves not wanting to learn. “Tugged the leash” tells us that they very much wanted to “escape” from the dull lesson. They have certainly lost all interest to learn.
“Fuel of life”, another metaphor, refers to the efforts the teacher tries to press on with the lesson, though he felt very dull, monotonous and discouraged. He uses every bit of his will to kindle and motivate himself. However, he does not think that he would make a positive difference to the students even if he uses all of his efforts in teaching these students as they are simply uninterested in acquiring knowledge. This metaphor highlights the passiveness felt and brings an interesting texture to the poem.
2. How is the tone of anger expressed in this poem?
The poet expresses his anger through a choice of carefully-selected words and poetic devices. He has composed a very interesting rhyme scheme to spice up the poem. For example, “ My last fuel of life to heap on my soul, … and take the toll” creates interest in the reader.
Symbolisation is also present. The poet stresses that the knowledge” Goes down the same abyss.” I think he means that all that has been painfully taught to them has been wasted, and disappears from their thoughts. It might also mean that the teacher’s efforts are wasted and the students have not gained anything.
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