Tracker Update: Psychological Setting

       Lately, there have been many events that have shifted the psychological setting of the island.  From fires, to hunting, to dancing, it seems like everywhere the boys go on the island, there is a new mood.  Sometimes the boys are filled with id, and thier actions are controlled by the devil.  Other times, the boys seem positive and upbeat, and are excited to work together.
      

“‘Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!’

Now out of the terror rose another desire, thick, urgent, blind.

‘Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!’” 152

The boys are overcome with id. The devil is lurking in them, and they are acting like complete savages. The mood is almost horror movie-like.

“This is what I thought. We want to have fun. And we want to be rescued.” The passionate noise of agreement from the assembly hit him like a wave and he lost his thread. He thought again. “We want to be rescued; and of course we shall be rescued.” 37
 This is from the very beginning of the book- chpt 2. Very different from now.Even though everyone is a little scared, they have faith that they will be rescued, and are trying to hope for the best. They figure that while they are on the island, they should have fun and make the most of it.

"And they keep runnuing off.  You remember the meeting? How everyone was going to work hard until the shelters were finished?  “Except the hunters. Well, the littluns are hopeless. The older ones aren’t much better. D’you see? All day I’ve been working with Simon. No one else. They’re off bathing, or eating, or playing.”  50

This is when the division of task starts to become a problem. Ralph and Simon are the only ones taking the shelters seriously. Everyone else is “hunting” or playing and swimming, and they are going to wish they had worked on the shelters once they really need a place to stay.  The mood is selfish.

“The twins shared their identical laughter, then remembered the darkness and other things and glanced round uneasily. The flames, busy about the tent, drew their eyes back again.” 97
The two boys know they should be focussing on the fire after failing to stay up at night and watch it, but they are still scared and distracted by everything else around them.  This is not only a problem for the twins, but a main conflict of Ralph's.  He has trouble staying foccused and remembering his goals. 

Reading Reflection

Nation

In Defense of Food

Split

Looking after Lily

Girl with a Pearl Earring

The Memory Keeper's Daughter- still working on this one

       Well, this is quite sad.  I always knew that I wasn't a big reader, but I didn't realize how little I read until now.  I have learned that I like intimate books with characters that I can connect to and that have deep feelings expressed in the book.  I have also found that while annotating does take extra time, it really helps me to comprehend and understand the book better.
       All of my books this semester have been excellent, except for Looking after Lily.  It was pretty good, but it got really boring at times.  This was probably a result of me reading it over a long period of time, so the story line got broken up.  Never in my 14 years of life have I read a  fantasy book.  My best friend loves to read, and this is her favorite genre.  Every time I ask her suggestion on a new book to read, she rambles off a list of about 7 fantasy/mythological books that I can't seem to make myself read.  So, my goal for this semester is to read a fantasy book.  I have decided that the next book I read will be of that genre.  Hopefully, I will be introduced into a new array of books that I enjoy!  Also, I would like to push myself to read more books.  One way that I can do that is reading more than the 150 minutes every week, and when we are reading a book in class, continue reading another book.  I hope that next semester, I can grow into a better reader.

Literacy Narrative- 12/6- 30 minutes
LOTF- 12/1- 40 minutes, 30 pages
          - 12/3- 30 minutes, 18 pages
          - 12/4- 25 minutes, 15 pages
          - 12/5- 40 minutes, 30 pages
Total- 165 minutes, 93 pages

Reading Times

Lord of the Flies:
12/2/12 1 hour, 30 minutes, 30 pages

Focus Tracking: Psychological Setting

       While tracking an element of the book every time I read may be tedious and annoying, it helps me keep on track when I am reading, and focus on specific things so I don't get distracted.  My topic is Psychological setting.  I chose this topic because I find it interesting to observe how people react when they are put in certain situations or circumstances.

       I have found that throughout the book, it seems like the psychological setting changes when conflicts arise and diminish.  As soon as a conflict starts, tensions builds, and as a result, arguments are created.  On the contrary, when conflicts are resolved, the psychological setting changes, and suddenly everyone is more accepting of other's ideas, and people work well together.  As an example, in chapter 2, they are trying to make a fire.  The boys know that to be rescued, they need fire. And not just fire, they also need smoke. Everyone is very tense trying to get the fire right. When they realize their fire isn't good enough, they are upset because they won’t get rescued. But when they get a good fire going again, they have new hope and are very excited.  Here are some quotes from pages 41-44 that support that.  

“The flame flapped higher and the boys broke into a cheer.”..... “That was no good. There wasn’t any smoke. Only flame.”.... “At the sight of the flames and the irresistible course of the fire, the boys broke into shrill, excited cheering.”

Lord of the Flies by William Golding:
11/19- 31 pages, 50 minutes
11/21- 25 pages, 40 minutes
11/23- 36 pages, 60 minutes
Toal- 92 pages, 150 minutes

Semester 1 Exam

       I cannot believe that we are almost to exams!  It seems like just yesterday that the second quarter was starting, and our teachers well telling us to make sure to get off on the right foot and turn in all our assignments.  Middle school exams weren't too bad, but I don't know how they will compare to high school exams.  However, I have learned how to study and I'm confident that if I study and do my work, I will do well.
       This semester in English has been good, and we have certainly learned a lot.  I know that the exam will have a lot of writing about it, just like the test.  I feel good about literary analysis because we have been doing that throughout middle school.  I think that I will need to review the short stories- maybe read over them or discuss the plot a little just to refresh my memory.  Also, it would be helpful if we discussed literary elements again.  Finally, I would like to know how we are going to be tested on summer reading, and I plan on reviewing that in and out of class.

LOTF Intro in Class

       When Dr. D first said get on the floor without your binders, you could tell our class was excited.  Maybe a little too excited.  She warned us that even though we didn't have our stuff, we still had to work, but our class kind of took that warning lightly.  We started off in chaos.  Everyone was talking over each other trying to come up with a plan.  Somehow, we came to an agreement that we need a leader(s), and we tried to complete the task of choosing them.  Still, we were talking over each other, and we tried to vote a couple of times, but that didn't work.   Then, Aaron got a stapler, and it was named the talking stapler.  Finally, our savior.  Or so we thought.  Sadly, the talking stapler didn't really work, and we were back to square one: no leaders, and no plan.  Every one was annoyed, and we were all blaming each other.  A group succeeded from our island nation, and I'm not really sure what they did after that.  Then the rest of the boys and girls divided, and it seemed like the boys were going hunt for food and look for water.  The girls, still trying to gain control, were hopeless, and figured we should make housing and watch the kids.
       Now, all of these plans were not finalized, so if this was real, I'm not sure if these tasks would be carried out.  Our island nation would probably be divided in some way- the boys doing their thing on one side, and the girls on the other.  Would the boys really come to our aid and bring back food?  That is a question that may never be answered.  Eventually, I think they would have realized they needed us and that we needed them, and we would have worked together. 

Reading:

11/7/12- The Memory Keeper's Daughter- 10 minutes, 5 pages
11/10/12- Lord of the Flies- 2 hours, 20 minutes, 32 pages

Total- 2 hours, 30 minutes, 37 pages

Free Post:City

      Finally, we have reached our championship season.  Two meets, the most important ones of the year, to prove all of our hard work has paid off.  Sixteen races; that's all I have left.  And for some who don't final in their events, its less.  That's counting two individual races and two relays, each swum twice over the course of two days.  Eight races at city, and eight at state.
       Today, we had prelims at city.  As I walked in the building, the familiar smell of chlorine fell over me.  Excitement filled my body.  Chatter between teammates traveled to my ears, and I was ready to do work.  I was expecting to be really nervous, but the little nerves I had only helped me.  I finaled in both my events, barely missing top 8, and have to settle for consolation finals.  In total this season, I have 12 races left.  Four tomorrow, and eight at state.  Hopefully, tomorrow I will win the consolation finals, and place 9th in my individual events.  I swam really well today, hopefully better tomorrow, and I can't wait to swim my heart out at state.