The Left Hand Of Darkness By Ursula K. Le Guin

The book "The Left Hand of Darkness" is definitely an interesting read. I should have known this when I learned that the species didn't have a gender until they decided to mate. But other than that I assumed it would be a relatively normal book I assumed wrong.

I think one of the best aspects of the book would definitely be the subtext and the way the story was crafted..  in the beginning the main character Genly Ai says "I'll make my report as if I told a story, for I was taught as a child on my home world that truth is a matter of the imagination." That is the first sentence and sets the tone. The sory is told by himself and his "soulmate" Estraven's point of view.  You saw two sides to one story and that really unifies the whole story as opposed to seeing it through one biased you see it to two people, from two different cultures going on this adventure together.

While I enjoyed most of the book there were parts that made me a little peeved. She would stop in random chapters and explain things that weren't really necessary to the stories  feel. She talked about two legends and how the mating works for these people. I just feel like she could have included so much more of a story if she had taken up those chapters. Now I'm sure Miss Le Guin knew what she was doing, it's still a little frustrating. Because you get so wrapped up in the characters problems, and what they're doing that when you take a break to explain something it can either be enlightening and joyful or can be very extremely annoying. But it was the only part I found a disliked.

I feel like maybe the audience was not so much a teenager but people who are close minded or very open minded not really in the middle. Because here you have a species that is basically all men until meeting when one of them will turn into a woman. Its like the menstrual cycle it only happens once a month. I found it very different and it makes you think about what role does gender really play in society? I feel like most people are part of his audience including myself. I'd like to believe that I'm not very close minded but I've never thought of this before.

This book will make you think, it's not something you really just when you're bored. It is the kind of book you read when you want to challenge your own view. I give the book a 9 simply because of the randomly inserted little stories of legends and meeting but other than that one of the best books I've read in a while really kept my attention.

Oh no..

In the Scottish play, Macbeth has a soliloquy in act one scene seven. What does this mean? He talks to himself like a mad man for a long time. The whole things is simply him fighting with himself about if he should kill Duncan or not. Its a huge problem because on one hand, he would then be king and be able to have anything he wants. And it could be done successfully. But on the other hand Duncan is a member of his family and his king. It would be wrong to betray him like that.  So he is basically having a debate with himself of should i do it, or should i not?


I have one minor problem, as national novel writing month
Begins its approach: What story should i deem worth of being put to paper, and how
is a story deemed unworthy; What is it
that i should spend my time writing about,
and who am I, to decide, what others will want to read.  A story
of friendship that fails each other; that takes the reader on a trip, and, breaks them apart, Later
to come back at me with anger; or should it be written
of gore and malice and hatred and horror to make my own heart fear. I have never written;
Of fear, or gore that makes someone scared, so that should pull me away from that path; but also,
I have never written to break a readers heart, so how could i possibly chose. And what, do I
know, I am not a professional, yet how can I make the choice of what others will want to read,
But i have read all my life, i have some experience in picking books, and what is in good taste; but is it really for everyone; Of course not, so i am left to think, heart breaking or horrifying, both viable options,both very doable and yet I still cant chose. I have no idea,but maybe some tea, will help calm my mind.

I'll Make a Man Out Of You!

What it means to be a man? To be swift as the coursing rive, with all the force of a great Typhoon with all the strength of a raging fire mysterious as the dark side of the moon! Question answered class dismissed have a great day!

Okay all kidding aside, I really have to say I don’t like this question, because the cultural answer is kind of . . . depressing? Like never cry, don’t look weak, protect women because they can’t take care of themselves, be muscular, have “SWAG” be gangster, school isn’t as important. Well that’s what the Media tells me anyways. Is that why I stopped watching T.V? Maybe so.

In my family it’s a little different. Being a man in my family’s case means taking care of the family, even when you have had a bad day listen to the other family members. It means up early on Saturday, to clean everything up and out the door. It means shedding a tear is showing strength.

Okay, so I don’t really leave my house often, I am a littler hermit. But when I do get to be around guys (It is mostly in school) I always seem to hear them tailing about what girl is the hottest, or cursing excessively. Or talking about what’s going on in sports. I feel like today in our culture even in a pathetic population of a couple hundred adolescent teens who have no idea what is going on, it all about Image.

These expectations are not only unrealistic but can define how a male is viewed by society. If a male is quiet and reserved, sometimes he could be judged and declared abnormal, or a lover. Which In some places is admired, but more often than not the young man would be written off as a reject. Simply for not following the “Norm” If a young man is slight, has glasses, and prefers to study. He is a nerd, and can't be cool (In today’s culture we are more accepting of nerds.) But if a guy walks around swearing, talks down, talks about how many girls he gets he’s suddenly cool.

Just watching all the males in y life, family friends, and friend’s parents. I can say that these ideas are not correct.  My grandfather was a hardworking man, who as a teenager was slight, wore thick rimmed glasses, defined in appearance as a nerd. But he was a great man who would get up go to work even if he wasn’t feeling well. He refused to take time off of work. His only goal was to take care of our family. He was what I came to see as the proper man. My friend’s father who I call papa is fun loving and enjoyable to be around. Another example of what a man is, even though he was big into sports. So no I feel now a days and even back a few generations men still strayed from the “Ideals.” 

Was Shakespeare really Shakespeare

Allen

World lift.

            

Shakespeare was a woman?

Most people don’t think about asking questions about William Shakespeare as a play right. However, there is actually a huge controversy surrounding the man. While he is supposedly an accomplished playwright it appears that he has never owned book, written a letter much less a play.  Furthermore he was not an educated man, also Shakespeare was the name of an actor in the company and it is impossible to say if he was the same man or a different one that wrote the plays.

The Oxfordians are a group of people that believe Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford was the man who wrote the Shakespeare plays. He was a well-traveled Nobleman and well educated man who they believe to be more likely to have written the plays. Seeing as Shakespeare was a no name man in a small town.   While the Stratfordians believe that of course, William Shakespeare wrote his own works leave him alone.  The globe was in his name, and was given a coat of arms for his works. He was proven to be a real person and then to further anger the Oxfordians it is pointed out that this would not be the first uneducated man rising above what is supposed to happen to them.

Christopher Marlowe he was a Victorian tragedy writer the best of his time. He was supposedly William Shakespeare greatest inspiration. Though they were born in the same years Marlowe received a better education. He was an alleged government spy. Even his autobiography had the word spy in i

I can’t pick a side because neither has been proven right or wrong and I 

personally would love to believe that Shakespeare was indeed the author 

of his own works. However, there is a strong opposition and I can’t bring 

myself to rule it out. It was so far back in history that it is difficult to track.  

It is a topic for the oxfordians and the stratfordians to debate and discuss.


Why would someone want to use the name of a poor boy from no where to 

publish their writing?



Do you side with the Oxfordian or the stratfordian side? Do you believe there is a right or wrong? Should we even be questioning?





Sources


https://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Oxfordian_theory.html

http://www.shakespeare-online.com/faq/shakepeareauthorship.html

Egypt Seminar

to prepare for our assembly on Egypt we used class time to look up what exactly was going on in Egypt today. or if you were me, you were reading  about it for the first time. unfortunately when the revolution was going on I was not very interested in forgine affairs.

What is the biggest problem facing Egypt today?

Egypt biggest problem today would be it's economy. While it has its strong points, like a literacy rate of 66%  and a life expectancy of 70 years.  It also has some negative points like a 26.6% poverty rate.  that means a little over one fourth of Egypt's vast population lives in poverty, and can't afford to take care of themselves and their families.  Another down fall is the birth rate far surpasses the death rate causing the already full country to stretch its capacity even more. The families living in poverty could possibly be the parents to these children, thus they are born into a slimmer chance of becoming so much more than expected because of money restrictions. Access to good education may be limited.  39% of 20-24 year olds are currently unemployed in Egypt.  Many of the unemployed youth hold degrees from creditable universities. showing even the brightest are suffering currently. What is even worse is they can't afford to go to another country to look for a job to get temporarily until  Egypt's employment rate goes up again.


How much should America be involved?

I believe many countries need help right now, Egypt is a near and dear ally of ours. However America needs to spread the love closer to home.  Now while we are better off in many ways we need to spend more time taking care of our own. I do believe in supporting Egypt while it rebuilds, but I am torn. America could be so much more than it is but we keep spreading the love everywhere but home. I am truly torn because as a person I want to help them but logically this is something they have to do themselves. Egypt will have to pick up and rebuild on its own. With minimal outside help. They will be even more unified and become stronger if they only use their own people, and their own strength to rebuild into a powerful nation again.  So America needs to be more in the outside for this one.

Q1: What do you feel really unifies the Egyptian population?

Q2: Where do you want Egypt to be in a few years.

fallow this blog its worth it!

Sorry for the excessive blinking when I am nervous I blink A LOT


Arfeahnasser.blogspot.com

Home

I come from a home that always seemed to smell of nicotine and coffee.
You could always here discussion loud laughs and soft whispers,
Protecting little ears, from words we must not hear.

My Grammy laughing sarcastically at poppy's remark
My mother groaning annoyed looking for Freddie's favorite book,
Tearing the house apart.
My brother laughing gleefully as we play together

Sounds and memories still held close to me.

My florescent pink walls smeared with makeup taken,
The baby blue of Bubby's colored and drawn
Logos and barbies everywhere you look,
"What is clogging the heating vent?"

Punkin pie, apple pie turkey in the oven
Smells that still make me salivate
Music playing , Grammy singing
Grandpa smiling, Lighting a cigaret.

Little cries of me not yet wanting to sleep
Tic-tock-tick-tock of the pacer, my favorite lullaby
Bark-giggle-bark-giggle my alarm clock,
Telling me to rise and play.

It was fun to run down the bully of a side walk
The ever changing levels making me stumble and trip.
Skinned knees, scratched hands,
Salty tears and soft smiles.

That side walk where i waited for the bus,
Argued i was sick, saying no need to attend school
Where i would meet up with the twins,
On my way to school, what a drag

And how big it was! The house seemed so larg!
The stairs seemed to lead to a tower,
And the basement was our musty dungeon
And Boco our Labrador was the dragon.
But now?

The house is silent, i do my homework,
Boco is gone, Oger is here, not my boco
The halls are cramped and small

No dolls no legos no music,
No books, no pie,
No cigarettes and no Tick tock
Just silence, Sometimes blissful,
Sometimes eerie.

Memories of the past fallow me,
As I travel up and down the small stairs,
down to the basement to do laundry,
Into my backyard to pull a weed

Voices of the past lead me to smile,
To believe in so much more
A picture or two, maybe a necklace
A ring, a picture, a pocket knife
being asked to make the pie,

It makes the silence bearable,
Less frightening, less to myself,
That is where I come from, and where I am,
All my past and all of me
And All i can ever hope to be.