The History of Shakepeare

I originally started learning about Shakespeare in third grade, when I had done a project on his life and his works, so I have always had a pretty good amount of experience with Shakespeare in my life. I have always liked his works, and I enjoy reading them when I have time to. I’ve read Hamlet, A Midsummer night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet, and now Macbeth, as well as some of his poetry, although I haven’t read that as much as his plays. Shakespeare’s life was always interesting to me, such as his birthdate and deathdate and his Globe Theatre. I’ve always been intrigued by his works, especially his plays. Macbeth was a very interesting tragedy. It sounded very familiar, and I believe that I’ve read parts of it before, but I am absolutely positive that I’ve never read it all the way through before. It was one of his darker plays, and I really liked how we read mostly from the perspective of Macbeth, who started off as a good character and then turned bad because of the promise and prospect of gaining an amazing amount of power. There are those stories where you can’t see what’s going to happen and how things will work out in the end, and Macbeth is one of those kinds of stories. I really like those kinds of stories, and I’m always looking for new books like this to read. I found the tragedy of Macbeth to be very alluring and it made me want to read more even after the play was done. I was really satisfied with how it ended, and I was really happy that Shakespeare had made it so he covered everything he needed to cover and that there weren’t any loose ends. Overall, I really have enjoyed learning about Shakespeare over the years, and I really found Macbeth to be yet another one of Shakespeare’s amazing works.

Turkeys and Zombies and Goblins, oh my!

Once apon a dark and stormy night, it was Thanksgiving in the haunted house of Longhoard, where the bad goblins were preparing to find a turkey for their feast. The good goblins were perfectly content with their tofu turkey, and knew that once again, they would have to try to stop their bad brethren from obtaining a live turkey. And nearby, in the high school of Feasthaven, the turkey principal held his position as he knew that the goblins would be coming again to steal one of his star pupils. The turkey he believed they were out to get this time was one of his best students, the one named Faythere. Faythere was a star student among star students. He was one of the best of Feasthaven High, and sadly, he was also the most plump. Perfect for goblins to feast on. The principal had stood his post for so long, that he had grown lean, so no goblin would even dream of trying to eat him. Which was one of the main reasons that he stood the post instead of one of the younger turkeys. He had been watching out towards the horizon to give warning for when he saw goblins coming. Eventually, about 5:13pm, on the dot, the good goblins had come running over the hill towards the school to warn the turkeys of the oncoming invasion. However, the principal had known no such thing as a vegetarian goblin, so he immediately locked and barricaded the doors so none of them could get in. He should have checked whether or not Faythere was inside first, for Faythere was outside the gates, tending to the Pilgrimberry bushes. The good goblins came up to the door and found that it withstood all resistance. So they tried to yell their warning out over the walls, but it didn't work, as the winds were blowing too strongly, and their sound was just carried away in the mist. They had walked around, searching for an alternate way in. About this time, Faythere had realized that the gates were locked, and he feared yelling too loudly, as though the goblins might hear him and come back. After he had come to this realization, he had jumped into one of the pilgrimberry bushes, hoping that the goblins wouldn't be able to see him as he shivered from fear and cold. The goblins continued around the school, and were on their way to trying to stop their bad brethren diplomatically. As the group ran along, one goblin called Smalls had looked back to make sure that there was no way in. He saw a bush that was shaking a lot differently than the other bushes nearby, and he knew that there must be something hiding behind it. He sent the rest of the good goblins ahead to settle the dispute with the bad goblins, as he went to go find what was hiding. As he came up along, Faythere noticed that a goblin was coming back, and he instantly panicked and tried to find a way inside. He had no idea that this goblin was a good goblin, and so the second that Smalls had arrived to find him, Faythere was already clucking like a chicken and trying to fly up the wall. Smalls tried to calm Faythere by saying poetry and calming phrases, but Faythere thought it was all a ruse to get him to land. Only after Smalls had put down a piece of tofu turkey and stepped a good distance away did Faythere land. He tried the piece of tofu, and he immediately learned that he could trust this goblin to get him to safety. As all the bad goblins wanted was meat, the good goblins had trouble convincing them to turn back and ignore the turkeys. By this time, the storm had calmed enough so that Faythere's calls could be heard through the gate by the principal, so Faythere and Smalls had gotten inside the school, and began to plan their strategy, as Smalls knew the bad goblins and the turkeys knew the building. They also knew that there was a stash of mice that their administrative owls had liked to eat that were hidden in a school. So, they had gone to these owls, which were awake, as it was starting to get to be later in the day, about 9:26 pm, to be exact, to convince them to give up their mice for the greater good of the school and the turkeys. As they knew that they had to have students to have a school, they simply said yes, and that they would only have to find more mice to replace the ones lost after the conflict. After they had heard this, they immediately opened a path directly to the room with the mice, and hid in other rooms. As was assumed, the bad goblins weren't convinced not to come, so they had arrived, and the good goblins, except for Smalls, had given up and gone home. The bad goblins had followed the path they were given, following the scent of fresh meat, even if it was only a small amount. They went directly to the mouse room, and completely ignored the the hiding turkeys on the way. After they had eaten their fill, they had simply packed up and left just as quickly as they had come, leaving the turkeys to live their lives as they pleased, at least for another year. The miraculous find of Faythere by Smalls had saved the turkeys, and in doing so, the turkeys had gained the trust of at least one goblin, who they knew was good.

Beowulf the Humble

First of all, I didn't think that the movie was half bad. There were some changes that I thought could have been excluded, but I'll explain that later in this post... Anyways, there were definitely some changes in Beowulf and Grendel that hadn't appeared in the text. For example, the movie makers had really played to religion, and showed the religious conflicts between the Celts and Christianity. I thought it was clever how they had played the parts, and how the two seemed to conflict each other. Also, I thought it was interesting that each person had gotten to choose their own path to choose, and that Beowulf had gone against what everyone else was doing, and had gone to the Celtic witch more than he had talked with the Christian monk. Another change that I thought was interesting, that I hadn't thought matched the Beowulf we had learned about first, was that they had given Beowulf more of a conscience. He had been more susceptible to his own feelings and actually acted on them instead of doing what he wanted to gain pride and fame. He wasn't as invincible and all-powerful as the text had made him seem, and he actually had tired out after a while instead of being able to go for days without stopping. I thought that it really appealed to audiences today, as it showed that he had a weakness and that he actually cared about others, like the Celtic witch. Beowulf had also felt sorry for Grendel, as he had built a grave as a remembrance. In the text, he had never done anything of the sort, and he had felt no remorse for killing Grendel. I think that these changes were effective for audiences now, but for similarity and originality with the text, I don't think the movie had done as well. I think that I actually preferred the text over the movie, but that the changes were good things for today's society, and the audience that the movie makers were trying to appeal to.

The Golden Sonnet

At first it was a simple little joke,
Then my teacher came and saw the glove,
The look he gave set my mind up in smoke,
My gain of trouble like I lost a love.

I walked up to the pinboard up at front,
It felt like I was walking to my death,
End of my perfectness, to be blunt,
My legend was reduced to a mere myth.

Then I thought that I could do a great job,
Be the one that I had strived long to be,
And instead of becoming just a snob,
I could learn to simply be "just me."

Now I view it as a simple test,
Since then, I've tried to be the very best.

The Choosing of the Title

There were a few reasons of why I had picked "Sunshine and Misery" as my blog title. The first was because I had taken the phrase "Sunshine and Happiness" and changed it to another term that people don't usually associate with. Also, sunshine is generally associated with happiness instead of something sad. So my title in itself is contradictory, or an oxymoron. It ties to me because I'm really big on optimism and being happy, but I also can't lie to someone if something is going wrong, and so misery ties in. I like sunshine and to bring happiness to others, but if misery is what it really is, then that's what I'll cause. And so because of all this, the title "Sunshine and Misery" was created.

Appeal to Appealing

All those things you see online, in the middle of shows and movies, on billboards... That's called commercial advertising, in case you didn't know. Almost everyone uses it to some extent, and everyone sees it daily. You know you do. Oftentimes, it's probably the last thing on your mind, but it's still there. One thing I've noticed from watching TV and from going on the computer is that it really is everywhere. There's no real way to escape it entirely. Anyways, many advertising groups and companies use several devices to have someone want to et their product. I had taken a Psychology class last year, and I learned a lot about how these companies use things such as color, mood, humor, and how they link their idea or product with a good feeling. And now, I see what kind of things companies use to advertise and have you buy their product. The truth is, you see them too. You see what they want you to see and it usually has you think what they want you to think. Oftentimes you just don't realize it. For example, advertisements change your mood with the use of color. For example, if an ad is blue, you're likely to be calmer than you were. If it's yellow, it would make you happier. Also, you're more likely to notice an ad if it has brighter colors. And once you have an ad tied to a good feeling, you'll often think about the product when you have the feeling. In other words, it will greatly appeal to you and make you want to have it because you like the feeling. Advertisements are great ways for companies to get their product out, and they really are everywhere. But I think it's amazing of what is and can be used, and you need to be aware of what is on these things and how they can influence you. It's truly amazing of what companies will do to have you want to have their product.