Rachel+C

My favorite poetic device in literature is... personification. //In Romeo and Juliet//, "Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon." I really like personification because this device allows the author to say much about an object's appearance, actions, or movements without blatantly revealing his or her observations. In this example, obviously the sun isn't killing the moon, but giving the sun human actions and the moon human emotions lets us relate emotionally to the rising and setting of the sun.

My favorite characterization in literature is... "Mr. Darcy had at first scarcely allowed her to be pretty; he had looked at her without admiration at the ball; and when they next met, he looked at her only to criticize. But no sooner had he made it clear to himself and his friends that she hardly had a good feature in her face, than he began to find it was rendered uncommonly intelligent by the beautiful expression of her dark eyes. To this discovery succeeded some others equally mortifying." //Pride and Prejudice//. I like this characterization of Mr. Darcy because it provides a very accurate description of his change of feelings towards Elizabeth basically summed up in three sentences. At first he forced himself to be disgusted with her because of her inferiority, but then he slowly "allowed" her to interest him.

My favorite quote in literature is... "It is best to love first what you are fitted to love, I suppose: you must start somewhere and have some roots, and the soil of the Shire is deep. Still there are things deeper and higher; and not a gaffer could tend his garden in what he calls peace but for them, whether he knows about them or not." Merry, from //Lord of the Rings//. I love this quote because it shows how innocent Merry is, yet he is more intelligent than some people perceive him. At first, he is seen as a funny, care-free hobbit without much depth, but by the end of the story he has recognized how much pride and love he has for his home, but knows there is so much more out there for him to love.

My favorite dialogue in literature is... **First Witch**: When shall we three meet again In thunder, lightning, or in rain? **Second Witch**: When the hurlyburly's done, When the battle's lost and won. **All:** Fair is foul, and foul is fair; Hover through the fog and filthy air.

I really like this dialogue because it sets the tone of the rest of the story. Although //Macbeth// wasn't my favorite play I've read, I enjoyed the dialogue between the witches because it was often humorous and full of riddles.

My favorite theme in literature is... sin and redemption found in //The Kite Runner,// as well as in many other novels. The journey that Amir has to go on to try and make right what he did to Hassan really makes him grow as a character. This theme is also very relatable by most readers, because everybody has had to fix something they've done wrong.

A favorite line of my own writing is... Although I can't remember the specific line, I was very proud of my candy poem. I was able to stay within the line patterns and beats and it ended up being a very fun and rewarding assignment.

My favorite characterization of my own is... "Morrison’s word choice presented Pauline as someone who doesn’t want to associate herself with the downfalls of other people, but uses them to make herself look better." I wrote this in my characterization assignment of Mrs. Breedlove. I think this statement captures exactly how she feels about Cholly and the rest of her family.

A setting I would write about is... modern day Europe. Although I don't live there, writing a story about people with an accent would be so fun! I'm also fascinated by the differences between America and Europe, like how we spend our leisure time opposed to them, and why their culture is so much slower paced than ours.

A conflict I would write about is... the growing gap between the economic classes. This interests me because we are living through it right now; people with a lot of money keep getting more of it, while people with little money to begin with are getting less and less. The concept of a middle class is slowly deteriorating. I would love to write a story somewhat inspired by //Pride and Prejudice//, where two characters from conflicting economic classes become friends or fall in love.

A theme I would like to address is... women's low self-esteem. After reading //The Bluest Eye//, it became more apparant to me that many women are actually their own worst enemy, that they are the roots of their low self-esteem. If girls believe they aren't beautiful, they won't seem beautiful to anyone else. This theme is becoming more and more prevelent in modern day society.

ORIGINAL WORK- SHORT STORY

__Unknown Reason__

It wasn’t always like this. All of us used to be best friends. The three amigos. The three musketeers. We’ve known each other since 3rd grade. We used to make igloos in Autumn’s backyard while we all complained about how numb we were, but we would never dare go inside without finishing. We used to argue about who got to be the mom when we played house. Blake usually won that argument. There was this one time that I really wanted to be the mom, but Blake didn’t think I would be good at it. She said that because she had a baby brother, she had more experience. No one thought that the real experience would come as soon as it did. It makes sense that Blake was always the mom in our little games. She was the caring, authoritative one. I went over to her house the night my dad left us, and she brushed my hair as I was crying and told me everything will be ok. We were 12. Our moms were also best friends, always going to Bunco games together and having Tupperware parties. While they would sit at the table drinking the coffee we hated the smell of, Blake’s mom would say things to my mom that I didn’t understand. “I can get you a good lawyer,” or, “our home is always open for you guys.” But I understand them now. My dad, Raymond Manillo, liked to spend our money. All the time. He had a good job though, so at first it wasn’t so bad. A lot of the time, he would be buying things for me, my brother Ray Jr, and my sister Maggie. But then it became all about him. We never saw him much. He said he had to work late, and he would come home after we all went to bed. When I was ten, I overheard my mom crying on the phone about how our credit cards were canceled and our bank accounts had been emptied. That night when my dad came home from work, my mom hit him with a plate and it broke. I pretended like I was asleep, but I think they knew I was listening at the door. My mom was yelling at him, and he wasn’t saying anything. He just let her yell and hit him. I heard nights like this for two more years. When my dad visits me now, he apologizes for what he did to our family. But I don’t really care. “Dad, I still love you, it’s ok. Have you talked to Ray or Maggie lately?” Then he would look down at the ground and sigh. “Lori, I’ve told you this many times. They don’t really want to talk to me. I don’t think they’re ready.” This always got me frustrated. “How can they not be ready? They’re so selfish!” But I didn’t even believe myself when I said things like that. And I’m glad that Dad didn’t either. It wasn’t always like this. I was convinced Rob and I were going to get married. I knew him since I was in 5th grade, but started to have those warm fuzzy feelings about him the summer before my sophomore year in high school. Luckily, he had warm fuzzy feelings towards me too, which made me different then every other girl in school. Every girl wanted Rob. He was the varsity football quarterback since he was a sophomore, and also sang in the choir. I know, it’s a weird mix. He asked me out by writing on a sheet of paper “Check the box next to your answer!” It was so adorable because he had purposefully chosen the lamest way to approach me. “Lori, do you think it’s possible to love someone forever?” He would always ask me this because I would always answer the same exact way. I would giggle and say, “As long as you’re the one I’ll love, because you’re the only one I could possibly stand to love forever.” He was the kind of guy you’d expect to sit in a Starbucks for hours writing deep things on his laptop. I say deep “things” because he’d be so mysterious that you’d never know what he’d be writing. Could it be a poem? A novel? Or maybe a heated but calm political letter about the injustice of treatment of our deer population. I don’t know. All I know is that he was the best, most caring boyfriend I had ever had (well, the //only// boyfriend I had ever had), and I thought we were meant to be. Autumn didn’t think so. Rob and I dated for 4 years, until we were sophomores in college. He was there for me every time my father tried to hack my bank account. Every time I had to endure Blake’s whining about her grades. Autumn had known Rob a few years longer then me, so she often felt entitled to talk with him behind my back like they were best friends. But they weren’t. And Rob assured me of that, which was enough to make me feel better. I trusted him with my life. Maybe I gave him too much trust, too much responsibility. But he was used to being under pressure and having a lot to worry about. He never seemed to mind that he was the source of my happiness. The only source. I never really did my homework unless he convinced me that it was the right thing to do. I wouldn’t go to church unless he went with me, and I would need to read his “goodnight” text before I could peacefully fall asleep. Autumn and I were roommates our freshmen year of college, and that was probably the worst and best decision I’ve ever made. Best, because she was a clean roommate and never borrowed my deodorant. Worst, because I was sleeping near the other woman in my relationship. Rob went to college one hour south of us, so he visited me often. I usually never let him out of my sight, but a few times I had to go to class or else I’d get dropped, so I let him hang out with Autumn. Worst decision. After a while, I would always go to his campus on the weekends because we had 3 days of complete alone time, and Autumn never came along. Best decision. When Rob visits me now, he apologizes for everything he did to me. “Rob, I still love you, it’s okay. How is Autumn doing?” Whenever I ask this he looks down at the ground and is silent for a few minutes, then he looks up and does a half smile and practically whispers, “She’s okay. She’s doing okay Lori.” It wasn’t always like this. I used to like cats. I used to like cats a lot. My own cat was named Fernando because I thought Mexican names were funny when I was 13. He was a really nice cat and always let me tug his tail while I was watching T.V. One time he let me put cat socks on his feet and take pictures of him. I like how cats don’t feel human emotions like embarrassment or sadness. At least I don’t believe they do. All he did all day was sleep and eat and meow. Meow meow meow. All day. If I could transform into a cat I would, but then I’d have to pretend to like catnip. I loved Fernando, that’s why his accident wasn’t my fault. It wasn’t my fault that the front door was left open. But everyone assumed I placed him in front of the cab and said, “Alright, nice and steady now! Okay, Go!” But I didn’t. The door didn’t close because it made the decision not to close. At the end of my sophomore year of college, Autumn and I went to one last party before heading home. It wasn’t a crazy party, just a typical Miller Lite, sit-on-the-couch, watch-TV kind of party. So we did just that. I didn’t expect Rob to come because I hadn’t even told him about it, but while I was in the kitchen getting more tortilla chips, I heard his voice. But it was the voice that I had only heard him talk to me with. It had a lower pitch, more sultry like. It’s the voice he used when he wanted to kiss me, and he would always laugh a laugh that reminded me of one of those soul romance CD’s my parents always used to play. I peeked my head out of the kitchen door and saw he was talking to Autumn and she was twirling her hair. I hate when girls twirl their hair. It’s the universal symbol that says, “No, I will not slap your hand away if you decide to touch my butt.” I didn’t run up to him right away because I was frozen where I stood. But I wasn’t mad because I had had two beers already. I didn’t really feel anything. I just stared. And then it happened. He kissed her cheek. Just like that. I dropped the spoon I had used to scoop more salsa and it made a louder noise than I had expected. Everyone stopped and stared at me. That night reminded me of when my dad came home late and he was throwing pots and pans around the kitchen, and me and my siblings had come out of our room and just stared at him. He must have felt just like I was feeling now. The next thing I knew, I was staring at a white ceiling that I learned was the ceiling of my hospital room. I also learned that the house that I was at had a flight of stairs, and that Autumn had ended up at the bottom of them. I don’t remember that part. When Blake visits me with Trevor now, I like to watch Trevor smile. I have always been fascinated with babies’ smiles. I wonder if they even know what they’re smiling about, or maybe they just smile because they like the way their face feels when they do it. Trevor had a beautiful smile, but it didn’t look like Blake’s. I don’t know whose it looked like. Neither did she. She says she is close to completing her GED, and I’m so proud of her. Maybe Princeton will change their mind and accept her after she gets it, because she did get a 34 on her ACT and straight A’s until she had to drop out. But maybe they won’t. It wasn’t always like this. I never used to have a curfew, or have to check in at meal times. I don’t understand. Why am I here? I haven’t don’t anything wrong. But in group session the facilitator says I need to “come to terms with my past.” What past? I just want to go back to college with my friends. I’ve forgiven Autumn and Rob. Blake says Autumn won’t be going back to college. I don’t understand why though. I tell her that maybe when I get out of here I can convince Autumn to go back with me, but Blake keeps telling me that Autumn will never be able to learn again. She always does that half smile that Rob does and changes the subject. Maybe someday someone will give me some answers. But for now, I have to go because it’s time for bed and the lady that checks us in gets super mad if I’m not there on time. The soft walls in my room make it easy to fall asleep. It kind of reminds me of my old dorm room. I used to have three body pillows that surrounded me on my twin bed. Oh no, she just called my name. Now I’m stuck with dish duty tomorrow. That’s ok. Maybe I’ll get to see Rob when I’m done and I can show him this story I wrote.


 * One of the main literary elements I employed was foreshadowing. I gave away the answer to a vague part of text before that text was introduced. For example, " No one thought that the real experience would come as soon as it did. " This sentence foreshadows Blake having a teen pregnancy, but the actual event isn't introduced until the second to last paragraph.
 * I also gradually changed Lori's speech as the story went on. She starts the story sounding put together and has mostly well formatted sentences. As the story progresses, her sentences get more and more choppy and her thoughts are sometimes incomplete or childish. This mirrors her progression in the actual story, from a normal high school student to someone who has experienced so much heart-ache and tragedy that she is placed into a mental institution.
 * I have no idea where my inspiration for this story came from. I decided I was going to write about three friends, but then it spiraled into a depressing story, which was not my original intention. I wanted to write a care-free, potentially humorous story, but once I started writing, more ideas kept flowing. No aspect of this story accurately mirrors my life in any form, except for a few events like making igloos with friends and Dad's temper.