Final Reflection for ELA 30-1
By Marcus Ramsay
Throughout the course of my high school years, English has always been one of my favorite subjects. English is the only course I have taken that has truly given me the ability to express my self through school projects, and has directly applied to my life outside of school. My learning in ELA 30-1 was significantly more influential on myself as a human than what was taught in ELA 10 and 20. Learning about the paradoxes of the human condition gave a little bit more insight into the adult I would like to grow up to be, and the material covered gave excellent examples of how certain individuals will react in situations of parenting, murder, suicide, substance abuse, heroism and many other topics I may or may not encounter in my life. English class has taught me to use literature and other forms of media as lessons or examples for how I may or may not want to live my life.
The first unit completed in ELA 30-1 was Hamlet by William Shakespeare. This play is a Shakespearean tragedy about a young man struggling to take revenge for the murder of his father. The constant frustration at the back of his mind sends him into a state of madness, to which the other characters respond to with a plan to murder Hamlet leaving them all doomed for failure. Although Hamlet was written during the Elizabethan era, it still contains many valuable life lessons that can still be applied to society today, such as the consequences of treating people unkindly. Hamlet somewhat "bullied" both Ophelia and his mother, making them both highly susceptible to emotional pain, resulting in both of them taking situations as what would be considered to far. Hamlet's constant put downs towards woman, telling Ophelia to go to "a nunnery" and comparing his mother to whore, puts a lot of stress on the two female characters, and it is apparent throughout the novel that neither of them are happy. This example shows the harm that verbal abuse can put on an individual, and one must be kind to others in order to truly be happy themselves.
The second unit we went through in English 30 was Truth and Bright Water. Truth and Bright Water tells the story of two First Nations communities separated by the Canadian and United States border, how ever the two towns have much more in common than the majority of onlookers would think. The biggest impact Truth and Bright Water had on me was the ideas about parenting, letting go and growing up. Most young adults can relate to Tecumsuh because he feels the constant pressure of acting mature and being forced to get a job if he wants his own things. This pressure is what causes a lot of stress in teenagers, along with the fear of having to go off by oneself. The questionable antics of Tecumsuh and Lum's parents is also a little bit of a model of what I do not want to be as a parent. The alcoholism that the characters have to deal with at a young age is a terrible example for children as it makes them think that it is alright. Tecumsuh's dad Elvin constantly deals with the guilt of falling short and giving up on what he has lost. Although he seems like a somewhat happy man, these little things constantly plague him, and I would like to put full effort into everything I do rather than only do the bare minimum like Elvin does.
The third and final unit we did was Lord of the Rings. Peter Jackson's interpretation of Tolkien's novel The Return of the King is a cinematic and literary masterpiece that has become one of my favorite films. There are many heroic characters in the film, some quite typical while some are visually surprising to classify as a hero. The hobbits best fit the classification of "visually surprising" because of their size. Jackson shows the viewer that anyone can have the potential to be a hero, no matter their shape or size. Although the hobbits were usually physically unable kill every villain that crossed their path, their wit and determination enabled them to complete the task of getting to Mordor and destroying the ring. Jackson's film has taught me that with courage and help from friends, a seemingly impossible task can seem a little more within reach.
And so it begins. The end of high school, the beginning of real life. This journey has not always been an easy one, but each struggle or challenge has simply been another step to shaping the individual I am today, and the individual I will be in the future. It is finished with now, all I can do is study and practice my writing in hope I achieve a satisfactory mark on the diploma. The material covered in the course has benefited me greatly and enhanced my knowledge, now it is up to me to continue reading, watching, studying and listening in order to keep learning.
The first unit completed in ELA 30-1 was Hamlet by William Shakespeare. This play is a Shakespearean tragedy about a young man struggling to take revenge for the murder of his father. The constant frustration at the back of his mind sends him into a state of madness, to which the other characters respond to with a plan to murder Hamlet leaving them all doomed for failure. Although Hamlet was written during the Elizabethan era, it still contains many valuable life lessons that can still be applied to society today, such as the consequences of treating people unkindly. Hamlet somewhat "bullied" both Ophelia and his mother, making them both highly susceptible to emotional pain, resulting in both of them taking situations as what would be considered to far. Hamlet's constant put downs towards woman, telling Ophelia to go to "a nunnery" and comparing his mother to whore, puts a lot of stress on the two female characters, and it is apparent throughout the novel that neither of them are happy. This example shows the harm that verbal abuse can put on an individual, and one must be kind to others in order to truly be happy themselves.
The second unit we went through in English 30 was Truth and Bright Water. Truth and Bright Water tells the story of two First Nations communities separated by the Canadian and United States border, how ever the two towns have much more in common than the majority of onlookers would think. The biggest impact Truth and Bright Water had on me was the ideas about parenting, letting go and growing up. Most young adults can relate to Tecumsuh because he feels the constant pressure of acting mature and being forced to get a job if he wants his own things. This pressure is what causes a lot of stress in teenagers, along with the fear of having to go off by oneself. The questionable antics of Tecumsuh and Lum's parents is also a little bit of a model of what I do not want to be as a parent. The alcoholism that the characters have to deal with at a young age is a terrible example for children as it makes them think that it is alright. Tecumsuh's dad Elvin constantly deals with the guilt of falling short and giving up on what he has lost. Although he seems like a somewhat happy man, these little things constantly plague him, and I would like to put full effort into everything I do rather than only do the bare minimum like Elvin does.
The third and final unit we did was Lord of the Rings. Peter Jackson's interpretation of Tolkien's novel The Return of the King is a cinematic and literary masterpiece that has become one of my favorite films. There are many heroic characters in the film, some quite typical while some are visually surprising to classify as a hero. The hobbits best fit the classification of "visually surprising" because of their size. Jackson shows the viewer that anyone can have the potential to be a hero, no matter their shape or size. Although the hobbits were usually physically unable kill every villain that crossed their path, their wit and determination enabled them to complete the task of getting to Mordor and destroying the ring. Jackson's film has taught me that with courage and help from friends, a seemingly impossible task can seem a little more within reach.
And so it begins. The end of high school, the beginning of real life. This journey has not always been an easy one, but each struggle or challenge has simply been another step to shaping the individual I am today, and the individual I will be in the future. It is finished with now, all I can do is study and practice my writing in hope I achieve a satisfactory mark on the diploma. The material covered in the course has benefited me greatly and enhanced my knowledge, now it is up to me to continue reading, watching, studying and listening in order to keep learning.
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