DoaS Project

The Modern Tragedy 
 
Never was the modern tragedy more suited for Willy 
The man hit the road every day but never earned a millie 
Yes there is no doubt Willy was great 
A guy with a character no man could fake 
He loved his boys, both Biff and Happy whole 
He still has dreams of Biff in the Super Bowl 
 
Yet Willy is flawed, all full of hubris 
He misses the truth, he's delusional and oblivious 
Willy is not as successful as he promises 
But he is caught up in the "Corrupt American Dream" and thanks God his sons are built like Adonises 
He got ahead of himself, perhaps he had too much care 
He sure did fill his sons up with hot air 
 
Willy's flaws and the Boston incident led to misfortune 
Biff could not believe his eyes, there was too much absorption 
Biff flees the scene, he simply just goes 
Perhaps Willy is a fake and he doesn't like anybody around who knows 
 
After Boston, it is clear that Willy suffers 
It appears that in between his relationship with Biff is a buffer 
Willy's self-esteem becomes smaller than a mouse 
There is a reason he won't have Linda mending stockings in the house 
Willy is fired from his job, Howard gives him the boot 
I guess it wasn't enough to just say "A man is not a piece of fruit" 
Willy probably wishes he was the one who walked into the jungle and found diamonds 
Because on the road, he was no Dave Singleman 
The woods are burning and Willy's dreams fade 
There is no doubt that "Attention must be paid" 
 
However, Willy is a hero for having a revelation 
He soon finds himself in a tough situation 
Willy goes to get seeds right away 
When planting, he marvels at what his boys would do with 20 K. 
Willy and Biff make up, leading Willy to go for a ride 
When the engine starts, everyone knows he is committing suicide. 
Opposite of Aristotle's proclamation, Willy is just a common man who takes a fall 
Maybe he did have the wrong dreams after all 
Looking at his grave, Linda thrice repeats, "We're free" 
Yes, the life of Willy Loman defines the modern tragedy 

Adam Ashourzadeh

Mr. Daszenski

English 11R

1/13/11

DoaS Project Reflection

“OH MY GOD BOBBY! Get to my house right NOW!” Kristina screeched at a glass breaking tone.

“Dude relax, we’ll get it done. Stop bugging out Kristina,” Bobby answered in his usual relaxed, nonchalant voice

“Alright guys everyone go to Kristina’s house so we can play some video games with her sister and drive her dad’s ill Ferrari,” I said.

“Aright I’m down for that,” Garfinkel answered half asleep (it was about 1:30 PM).

“Be here at 2 o’clock,” Kristina demanded.

“Yes ma’am,” Garfinkel, Bobby and I answered simultaneously.

I guess that’s why we decided to have a girl in our group. If it were just Bobby, Garf, and me we probably wouldn’t have finished the project in time. I probably wouldn’t be writing this reflection and instead I’d be doing my project. At the same time working with Kristina was a bit of a hassle. You know how girls are, just flat out annoying but it’s all right; I worked outside my comfort zone and succeeded in making a nice project productively with a good group.

It took us quite a while to decide what we were going to do for our project. Our idea wasn’t a tough decision; we all agreed on that right away. Modern tragedy seemed to be the right concept to go with. We had a wide variety of project ideas from montages, to long free verse poems. In order to satiate everyone, I brought up the idea of a slideshow with a couple of poems incorporated in it. Everyone agreed with the idea and we finally got going with the project (a couple of weeks after).

We were planning on finishing our project Christmas break, however plans often go astray. We did nothing. Everyone was just way too lazy to get up out of bed and do work. Garf and I were hanging out over the break and I asked him “Yo you wanna start the English project?” Garf, being the lazy man that he is, replied, “I hope you’re kidding. You must be out of your mind. They don’t call it a VACATION for no reason.”

Loman and Sons finally got rolling the weekend following Christmas break. We all met at Kristina’s palace and split the project and gave each person a certain role. Since Bobby is a great poet, we put him responsible for brainstorming and writing a rough draft of a free verse poem on modern tragedy. It was Garf’s job to help Bobby write his free verse and to write a sonnet of his own as well. Kristina and I were going to do the majority of the PowerPoint part of the project.

I am very good with computers including using PowerPoint. One thing that I am not good at with computers is editing pictures. Throughout the PowerPoint we were editing and cropping pictures and making them black and white. I never knew how to use IPhoto or any other photo program. Kristina taught me how to work with it and get comfortable with it. At one point I was getting so frustrated because I didn’t understand how to crop one photo; it got to the point where I seemed like a pernicious animal.

After a long day, we all finished our assignments and edited the whole project as a group. Surprisingly, I thought it looked really good (Kristina thought it was terrible, but she’s like that with everything that has to do with school). Bobby’s poem seemed like it was an instant classic, and Garf’s wasn’t that bad either. To be honest I was just glad we were finished.

Overall, I think our project was a success. It gets the point of the modern tragedy across very well. It very thoroughly explains the idea of a modern tragedy and how each aspect of a modern tragedy applies to Willy. The next time I’m asked to work in a group I think I would make a video. Videos always are a lot of fun to make with a group. There’s a lot of room to joke around and editing is very fun as well.

Braylon

Corner of the End Zone

Two Feet In

Teach Me How To Dougie

I Took My Shot

Sprinting up and down the court, step after step after step
Beads of sweat running down my face
The clock ticking down second by second
One minute left in the game
My team down by two
My heart beats to the dribble of the ball
I took my shot
I made it, I stand, and I stand tall
My team swarms in around me
I am a hero

This poem reflects a shot that I made while playing on a travel basketball team. Our last season was last winter and the whole team was together since fourth grade.

DoaS Project

The Life of a Project: Willy after the Boys’ abandonment

Oh, I’d better hurry. I’ve got to get some seeds, right away. Nothing’s planted. I don’t have a thing in the ground! I was fired today, and Biff didn’t have such a great day with Oliver either. He stole his fountain pen for Christ’s sake! I thought I could make it here in New York just as old Dave had done. Oh Dave! How did you do it? I should have left with Ben when I had the chance. This is all because of that damn American Dream.

Yea, the dream gave me confidence and energy. That was what made me articulate. It was my main trade! That was how I gained the respects of Biff and Happy. Because I talked so confidently to them, they looked up to me and followed me. They loved me! Oh what a brilliant idea the American Dream is! It even gave me the tenacity to hold my ground here in the jungle.

But wait, what for? I’m jobless and my children disrespect me. I lost Biff’s trust and the American Dream can do nothing about it. I can’t even take Charley’s job offer because of my American Dream. I’m supposed to be as well off as Charley according to my American Dream, I can’t be taking his offers. The American Dream is a sham!

I was just used up and thrown away like a piece of orange! Now, I can’t be worth just as much as an orange? I’m a man! A human being! I’m Willy Loman! I named you Howard, you were just a baby in your father’s arms and I named you! Oh, how could they do this to me? The people aren’t like they used to be. All these bricks and windows, they’ve changed things. Now every man is for himself! They’ve broken the deposit bottle, my deposit bottle!

I should have known. I should have left with you Ben. You were right, you were right! But it’s too late now. So, instead, I came up with this new idea. Listen Ben, I want you to consider. I want you to advise me. I value your advice. Listen, I came up with this a while ago but I finally made up my mind today. I even gave the waiter at that restaurant all my money. Well not all, thank God I had those spare changes left in my back pocket for the seeds. But anyways, the idea is this. You know that insurance I’ve been paying all my life? Now it’s about time they paid back. At least that deposit bottle isn’t broken. I’m going to do it Ben! What a proposition, ts, ts. Terrific terrific. ‘Cause she’s suffered, Ben, the woman has suffered. You understand me? You gotta consider, now. Don’t answer so quick. Remember. It’s a guaranteed twenty-thousand-dollar proposition. Twenty-thousand-dollars…

DoaS Project Reflection

My experience in this Death of a Salesman Project was a memorable one. Working with two of my close friends, Carly and Nicole, we all really got to express ourselves with literature in different ways than usual. When we first thought of the idea to all write a song together of Willy Loman’s tragic death and the play’s major themes such as capitalism and the American Dream, we never thought our project would turn out as great as it did (trust me).

My role in our group was to get video clips of the different movies made of DoaS, and work with Nicole to merge them all together to make it our own in a way. Carly and I also were in charge of song writing, which I had never really done before, so it was fun challenge. Singing with Carly happened to be one of the funniest experiences of my life. Every time we would start recording on GarageBand, she would start doing opera tones or making funny faces. I can honestly say this project was not a burden, but a creative and even fun, undertaking. Carly was definitely our group’s MVP I would say. Carly has the ability to always be managing many tasks at once and making it look so easy. I would say she was the most experience with using GarageBand and iMovie so she really has the foist (vocab, check) task of having to teach Nicole and I the basics.

Our group worked extremely together overall, we all took on a major task that needed to be accomplished and there was no major procrastinating or problems in the end. Our inspiration for this video and song write we performed was really a group idea we came up with up, having the intentions of making a modern day music video of Willy Loman’s tragic death. In the end, it was more technical than we thought it would be so we stuck to songwriting and video editing.

The major ideas conveyed in our project were Willy’s delusion of the American Dream and his pernicious ways and habits. We thought it was really interesting how Willy all his life had really been nothing but a cheater, always lying to himself and the people around him. In our song, we sing how Willy finally comes to terms with the cheating man, and dishonorable role model (he once was a real role model to Biff) he is. “I found the truth, When I realized my true income, Suicide is my only way out”. We wrote this line because it really portrays Willy’s desperateness at the end of the play. We wanted to show everyone how sad and hopeless Willy was at the end of his life. He had to end it.

Like I said before, working with GarageBand and iMovie was really the biggest challenge for us I think. We had to work outside our comfort zones and play around with it a little to really understand the program and see how much you could do with it. I really learned so much (seriously, I had never opened GarageBand before) with voice editing and effects you could use with such simple dialogue or sounds. I really enjoyed using this programs and will definitely be more open to using them in the future. Another fear, you could say, I overcame for this project was singing in front of the class. I mean, I already get florid every time a teacher called on me, how was I supposed to sing in front of my class? Talk about, stage fright. Anticipating the reactions of our fellow classmates and Mr. D of course, was one of the scariest aspects of our project. Lets face it, we don’t have a career in singing and it was quite embarrassing hearing our tone-deaf voices screeching for everyone to hear. I really had to learn to be comfortable and just laugh at it. (I hope it wasn’t too painful in the end).

This was a really enjoyable and educational way to reflect on one of the greatest pieces of history in American history. I am glad our class got the chance to read Death of a Salesman and really try to perceive life through Willy Loman’s eyes. I had a great time.

Reflection on DoaS project

Ben Nahmani

As soon as we got the project Taylor, Brian, and I immediately started blurting out ideas. When we finally settled in on one idea. We began to work on it. Our first idea was to rewrite key parts of the play when Willy is shown to be suffering, but instead make it so that everything is the exact opposite. Where Willy is jealous of Charlie, we would make it that Charlie would be jealous of Willy. Where Bernard was outsmarting Biff, we would make it that biff was more intelligent then Bernard was. We began writing down all of our ideas, when we came up with an even better one.

We decided to write about what would happen (in our heads) in Death of a Salesman if the Loman family received the life insurance check in the mail after Willy’s death. We wanted to make it so that they get the $20,000 and really change their lives around. We wanted biff and happy to open up their sporting goods store and be able to show it off the everyone. We wanted biff and happy to make both of their parents proud…

My role in the group was to help write the script with everyone and play the part of Biff when we act it out in class. I would like to say I was the MVP because I felt as though I came up with most of the ideas but I have to hand it to Taylor, because she was writing all of them down and even went the extra mile and typed it all up edited and re-edited it printed it all out and had a smile on her face the whole way through.

Although I wasn’t the MVP, I was still the “group leader” in that I was the glue between Taylor and Brian. I kept us on track and made sure we got all of our work done. We were inspired by Mr. Daszenski as well the exceptional way he pronounces vocabulary words. Words such as “gauche” (pronounced gosh). It’s easy to say I learned the meaning of this word as well as others because I would inculcate them to myself with flash cards I made.

I think our project is a perfect success because it came out exactly as I had hoped. It shows a continuation of a story… a happy ending with humor as well as Mr. Daszenski who plays Willy (for a line but a really important one). Next time I would work on our project even more then we already did because I feel as though it could have been even better or at least longer.

I will be working out of my comfort zone by acting in front on the class because as outgoing as I may be I still have some serious stage fright. I think that I will be fin acting out in front of the class because I am used to the kids in the class and they all have t come up and present as well. I hope it won’t be too much of a challenge because I haven’t done the hard part o my assignment but I am sure it will all be fine…

Good Bye

The smile I have on my face
is not a smile
A drop of water running down my cheek
I don't know whether if it's a tear or a flake of snow.
Just walking step by step,
wandering around in my past
on the street that we used to walk as a pair.
Now that I'm walking on it by myself,
I realize the emptiness
where you used to be.
The pain I'm having right now
is not from the scars you gave me
but from me sewing those scars in my heart
where you used to be.
I'm putting the memories of you in the falling snow
so that they can melt away when the spring comes.
Till then I will smile
but now...
I am walking on this street
where we used to be
-Joseph Rhee

Persuasive Essay

To the Superintendent, Board of Education:

There is a problem at hand that requires immediate attention. As you all may know, many schools around the country, including ours, are certainly feeling the effects of the ailing economy. School districts are raising taxes. Teachers are being laid off. Sports teams are being dismantled in some schools and other schools are even being shut down. However, there is nothing to worry about; there are solutions to prevent these issues from occurring. One of these solutions is a four-day school week with an extra-hour added on which I think sounds a whole lot better than a five-day school week.

There is a whole list of benefits that go with this type of schooling. For example, there is a Research Brief, concerning the Four Day School Week, put out by the Principal’s Partnership Foundation (www.principalspartnership.com), sponsored by The Union Pacific Foundation, that addresses the specific issues of the four-day school week.

Some of the positive findings of this paper include a decline in student drop-out rates, a decrease in student disciplinary referrals, an improvement in student and teacher attendance; students and teachers benefit from less interrupted class time as a result of longer class periods, and fewer transitions at all grade levels occur, which increases the efficiency of instruction. Students and teachers share more positive attitudes about school, which can lead to improvement in school morale because of the extra day added on to the weekend. School faculty would have more time for quality staff development on the day that there would’ve been school. There would also be more time for student participation in extracurricular activities and for personal business, such as doctor appointments on that extra day added on. Lastly, students report they are better able to manage part-time employment. Some benefits for the school, in general, are significant savings on utility bills, substitute teacher pay, school buses, and building wear and tear. Missed school days due to inclement weather can also be made up on what would have been the fifth school day instead of at the end of the school year. Now doesn’t this already sound a lot better?

With benefits comes disadvantages. For example, A Report from the Middlesex County Public Schools 4-day School Week Exploration Committee (http://www.mcps.k12.va.us/4-Day_School_Week.pdf) states the disadvantages of having a four-day school week. Some of these disadvantages include Child Care issues. This is because parents would now have to find someone or some place to babysit their children while they’re at work (I don’t really think this is a big problem at all though because the school could have some sort of daycare program for students whose parents work). There would also be retention issues for special education students (This could also be easily solved by an alternative schedule for these students). There might also be issues with attention among students who aren’t used to such a long day. Students who receive free or reduced lunch would have to go an extra day without a hot meal but these students could all receive food stamps for the days that there is no school. There would also be a discrepancy in scheduling sports games against opponents who still have five-day school weeks which can easily be sorted out as well.

By now, you may all have a better idea on whether or not you agree with a four-day school week. You have all heard the pros and cons of this type of schooling. In my opinion, having five days of school sometimes feels like forever but having four days of school sounds even better with an extra hour added in. It may not sound so good at first but soon everyone will get used to the four-day schedule. Don’t you think this sounds so much better than a five day school week?! I certainly do.

Jonathan Shalot

Miami Heat- A Force to Be Reckoned With (A Persuasive Essay)

“It” is official. On July 7th, 2010 King James announced that he would be taking his talents to South Beach Florida along with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. “It”still happened, even though many NBA fans whined about the process in which "It" took place. The Miami Heat has now become an even stronger and more dominant basketball team. In the next few weeks we will see the Miami Heat take over the NBA with their new “Big 3.”

Those who are still sour about Lebron 23's move to go to Miami and become Lebron 6 need to let it go. The emotional unrest of NBA fans won't get in the way of the Miami Heat possibly winning a championship. If anything it might fuel the heat (pun intended) that Miami will generate in the form of total supremacy on the court. Supremacy is the perfect word to use because three of the players from the gold medal winning USA Basketball team in Beijing were Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. They are now a combined force to be reckoned with in Miami.

Can they win a championship in 2011? Shortly, yes and that's because the Heat now present a critical problem for all other teams in the league. Match-ups. Which of "The Big 3" do you focus on? The one who has the hot hand? On any given night that could be any of the three or all three. Whom do you double-team? Whom do you try to contain? What exactly are the things to do to stop Miami? Absolutely nothing.

Dwayne Wade (A.K.A The Playmaker) was selected 5th overall in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Miami Heat. He quickly emerged as a productive player on a young Miami Heat team. For the last three season Wade has averaged 27 points, 7 assists and there is no reason why he would be slowing down. While being on the Miami Heat Dwayne Wade won the NBA Championship and the Finals MVP in 2006, and he became the Miami Heat all-time leading scorer and all-time assists leader. Enough said.

Chris Bosh (A.K.A The Baller) was selected fourth overall by the Toronto Raptors in the 2003 NBA Draft, and he quickly became his team’s captain and a monster off and on the boards. Here is what he has done so far. He made the NBA All-Rookie Team in 2003-04. He was in the NBA Rookie All-Star Game from 2003 through 2005. He is the third-youngest player in NBA history to get 1,000 rebounds. He is the fourth-youngest player in the NBA to get 20 points and 20 boards in a game. Also, for the Toronto Raptors he was the all-time leader in points scored, in total rebounds, and in total blocks. Enough said.

Lebron James (A.K.A The Dominator or The Facilitator) was selected first overall in the 2003 NBA Draft, and has become known as “The Next Michael Jordan.” Lebron's basketball IQ is very high. His athleticism is unparalleled. His half-court shooting ability is as precise as it is unbelievable. His ball-handling is as good as any point-guard. Lebron's jumping ability is beyond Jordan. His shot blocking is powerful. His first step is monstrous. His energy is explosive. He is half-man and half-amazing. He can play every position on the court and play them all well. He's been in the league for seven seasons and has done a heck of a lot. Lebron James is the most powerful NBA player in the whole entire league. During his 7 years with the Cleveland Cavs he has become a 6 time All-NBA player, a 6 time All NBA All-Star, and won 2 NBA MVP’s. Enough said.

The major pieces are in place for the Miami Heat and the stage is now set. The Heat has also signed a few big-time role players, Eddie House, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and Mike Miller. "The Big 3" and the Heat are a force that the NBA is well aware of. Can the Miami Heat win a championship in 2011? Yes, they can. Will they? Too many variables (injuries, lack of team work, etc.) keep the answer from being definite. The case can be made, however, that with Lebron James and Chris Bosh joining Dwayne Wade, it becomes a matter of "When" and "How many" championships the Heat will win.

~Scott Aharoni~

Is One the Loneliest Number

I am

The wolf in "The Three Little Pigs".

I am

A single child who came after triplet siblings.

I am

The keeper of many names: Raquela, Kali, KK, Roxy, Rox, Raq and RQ.

I am

The bubbly one around the dinner table.

I am

The one you hear laughing a deep laugh from the inside.

I am

The child who looks into the mirror and sees a girl with green eyes and curly hair staring back.

I am

The family's next celebrity chef who does amazing feats with a knife on a cutting board.

I am

The spunky one who speaks up and even fights when taking a stand on an issue.

I am

Daddy's little girl, really! Absolutely!

I am

Different, and deep down happy just the way I am.

I am

Focused one minute but take the opportunity to be flighty the next.

I am

Friendly and full of waves of energy.

I am

The wolf, no, maybe i am more like the wolf's cub that should have been in "The Three Little Pigs".

Sleeping In - Haiku

Sunday morning, you wake up in your room

you drift out of bed and walk out of your room

-silence-

As I was trying to come up with a haiku, I remembered those moments when everyone else went out while I was asleep and I woke up to find myself alone in the house. I used to live in a two story house and as I walked down the stairs to see if anyone else was home, I would hear only my footsteps and the creaking of the stairs. Sometimes, however, my brother would be downstairs on his computer and I would faintly hear the computer fan running as I walked down the stairs, being slightly relieved and knowing he was there.

I chose the day to be Sunday because I thought maybe some of the readers' houses don't get empty often and the only times this would happen to them is when they slept in on Sunday and missed church. Actually, I think this happens often during vacations too.

I tried to get the readers to picture their own rooms and go through the story in their own shoes instead of just objectively listening to mine because I wanted them to experience that feeling I was trying to convey. Anyways I hope it worked.