New Pastafarian Republic of Grant. All Hail the Great Noodle!

Description/ Summary Misery Loves Comedy is an anthology of different autobiographical works by Ivan Brunetti. Some of his stories break away from the main theme, and include completely fictional situations and characters but usually embody similar elements. The main topic of the anthology as a whole is suicide, and why it’s both honorable and dishonorable. Suicide is presented as a possible solution to the atrocities of the world, but also an inexcusable escape from responsibility. Ivan is torn between his desire to die, and his inability to muster the courage. He hates himself deeply, and hates the world even more. This anthology is full of fantasies of bloodlust directed both inward and outward. A simple sense of powerlessness constantly on the back burner, leading the reader to a point of frustration. Throughout, Brunetti experiments with multiple graphic styles. There is an abundance of visuals which depict nudity, mutilation, death, decay, insanity, and overall detriment. Ea...

Blog Post #5 (Fixed version, hopefully. Tech issues.) What’s interesting to me is that the core standards don’t enforce a certain curriculum, only lays specific expectations for the results. Although they expect some knowledge of big name writers such as Shakespeare, they do not require students to have extensive knowledge of written works. My experience so far with these standards is only as a student, and I have never personally had any issues meeting the standard. However, I realize some people are less inclined to do well with reading and writing due to lack of interest. I see why we are studying graphics within language. Graphics are a great tool to get students interested in classical literature. If I had any visually artistic skills whatsoever I’d probably turn Paradise Lost into a comic book. I can almost visualize a graphic novel version of 1984.  By the time a student reaches college the standards change quite a lot. Students at the college level are expected to in...

Blog Post #5 -- CCSS for visual literacy  http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/  and  NES text pages 136-140 What’s interesting to me is that the core standards don’t enforce a certain curriculum, only lays specific expectations for the results. Although they expect some knowledge of big name writers such as Shakespeare, they do not require students to have extensive knowledge of written works. My experience so far with these standards is only as a student, and I have never personally had any issues meeting the standard. However, I realize some people are less inclined to do well with reading and writing due to lack of interest. I see why we are studying graphics within language. Graphics are a great tool to get students interested in classical literature. If I had any visually artistic skills whatsoever I’d probably turn Paradise Lost into a comic book. I can almost visualize a graphic novel version of 1984.  By the time a student reaches college the stan...

Blog Post #4 -- CCSS for speaking and listening at  http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/  and  NES text pages 130-135 Rhetoric is an interesting concept in general. It sort of strikes me as a process of presenting information in a certain way in order to receive a specific response. In other words, coaxing your audience to agree with you. I see this a lot in modern society, and I don't think it's inherently good or bad in nature. When it comes to public speaking I am personally quite gifted (when in a proper mood). However, I've heard somewhere  that the typical human thinks at around 1400 words per minute, and speaks at around 400. Something in my brain prevents me from choosing the right wording, so I try to prepare my speech ahead of time to avoid this issue.  A degree of comfort is essential to the environment around the speaker and the listener. The reading focuses on the speaker and listener a lot, but I'm personally more concerned with the environ...

NOT AN OFFICIAL POST (just a link to a cool article relevant to silence in the classroom) https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2014/07/people-would-rather-be-electrically-shocked-left-alone-their-thoughts

Blog Post #3 -- Brookfield's “Discussion as a Way of Teaching”  After reading this article I definitely see the benefit to the procedure it described. I often have a hard time when arguing with people because we usually come from very different places. I've always been welcoming of ideological diversity of thought, but lose my patience easily when confronted with an overabundance of compassion. I don't have anything against compassion, in fact I employ it within my own thought constantly, but I see struggle as a way to breed strength. My compassion takes a different turn here. I believe that exposing people to struggle will be most beneficial for them in the long run. This theory has proven true time and time again in my own life.  In a broad sense this article focuses on dialectics, which is a topic I've only recently come across. I appreciate the idea that common ground between two or more parties is valuable, especially for social progression, but I must admit it g...

Blog Post #2 -- Lieb, M. (2019). Culture Distance and Cultural Dimensions in Diverse ELT Environments: A Quantitative Investigation. (under review)  Handout provided in class. I couldn't help reading this article through the lens of "United States" and "Japan" interactions. My personal plan is to teach English in foreign countries, perhaps Japan, so my interest is thoroughly peaked. Ultimately, culture is a hard thing to measure. I give Ms. Lieb kudos for finding a way to actually internalize and measure some of this phenomenon. However, she cites Shevalier and Mckenzie's take of a social justice approach and i personally see no good way to implement an American version of social justice onto cross cultural interactions with Japan. This form of justice is all about identifying a victim and catering to them. It seems quite impossible to identify a true victim between Japan and the U.S historically, and will only result in conflict. So I hope they don'...