toward the future/ from the past

1) The main limination was the inherent inability of a play to convey the thoughts and actions of characters without dialogue. Plays are grounded in the discourse between the characters, and I thought some of the scenes I wanted to portray insufficient with just using dialogue and some exaggerated actions. Sometimes I wanted to create suspense by having one character sneak up on somebody, but the fact that you can see the whole stage on a play severely limited this. There were also times when I wanted to limit what the audience saw (like in movies), but this is near impossible on a stage. At times, I also wanted to focus in on some small events, but that wasn't possible due to the absense of a camera. This absense of focus on an event made me worry that the audience wouldn't notice - I guess I could have exaggerated the event, but that would defeat the purpose it being a "seemingly small event". There is also the obvious limit on special effects, but that was never too much of a problem for me - I never intended my play to have much "eye candy". However, despite these limitations, I found the task of overcoming these challenges fun and exciting, whilst still trying to maintain faithfulness to my initial ideas.

2) My initial idea for a personal essay would be to write about my experiences from living in three quite different countries: England, China, and the U.S (the latter being drastically more different than the others). I will probably focus on the societal differences - contrasting the strict traditional chinese views of my parents to the liberal ideals experienced here in the U.S. I'm not sure how far I can go with this essay, but I'll see. I probably won't stick to this idea - it's starting to seem a little limited in options....i don't kno...I'll see how it goes.

3) This is reverse pshychology - if I tell children to do something, then they will have some "compelling desire" to do the opposite (it's been proven true by some psychologist with lots of big credentials). Thus, this is my advice: do lots of drugs, have lots of sex right now, and drink a lot of alcohol. Whilst you are having sex, make sure not to use protection. Also, being a pimp is good for you health and hygiene - it promotes a healthy heart. Do not watch any disney cartoons, as they will corrupt your mind. Make sure to nuke the world and the moon whilst you're at it. An ethic of violence is far more productive than peace - Terrorism is awesome! Also, make sure you don't feed poor third world countries, make sure jews don't ever get a country, and be sure to promote more violence in the middle east (give iran some good old nukes).

Luigi Pirandello

1) I think theme is an important aspect of literature. However, since I am a very literal kind of person, I often don't like to read things that don't have a very explicit theme. This is why I don't like books such as "invisible man" by ralph ellison. I find it deliberately confusing to the point that I feel the author doesn't even know what he's talking about. But still, theme is an important part of literature. I think writers are charged to expose some flaw within our society. However, I do also feel fine about stories not necessarily need much of a theme to be interesting to read. Some examples are the Harry Potter books. I honestly believe that the author didn't originally have any explicit theme in mind when writing the first few books - although JK Rowling maybe did manage to weave some kind of theme into the later books.

2) I honestly don't think that I can write a "great" piece of literature. But, I think that all great pieces of literature discuss topics that are never "outdated". An example is Shakespeare's plays. They talk about tragedy, and lust for power and other crazy stuff, and these themes are still prevalent in writing today.

3) my goal for a long lasting impact would be to start a religion: called YUJIE-ISM. As a writer, I could make this possible, since I would have the ability to "bible" kind of book that would be the heart of this new religion. The purpose of the religion is to make everyone be like me - AWESOME!!!!!!

stuff i think about

1) I sometimes think about things.....sometimes. Anyway, the most recent thing i was pondering about was happiness. After watching the "pursuit of happiness", I think I realized that happiness is only derived from the journey. Its true that the the successful end brings you momentary euphoria, but it's your journey towards success that impacts you the most.
Soon after the success, you often begin to feel indifferent about it, and in my case, you start to want more. However, this never the case with the memories you have from the journey. When you think back, you often feel proud - the memories are kind of bitter sweet. You feel glad that you were able to live through them, but also you probably wouldn't want to relive them again. All of my comments above were probably just rambling. I find it hard to describe my thoughts after watching the movie.

2) Sid the sloth from the movie "ice age" is the most dynamic person/thing I know. He was able to make fire when the crew was making their way though a blizzard storm. And, through his ingenuity, he was able to make a fire to keep the baby warm - all done without setting his tail on fire..... I especially admire his snowboard/skiing skills that he employed to outrun the tigers. I think Sid is very inspirational. He is the sticky nasty stuff that you can't quite get rid of, that holds the whole group together.

3) the piece art that has inspired me is actually the song "imagine" by john lennon. I like the sense of hope he tries to express. It makes me feel hopeful when I feel sad, or I think something is hopeless. I admire Lennon's ability to still be hopeful, even when he points out all of the flaws he finds with the world.

The last blog - EVER. - happyness

1) happiness is the feeling you get when your brain releases endorphins. This can cause a blissful and joyful feeling. You often feel happy when something when something happens that benefits either yourself, or the people close to you. Happiness is often attained through natural means....

2) Happyness = success!!!!!!!!! I am most happy when I achieve something that exceeds my personal expectations. This isn't necessarily about school, in fact, I get the most happiness from success outside of school. I often find happiness from being successful in debate and other competetive activities. Being with my friends adds to my happiness, due to their support and company.

3) My parents have probably had the greatest influence on my happiness, since they have the most control over all aspects of my life. They have very extreme effects on my happiness, often influenced by my academic life and their measure of me to their expectations.

4) Conversely, I also have a big impact on my parents' happiness. I often find their expectations of me are too high. I often feel angry with the unfair burdens they place upon me, and I sometimes rebel against them.

5) I don't really know what my greatest need in life is. I can definately list of some of my greatest wants, but my needs and wants are mutually exclusive. I think I am quite easily pleased, so my needs probably aren't very high. I know that my wants will probably lead to happiness - it would be ideal if I could obtain the same end of happiness without any of the means, but that would probably me to become a monk or something.

Assignment 8

I will probably use my first story - "Anomaly's End" since I think it would make quite a good picture book. It is quite a lighthearted story that would seem enjoyable for young children. If I somehow change my mind, I would probably use one of my poems - possibly "Singularity" or "What is poetry?" since they are my best poetic works - i think.
one of my poems

Assignment 7

1) I enjoyed writing the first story most of all. I liked the freedom that allowed me to write about any wacky idea without any restrictions. Even though I did have to tie in the picture, I found that it was relatively easy - all you had to do was make a remote reference to the picture.

2) I liked my first short story the most. This is because I actually had fun whilst I was writing it. I think this was my most imaginative and creative piece, which is surprising because I don't consider myself a very imaginative person. It might not necessarily be that this story is my best piece of I writing I have done in this course, but it is the piece I am most proud and satisfied with.

3) I generally don't like structure very much within my stories. this is because I don't like the feeling of being confined to only a specific model or archetype. I am generally very open minded about different types of writing. However, my free attitude could also be a cause of my lack of organizational skills. I often procrastinate, only doing my assignments the night before they are due. I often find it very difficult to motivate myself to do an assignment early - the best motivation for me to do assignment is often the bad consequence of not completing it.

4) If I were to pursue writing, it would be non-fiction. This is because I like to escape from a sometimes boring, mundane and repetetive life into an unexpected fantasy. I feel that only non-fiction can actually accomplish this feat, since allthe others are still too close to what I'm trying ot escape.

Assignment 6

1) I do enjoy being scared, but only the a places where I feel secure. These locations are generally at the movies - when I'm with friends- or at home. It also depends on my particular mindset. If I'm not in a relaxed mood, I will probably take the movie too seriously and get paranoid about everything as a result.

2) I'm actually not really scared of guts and gore, probably I've been so desensitized to it. I find the suspense in waiting for the small possibility of something unfortunate happening far more frightening than the actual event. I'm not really sure where my fears come from.

3) Psychotic probably. I think that madness can be caused by a obsession. But I think madness itself is the action derived form the obsession, whether it be murder or genocide....

4) obsession over an unatainable object/desire.......kinda like great gatsby

assignment five...openings

1)I am the warlord, the archeologist, the original Martian, the slayer of an evil monarchy. I have climbed the tallest mountains with only a walking stick. I have unearthed the artifacts of a dead cilization of monkeys. I have scaled the walls of secret government agencies. I am Jonny Anomoly.....

2) It was a bright and sunny day. All was well, with the exception of Jonny Anomoly, who was embarking on his secret. His determination left nothing but success on his mind; failure was not an option.

3)I was riding down on the blazing Schwinn Spectacular: a metal and rubber contraption of aerodynamic curves. As I ride at light speed, I feel the wind flow smoothly past my machine of quicksilver.

4)Jonny Anomoly, in simplest of terms, was an anomaly. At the age of fifteen, he was still having imaginary adventures on his "Schwinn spectacular" aka his bike. What follows is the tale of all tales, the adventure that ended all adventures. What I am about to share is the event that ended the Anomoly.

5)It was a dark and stormy night. The wind was billowing, but in this case it was an advantage. This specific billowing wind was billowing Jonny Anomoly on towards his next adventure. It was such a billowing billow that it in fact doubled Jonny's blazing speed, which was only to be further tripled by his dynamic miracle of modern transportation, artfully dubbed as the "schwinn spectacular. This is why I invite you now to join Jonny on his adventure which - due to the extreme speed of billowing - will begin very soon.

Assignment 4: crazy story

Task 1
a)The setting in the second half of the story is very surreal, especially when Friend tries to entice Connie into leaving with him. The situation for Connie is helpless, even in her own home. It seems to give a sense of insecurity, even in the most secure of places.
b)I actually feel quite indifferent about Connie. This could be because she seems to be like the stereotypical cheerleader/barbiegirl archetype within the high school society. I think that willingness to disobey her parents in order to enjoy herself is just begging for some kind of unfortunate end.
c)The theme is about the shortcomings of the aesthetic and materialistic desires that are so deeply entrenched within our society. Connie's unfortunate experience is symbolic of the possible consequences.
d)It has a very mysterious feel, which is climaxed very sharply at the end. I think the uncertainty throughout the later half of the story draws readers in, especially the unresolved ending.
e)I would guess that Connie is either raped or killed....
f)Ernest Friend represents the coveting jealousy that is inherent within a society where human worth is based on aesthetics and material possessions. He views Connie as an object that he can attempt to obtain by force.

Task 2
I think short stories need to be very concise, happening over a very short period of time. They need to have minimal background information, or at least very little explicit that describe character/setting without moving plot forward. I generally like stories that have a gradual buildup towards the climax, as opposed to those with a very sharp slope that reach the pinnacle within a few sentences. Although I enjoy creativity and very fictional fantasy settings, I feel that a short story doesn't provide enough time to do justice to imaginary world that the author has created. Thus on balance, a short story needs to be grounded in the real world. Characterization is also very important. I think that characters need to be very distinct, going almost to one extremity. This is because there isn't very much time to build up on their personalities, and so they need to make an immediate impression.

Assignment 3..........................................................................................................................................

The Greatest Poem in the WORLD....G!!!

The sun

The sun is the source

the start of all religion

the reason for conflicting:

The crusades, jihad

yet it tries to kill sin

Each religion seeks victory in this holy war

My Lord is greater than yours

more omnipotent, godlier

It justified murder

for paradise and survival

but at their core

they are contain

a singularity of morals

So forget the subtle differences

and think the possibilities

if we all just agreed

The Greatester Poem in the World.....H!!!

The twin towers fall

like panic at the disco

dance on in the fight

The grounded tiwns wail

with America mourning

our children, fallen

Assignment 2: I <3 the Jabberwocky

The Jabberwocky was a poem that was first introduced to me whe I was six years old. It's a nonsense poem about a boy who goes into the forrest and slays the mythical creature called "The Jabberwocky". What really drew me in was the fact that although most of the words were made up and didn't have any dictionary meaning, it still made sense, moreso than most other poems that weren't nonsense, though they seemed comparatively more nonsense.

He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought --
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

This passage is awesome, regardless of the fact that many of the words aren't even words!!!

Prompt:
Explain how the author's use of "nonsense language" actually seems to make sense. What techniques does he ploy in order to create such a uniqely vivid picture?

assignment 1: about me

Hi!!!! I'm Yujie. And although I'm taking a creative writing class, i generally don't do much writing outside of school, except for debate. I have written several cases for my current debate topic, but they are usually very tedious and forced. Thus i probably don't have many writing interests. This could be due to all the previous English classes I have taken, which have all had heavy emphasis on writing analytical essays....very boring. But, regardless, I am enjoying the newfound freedom of stressless weekends.
So....even though i don't spend my free time writing :(, I do enjoy reading, watching TV, spending time with friends, and playing computer games. I have recently become interested in a drama on NBC called Heroes.

Anyway, I don't really have an all time favorite author, but the Harry Potter series does rank pretty high in my list. I find the style very readable, which helpful when taking a break from dense writers like Foucault and Nietzsche.

An example of my writing is:
I take a bite
into that heart shaped slice.
Grease in my mouth
as I picture the cholesterol
blocking my heart

I sit on the couch
watching old romantic movies,
And feeling the cheese
condensing inside.
Each straining pulse
ringing in my ears
like a bad cough
it wheezes
grease consuming
and dies

Welcome

Hi, welcome to my Palace!!!