LITERATURE ANALYSIS

NON-FICTION ANALYSIS:
Topics and/or Events-
1.) Diving into Darkness is a book about two divers, Don Shirley and David Shaw, who one day decided to dive to the extended depths of Bushman's Hole. After months and months of preparing for this stun they decide to give it a try. Both of them determined to reach the depths in which no one has ever done before. In the process of doing so David Shaw gets tangled up in a line and is drowned to death. Then the books ends with David Shaw's wife revealing the stuggles she faced after the death of her husband.
2.) I think that the author decided to write about this topic/ event because he wanted to take a moment and recognize the courage and passion that these two divers represented. He wants to continue the amazing legacy.
3.) I chose this book because it was the only book available to me at the time. I continued to read it once I started it not only because it was the only book in my reach but because of the way the author describes a man who is completely committed to one thing and that one thing that he loves so passionately kills him.
4.) Yeah I did find the book realistic. I compared David Shaw with myself and how I'm very passionate about soccer and how I try to be the best at what I do.

People:
1.) The author directly states that Don Shirley was a way better diver than David Shaw in the beginning of the book, but as David Shaw continues to practice quite frequently and continues to gain skill every day. He eventually gets to the level in which Don Shirley was in.
2.) Yes the author shows that David Shaw develops and changes throughout the story. At first he didn't know a single thing about diving and then all of a sudden becomes really really good at it. Not just that but he's alive in the beginning of the book and dead towards the end of the book.
3.) The protagonist is a dynamic character because he's constantly changing throughout the book.
4.) I felt like I read a character. Usually when I meet someone I slowly go through a process of getting to know then and asking them questions and about themselves. In this book the author tells us directly about each one of  the characters.

Style:
1.) The author used tools for fiction writing such as foreshadowing.  He foreshadows that diving will be the end of himself. The thing he cared about most n this world was going to kill him.
2.) The author focuses more on action than dialogue or in other words an interaction between the characters. The book is mainly about the actions and steps they took to over come obstacles in their lifes.
3.) He uses the tools of including the actions and dialogue that went with the the risks they took.
4.) I think the author was very appreciative of the actions Don Shirley and David Shaw took.
5.) The author includes a news broadcast in the news paper. It gives me a sense of reality, that this actually took place.

HAFTA/WANNA

I am in the last chapter of my high school career, the last semester of my senior year. With that being said high school is, in my opinion, a preparation for the real world. Although high school seems like a complete waste of time the majority of the time, either because you learn things that may or may not have value for you in the future. For example, people who are interested in majoring in psychology and who are taking math classes at school. That is a complete waste of time. Taking math won't help them excel forward to pursue their dream. The only reason why we take these math courses is because it's required. We are forced to have a certain amount of credits for math classes in order to graduate. After high school you are not forced to do anything. Everything is in your control. You make your own agenda for the day. You are responsible for your actions.

vocabulary: spring list 4

Accolade(Noun)- An award or an expression of praise: There is no higher accolade at this school than an honorary degree.
Acerbity(Noun)- The process of expressing harsh or sharp criticism in a clever way: the customer made his displeasure known with more acerbity than was necessary.
Attrition(Noun)- A reduction in the number of employees or participants that occurs when people leave because they resign, retire, etc., and are not replaced: Attrition is high among social workers because of the difficult work and poor pay.
Bromide(Noun)- A binary compound of bromine with another element or a radical including some (as potassium bromide) used as sedative: His speech had nothing more to offer than the usual bromides about how everyone needs to work together.
Chauvinist(noun)- An attitude that the members of your own sex are always better than those of the opposite sex: Their ingrained chauvinism has blinded them to their country's faults.
Chronic(Adjective)- Happening or existing frequently or most of the time: He suffers from chronic arthritis.
Expound(Verb)- To explain or state (something) : to give details about (something): The article expounds the virtues of a healthy diet.
Factionalism(Noun)- A group within a larger group that has different ideas and opinions than the rest of the group: The committee soon split into factions.
Immaculate(Adjective)- Perfectly clean: She had an immaculate record of service.
Imprecation(Noun)- An offensive word or phrase that people say when they are angry: He muttered imprecations under his breath.
Ineluctable(Adjective)- Not able to be avoided or changed: The ineluctable approach of winter had many worried about the cost of heating their homes.
Mercurial(Adjective)- Changing moods quickly and often: The boss's mood is so mercurial that we never know how he's going to react to anything.
Palliate(Verb)- To make the effects of (something, such as an illness) less painful, harmful, or harsh: Treatments that can palliate the painful symptoms of the disease.
Protocol(Noun)- A system of rules that explain the correct conduct and procedures to be followed in formal situations: The soldier's actions constitute a breach of military protocol.
Resplendent(Adjective)- Very bright and attractive: The fields were resplendent with flowers.
Stigmatize(Verb)- To describe or regard (something, such as a characteristic or group of people) in a way that shows strong disapproval: A legal system that stigmatizes juveniles as criminals.
Sub rosa(Adverb)- In confidence. 
Vainglory(Noun)- Excessive or ostentatious pride especially in one's achievement: The vainglory that nations have historically shown after they have achieved military supremacy.
Vestige(Noun)- The last small part that remains of something that existed before: A few strange words carved on a tree were the only vestige of the lost colony of Roanoke.
 volition(Noun)-  The power to make your own choices or decisions: Tourette's syndrome is a neurological disorder marked by recurrent tics and vocalizations that are beyond the sufferer's volition or control.

Vocabulary Spring List #3

Apostate(Noun)- Someone whose beliefs have changed and who no longer belongs to a religious or political group: an apostate from communism, he later became one of its harshest critics.
Effusive(Adjective)- Expressing a lot of emotion: They offered effusive thanks for our help.
Impasse(Noun)- A situation in which no progress seems possible: An arbitrator was called in to break the impasse.
Euphoria(Noun)- A feeling of great happiness and excitement: The initial euphoria following their victory in the election has now subsided.
Lugubrious(Adjective)- Full of sadness or sorrow : very sad especially in an exaggerated or insincere way: A comic actor known for his lugubrious manner.
Bravado(Noun)- Confident or brave talk or behavior that is intended to impress other people: His stories are always told with bravado.
Consensus(Noun)- A general agreement about something : an idea or opinion that is shared by all the people in a group: Everyone on the council seems to understand the need for consensus.
Dichotomy(Noun)- A difference between two opposite things : a division into two opposite groups: Her essay discusses the dichotomy between good and evil in the author's novels.
Constrict(Verb)- To make (something) narrower, smaller, or tighter: The drug is used to constrict blood vessels.
Gothic(Adjective)- Of or relating to a style of writing that describes strange or frightening events that take place in mysterious places: I was staring at the gothic house across the street from my house.
Punctilio(Noun)- A minute detail of conduct in a ceremony or in observance of a code:  Italian punctilio point of honor.
Metamorphosis(Noun)- A major change in the appearance or character of someone or something: We have watched her metamorphosis from a shy schoolgirl into a self-confident businesswoman.
Raconteur(Noun)- Someone who is good at telling stories: My teacher is a great raconteur.
Sine qua non(Noun)- Something that is absolutely needed: Patience is a sine qua non for this job.
Quixotic(Adjective)- Hopeful or romantic in a way that is not practical: They had quixotic dreams about the future.
Vendetta(Noun)- A very long and violent fight between two families or groups: He waged a personal vendetta against his rivals in the Senate.
Non sequitur(Noun)- a statement that is not connected in a logical or clear way to anything said before it: We were talking about the new restaurant when she threw in some non sequitur about her dog.
 Mystique(Noun)- A special quality that makes a person or thing interesting or exciting: There's a certain mystique to people who fight fires.
Quagmire(Noun)- An area of soft, wet ground: the party was once again facing its quadrennial quagmire: the candidate sufficiently liberal to win the nomination would be too liberal for the general election.
Parlous(Adjective)-  Full of danger or risk: The company is in a parlous financial situation.

LIFE AFTER...

Life after high school... I see this phrase as both an invitation and a wake up call(eye opener). I see it as an invitation to an adventure because after high school I can do anything I desire, I am responsible for my own actions and decisions I make. Everything I decide to do is entirely up to me. Now, with that being said, I'm not going to spend the rest of my life living off of my parents in their basement. I hope to some day go to Cal Poly and pursue my dream of becoming an Architectural Engineer. The only way this dream of mine can become reality is making the best choices now, while I'm still attending high school, that will help me excel towards my goals. It's also a wake up call because I'm not as young I think I am or as young as I wish I was. Every day I'm getting closer and closer to adulthood. Every decision I make from now on will have an impact in my life good or bad depending on the consequences from those decisions. Right now is the moment for me to focus on myself more than anyone else. Everything I do in every breathe I take at this moment of my life matters.

VISUAL STORYTELLING

The tools of social networking: These are the digital campfires around which the audience gathers to hear our story.— Marco Tempest
“As long as we are engaged in storytelling that moves the culture forward, it doesn’t matter what format it is.” — Levar Burton
Storytelling is the core of who are as human beings, and it’s an art all in it’s own — no matter what form you are using.  Many storytelling techniques still stand the test of time. With a little creativity and imagination, you can apply storytelling techniques to any form for your brand storytelling.
And why wouldn’t you want to connect, engage, and inspire your audience with your brand’s story?
If you’re looking for storytelling inspiration or want to brush up on your knowledge of storytelling techniques, check out the following list.
1. Show don’t tell.  One of the most important lessons to learn as a writer or creator. Show your story don’t just tell it. Show us a character, a scene, a developing emotion, a visual example. Tip: Try editing by imagining the scenes, and removing what doesn’t show the story.
2. Create character your audience relates to. This should be tailored specifically to your audience. It’s important to know your audience before creating the story. Tip: Create a character profile listing all the details of your character to help get a feel for the story.
3. Set the stage. We’d like to know enough of the context so we can understand the story. Tell us the place and the time the story takes place.
4. Create a mood. Short stories, videos, and shorter content should convey one mood throughout. A horror story has it’s own mood, and an informational post has it’s own mood or tone too.
5. Construct a plot. There should be a beginning, middle, and end to your story. This is true even if you want to break the rules a bit, your audience needs some sense of closure at the end.
6.Foreshadow. Hints or clues throughout the story that the audience can pay attention too. This helps keep your audience lured into your story.

PROFILE IN COURAGE

Murder Ball is a game that only involves handicap or people with a walking disability. These people once were properly functioning human beings, until the moment they were involved in an terrible accident, car accidents were the most common. The game that these people play is wheelchair rugby. Now I know a lot of people may assume that rugby in a wheel chair is easy but after watching the first portion of the movie I found out that wheelchair rugby is an intense and very difficult sport. The movie is about overcoming difficulties. The USA rugby team was beaten for the first time in 10years by Canada's Rugby team. Right after a persons terrible car accident they go through a faze, a reality check of how badly damaged their body is. They either make it out of that faze or they don't. The main character's son is a fish out of water in that environment.

VOCABULARY: SPRING LIST 2

1.) Accoutrement(noun)- Additional items of dress or equipment,or other items carried or worn by a person or used for a particular activity: The accoutrements of religious ritual.
2.) Apogee(Noun)- The highest point the development of something; the climax or culmination: The White House is considered the apogee of American achievement.
3.) Apropos(Adverb)- Used to state a speaker's belief that someone's comments or acts are unrelated to any previous discussion or situation: Isabel kept smiling apropos of nothing.
4.) Bicker(Verb)- Argue about petty and trivial matters: Whenever the phone rings, they bicker over who must answer it.
5.) Coalesce(Verb)- Come together and form one mass or whole: The puddles hand coalesced into shallow streams.
6.) Contretemps(Noun)- An unexpected and unfortunate occurrence: The hotel had to deal with more than one contretemps before the end of the night.
7.) Convolution(Noun)- A coil or twist, especially one of many: Crosses adorned with elaborate convolution.
8.) Cull(Verb)- Select from a large quantity; obtain from a variety of sources: Ancedotes culled from culled from Greek and Roman history.
9.) Disparate(Adjective)- Essentially different in kind; not allowing compromise: They inhabit disparate worlds of thought.
10.) Dogmatic(Adjective)- Inclined to lay down principles as incontrovertibly true: He gives his opinion without trying to be dogmatic.
11.) Licentious(Adjective)- promiscuous and unprincipled in sexual matters: He was such a licentious person that he would not heed the law, and was totally immoral.
12.) Mete(Verb)- Dispense or allot justice, punishment, or harsh treatment: He denounced the maltreatment meted out to minorities.
13.) Noxious(Adjective)- Harmful, poisonous, or very unpleasant: The were overcome by the noxious fumes.
14.) Polemic(Noun)- A strong verbal or written attack on someone or something: His polemic against the cultural relativism of the sixties.
15.) Populous(Adjective)- Having a large population: Los Angeles is very populous.
16.) Probity(Noun)- The quality of having strong moral principles; honesty and decency: Everyone desires financial probity.
17.) Repartee(Noun) Conversation or speech characterized by quick, witty comments or replies: His presentation today was repartee.
18.) Supervene(Verb)- Occur later than a specified or implied event or action, typically in such a way to change the situation: Any plan that is made is liable to be disrupted by supervening events.
19.) Truncate(Verb)- Shorten something by cutting off the top or the end: A truncated cone shape.
20.) Unimpeachable(Adjective)- Not to be doubted, questioned, or criticized; entirely trustworthy: An unimpeachable witness.

VOCAB#1 PERFORMANCE REVIEW

I honestly think that I got at least a 90% on the vocabulary quiz. I studied for about an hour just going over the ten vocabulary words that were assigned to us. I made sure I knew the definition of each word and also how to use each word correctly in a sentence. I put a lot of effort in this first quiz, because I want to start the year really good rather than just slack off.

VOCABULARY SPRING 1

Adumbrate(Verb)- Report or represent an outline. James Madison adumbrated the necessity that the Senate be somewhat insulted from public passions.
Apotheosis(Noun)- The highest point in the development of something; culmination or climax. His appearance as Hamlet was the apotheosis of his career.
Ascetic(Adjective)- Characterized by or suggesting the practice of severe-discipline and abstention from all form of indulgence, typically for religious reasons.
Bauble(Noun)- A small, showy, trinket, or decoration. My mother asked me to put the bauble on the Christmas tree.
Beguile(Verb)- Charm or enchant(someone), sometimes in a deceptive way. Every prominent American Artist has been beguiled by Main.
Burgeon(Verb)- Begin to grow or increase rapidly. Manufacturers are keen to cash in the burgeoning demand.
Complement(Noun)- A thing that completes or brings to perfection. A libretto proved a perfect complement to the music.
Contumacious(Noun)- Stubbornly or willfully disobedient to authority. She was acting so contumacious yesterday.
Curmudgeon(Noun)- A bad tempered or surly person. My brother is a curmudgeon  because he's never in a good mood.
Didactic(Adjective)- Intended to teach, particularly in having moral instruction as an ulterior motive. A didactic novel that set out to set social injustice. 

HACKING MY EDUCATION

What do you want to learn more about?
I want to learn more about my major and what I can be doing now to prepare myself for it in the near distant future. (Architectural Engineer)
What skills do you want to demonstrate?
The skills that I want to demonstrate are the skills to be able to use my time more wisely and effectively. I know we covered this topic, but in the future when I have no one to hold my hand and tell me exactly what my next steps are to get to the place I want to be. The time when I'm on my own and I am making choices for myself.
How do I show that I've done what I said I was going to do?
A possible way for me to show that I did what I said I'd do is by making decisions for myself and by myself.

THE CHOICE

1.) "Choice" is referred to the decision Rebecca has to make. She either has to take the medicine herself or have her parents force the medicine into her.
2.) I don't think she has a choice. If she doesn't drink or consume the medicine she will die.
3.) The author refers to the medicine as poison, because his daughter doesn't have the choice to not drink the gooey liquid.
4.) The reason why the daughter of the author wants to play with a toy that is intended for older children is because she is well aware of the fact that she will never reach the age requirement for the toy, so she wants to play with the toy while she still can. I do agree with her because I think she deserves to experience playing with the toy at least once in her life before she passes away.
5.) If I knew I wasn't going to live up to the age of 30 I'm not sure what I would do right now. I know for a fact that I wouldn't be doing the thing(s) I'm doing now and I would try to live life to it's potential.
6.) Helping out a loved one or doing something for someone's own good even though it may be very discomforting is a legit circumstance that makes sense to endure.
7.) I don't think suffering is a necessary condition of life and love because I can't see how a person can enjoy life for it's true beauty when they're suffering.
8.) Why can only imagine the pain the author must feel from seeing his daughter suffer everyday. He knows that she hates having to consume the "poison".