Julius Caesar Essay Evaluation

Ideas and Content
Throughout my Julius Caesar essay I had to find ways in order to show what characteristics best suited Brutus. In my essay I thought I did fairly well with using my ideas to make my essay sound good and make sense. I used my ideas and back them up with explanations in order to get the message across of how Brutus acted towards the people and Caesar. I knew what I was meant to write about, and that helped me get my message across, plus I was able to write a lot about the topic. Another thing that I did well was that I explained how my quotations related to the main topic. This was probably because I planned before the in class essay and I also understood the play extremely well. I believe I could have worked more on including interesting and relevant details to some of my assumptions about Brutus. This could have proved my point and could also bring my reader in. I should have focused mainly on writing the topic sentence or the beginning of my essay because that would have helped the reader understand completely what I was writing about.

Organization
The organization in my essay was quite well put together (I believe). I was able to begin with an interesting hook to grab my reader's attention and my body paragraphs closed with good summarizing and transition sentences. This got my reader into my essay and it made them want to read more. The transition sentences helped my essay flow and it made sure the reader didn't get lost. The organization of my essay was the thing that kept it all together and made sure it didn't fall apart and turn into a terrible essay. I could have improved on having good lead in's to both my paragraphs and quotations. I should have had some relation to the past paragraph and I could have had some form of context before all my quotations. Being able to add context to my quotations was hard because I didn't mark my quotations, so I wasn't able to discover what happened before.

Personal Growth
The difference between my Alchemist essay and my Julius Caesar essay was huge. I was way more prepared for my Julius Caesar essay than for my Alchemist essay. This was probably because I knew I wouldn't get much help and I needed to write it up by myself so I tried to do as much as I could at home. I thought that my explanations for my ideas in my Caesar essay had much more detail than the ones in the Alchemist essay. My organization in my Caesar essay was also better which kept the essay together and in my Alchemist essay I got away from the topic and started to talk about other things which didn't relate much to the topic. This gets the reader less interested and it can drop down your grade if the reader just wants to finish reading your essay.

SLR Reflection
Whenever I write my essays I believe that communicating effectively is the key to a well written essay. This is because you need to get your ideas across well to the reader so that they understand what your essay is about and so that they don't get tired of reading it earlier than they should. Without communicating effectively the reader will get lost during your essay. Communicating is the key to an essay because it keeps it together and it keeps the reader interested in what they are reading.

Brutus the Patriotic Man

Brutus’ Noble Act

“Well Brutus you are noble but I can tell that honorable qualities can be given in a new direction.” – Cassius. This quote is spoken by Cassius and it shows his need to get Brutus to be part of the conspirators. This quote also reveals that many people adore Brutus and that he is an honorable man that people like to spend time with. The play “Julius Caesar” was written by William Shakespeare and it takes place during the time of Caesar’s reign. Various characters, like the conspirators, didn’t fancy what Caesar was becoming so they decided to stop his control of Rome. Brutus is caught in the middle, between saving Caesar or keeping Rome a republic. Brutus’ sense of patriotism and his integrity lead him to two critical decisions. The death of Caesar and his own death.

Patriotism is a key motivator to one’s life because it makes them strive for the best and what’s right. Brutus exhibits this quality throughout the play and it shows how noble he actually is. During the play Brutus becomes more and more patriotic because he agrees with what all the conspirators believe about Caesar. The conspirators decided to allow Brutus to become part of their group because that would make the assassination look more noble and worthy. They believed that, if the people discovered that his friends were killing Caesar, the assassination could be justified. During the planning of Caesar’s assassination Cassius just wanted revenge but because Brutus was so patriotic he continuously told the conspirators that they had to do it for the country. Brutus didn’t believe that just killing him for no reason was the most worthy way so before he made his final decision, he knew it was for the common good. This following quote was said by both Cassius and Brutus. Brutus claims that he is frightened of Caesar becoming king of Rome. Cassius gets Brutus to explain his thoughts and that allows Brutus to understand the meaning of why Caesar must be killed. “I was born free as Caesar; so were you.” – Cassius “What you have said I will consider.” – Brutus This quote reveals Brutus’ thoughts of Caesar’s reign and that he fears what will be the outcome. This quote also shows that Brutus agrees with Cassius’ thoughts and that he will consider them for his final decision. In the end Brutus was very willing to assassinate Caesar because he believed that Caesar wasn’t any different that anyone else. He accepted the fact that Caesar shouldn’t be treated differently than anyone else, especially the Roman people. Brutus was also shown as patriotic in many times throughout the book. Before the following quote Brutus has woken up early in the morning and concludes that Caesar must be killed. He decides that he will kill Caesar but he must do it for an honorable cause (for Rome). “O Rome, I make thee promise, if the redress with follow, thou receivest thy full petition at the hand of Brutus.” This quote presents that Brutus finally agrees to kill Caesar but for the only right way. He does it in order to keep Rome a republic. Throughout the book Brutus is shown as a very patriotic character and cares more about others than himself. He doesn’t agree with killing Caesar for no reason but he agrees with killing him for the people.

Brutus’ integrity was also a key motivating factor that lead his decision to being both noble and worthy. Near the beginning of the play Julius Caesar was gaining more and more power, that some people didn’t believe was best for the country. Brutus’ integrity was a key factor that lead Brutus to staying honest with the people. This factor got Brutus to be loyal to the people and to also be loyal to Caesar his good friend. “Shall we now contaminate our fingers with base bribes.” This quotation presents the fact that Brutus doesn’t want people to just get them to do what they want. Brutus decides that he must follow his morals and has to kill Caesar for the way that he wanted to. He was motivated to follow his own ways and not anyone else’s. “Strato. Countrymen, my heart doth joy that yet in all my life I found no man but he was true to me. I shall have glory by this losing day more than Octavius and Mark Antony by this vile conquest shall attain unto. “ This previous quote exhibits Brutus’ love for Caesar and that Brutus believes Caesar was so true to him. Brutus killed Caesar in a way that any friend would. He did it for the people but as a person Brutus still loved Caesar as much as Caesar used to love him. Brutus didn’t only kill Caesar for the people but he also killed him by the love that he shared with him.

“This was the noblest Roman of them all. All the conspirators except him did what they did out of envy of great Caesar.” – Antony This quotation demonstrates that other people loved Caesar for what he did, because he did it for others and not just for killing Caesar. Brutus’ patriotism and his integrity lead him to being one of the most noblest conspirators of all. Brutus acted differently towards the death of Caesar because of his patriotism and integrity. He was able to achieve his goal because of this and it was shown as a noble and worthy achievement. In the end, many people decided that Brutus was doing it for the right reason and that many other people adored him for what he did. Brutus died in the end for Caesar which exhibits his love for Caesar and for the country.

Collage Written Reflection

While working on my collage, I tried to include many creative elements inside. I believed that if I divided my pictures into different categories then it could get the reader more into what was happening to the people in Sudan. I divided my collage into two parts with the pictures I found off the internet. I divided the sections into bad things that happened to the Sudanese people and one section was all the good things that happened to them like being able to transfer to America. It was quite hard to divide my pictures into two different parts because so many bad things happened to the Sudanese people and it was hard to find pictures for good things that happened to them. When I was cutting the pictures I also tried to cut around the part that I thought was the most significant. I believed that the reader should see all the pain that the Lost Boys had to go through.

Most of my images were of pain that the Lost Boys had to face. I also decided to make my six word memoir sound a bit sad because the conflict that the Lost Boys had to face was extremely sad. Right next to the word hell, I pasted a picture of a person crying because it showed the hell they had to go through. Some of the pictures I chose showed how little food they got because they looked so skinny in every single picture. I was also able to find a picture of the UN sign because they were the main group that helped them transfer to America and try to start off new. At first they were in pain when their parents died, then they were lonely on their way to America because of the new culture and then they were in hell, the moment they had to figure out ways to survive in America while trying to keep their family alive in Sudan.

Both the text and my pictures in my collage show awareness for the Lost Boys plight. The combination of my text and pictures show some of the fun the Lost Boys had but also some of the pain they had to go through. In some pictures it showed that the Lost Boys could forget about the past but could still remember their Dinka culture. The moment the Lost Boys entered America they were trying their best to forget about the past and to think about the future. In one of my pictures Peter is attending high school which shows he wants to get a good education so that he can get a good job and send money back to his family in Sudan. Some of the Boys are now quite popular in America because their story has been told to many people worldwide and a movie has been made because of them. In one of my pictures, Santino is being interviewed on a TV show and he is wearing extremely nice clothes. This shows that he was able to forget about the past and work hard in America. He earned enough money by himself to survive and be able to buy nice things for himself.

In the corners of my poster, I pasted some websites for the reader to visit in order to help the kids. I specifically chose these sites because I thought they were the best and they do a lot for the kids in Sudan. My collage also shows some of the worst pictures ever seen of the kids and people in pain. These pictures can get the reader feeling sorry for the people in need and it will make them really want to help out. My six word memoir is also something that shows some of the hard parts of the Lost Boy's journey.

Conflict for Peter

When Peter was forced into migrating to Kenya he was faced with many problems. He didn't only face problems in Kenya but also faced problems while migrating to America. He was named a "Lost Boy" because he had no parents while fleeing from his village back in Sudan. When Peter migrated to Houston, Texas it seemed fine for him at the start. After a while of staying in America he discovered how hard it actually was. He didn't know a lot of English when he entered America but after a while he was able to learn more and more. On the way to America, Peter didn't know what food he was being served on the plane since it was packaged and he never got packaged food before. He was also new to all the electrical appliances they used in America like the stove and the sink. He didn't know how to work the stove and how to clean out food in the sink. Some people were also prejudice in America against the black people. The lady in WalMart said that they should be used to working out in the heat. They were also forced to work so that they were able to make money in order to pay their own rent for the houses they lived in. They didn't know many of the rules in America so they just followed what they did back in Africa which was nothing serious back there. Another problem that Peter faced when he entered America was a culture difference which led him to culture shock. Back in Africa they did things differently than people did things in America. They had their different dances, songs and many other traditions. When they entered America people didn't do the same things. They didn't dance around or sing different songs. They were people that had something to do and they had not much free time to play around like what some people did in Africa. Life was harder for Peter in America because he had to keep himself busy to be like the other people. Peter enrolled himself in school to be well educated like many of the other people there. In America people had groups to be in during school and because Peter was new he didn't know many people and didn't have many groups to join. That changed when he started meeting new people and was able to join the Christian group with most of his friends from his school. The movie showed many conflicts Peter had to face while in America but it also showed how he was able to get over those conflicts by himself.

Cassius' Talk With Brutus

Before this passage from the text Cassius was deciding with a group of his friends whether or not they would kill Caesar for what he has done to Rome. The group decided that they would tell Brutus about their plan because he was very close to Caesar and it would show the people that Caesar was going to do something very terrible. I believe this passage is the most important part in the book because it is what leads to Caesar being killed. If Brutus wasn't part of the group then the conspirators wouldn't have much of a reason to kill Caesar. This passage is also very important because this shows how much Cassius wants Brutus to be part of the group and how gullible Brutus is. If Brutus just said he didn't want to join the group then Caesar wouldn't have been killed but since Brutus listens to what everyone has to say Caesar has to pay for it. This quote shows how demanding Cassius is and how much Cassius just wants to take revenge on Caesar for being so powerful. This quote shows the inner side of Brutus and how arrogant he can actually be.

Act 1, Scene 2

Lines 25-77

CASSIUS

Will you go see the order of the course?

BRUTUS
Not I.

CASSIUS
I pray you, do.

BRUTUS
I am not gamesome: I do lack some part
Of that quick spirit that is in Antony.
Let me not hinder, Cassius, your desires;
I'll leave you.

CASSIUS
Brutus, I do observe you now of late:
I have not from your eyes that gentleness
And show of love as I was wont to have:
You bear too stubborn and too strange a hand
Over your friend that loves you.

BRUTUS
Cassius,
Be not deceived: if I have veil'd my look,
I turn the trouble of my countenance
Merely upon myself. Vexed I am
Of late with passions of some difference,
Conceptions only proper to myself,
Which give some soil perhaps to my behaviors;
But let not therefore my good friends be grieved--
Among which number, Cassius, be you one--
Nor construe any further my neglect,
Than that poor Brutus, with himself at war,
Forgets the shows of love to other men.

CASSIUS
Then, Brutus, I have much mistook your passion;
By means whereof this breast of mine hath buried
Thoughts of great value, worthy cogitations.
Tell me, good Brutus, can you see your face?

BRUTUS
No, Cassius; for the eye sees not itself,
But by reflection, by some other things.

CASSIUS
'Tis just:
And it is very much lamented, Brutus,
That you have no such mirrors as will turn
Your hidden worthiness into your eye,
That you might see your shadow. I have heard,
Where many of the best respect in Rome,
Except immortal Caesar, speaking of Brutus
And groaning underneath this age's yoke,
Have wish'd that noble Brutus had his eyes.

BRUTUS
Into what dangers would you lead me, Cassius,
That you would have me seek into myself
For that which is not in me?

CASSIUS
Therefore, good Brutus, be prepared to hear:
And since you know you cannot see yourself
So well as by reflection, I, your glass,
Will modestly discover to yourself
That of yourself which you yet know not of.
And be not jealous on me, gentle Brutus:
Were I a common laugher, or did use
To stale with ordinary oaths my love
To every new protester; if you know
That I do fawn on men and hug them hard
And after scandal them, or if you know
That I profess myself in banqueting
To all the rout, then hold me dangerous.

Since I am with a partner for this assessment I chose Jong Woon to be my partner.

No Title Story Blog

I would call this story "The Black Box" because most of the story was based on the black box. People were wondering what was inside and the story also described how it was a tradition for the people in the town to have that black box. I would also call it "The Black Box", because it created the most tension in the story which the writer wanted the reader to feel. In the end of the story I thought that everyone was going to be disappointed because nothing important was going to be inside that box which turned out quite true. The wife of the person that won the lottery wasn't happy because she thought all of this stuff was complete rubbish and when her husband won people had to hold her back because she was so angry. I didn't real feel that disappointed when the end of the story wasn't given to me because I thought that in class we read out the whole story together. I didn't really understand the story anyways. When I was handed the mystery paper I felt excited because I wanted to really know what was inside. I didn't know what was in it but I was guessing it was some prize if you got the black dot on your paper so I was jumping around when I got the black dot. I followed the instructions and I opened at 5pm during my sax lesson :P I wanted to feel good about myself by following instructions so I opened it at the right time. I was extremely happy when I got the black dot because like I said before I thought it was something good. I didn't really feel anything when I read the ending of the story because I expected the other part of the story to be the ending. My predictions were quite close except everyone wasn't disappointed only the wife was really angry. I think being able to understand the story more would have helped me in being able to predict what would have happened because then I could have known how each character could have reacted. The author left voids in this story so that the reader could be hooked into the story and then they wanted to read more. The writer never wants the reader to put away the story and just walk away. They want the reader to keep on reading until the end. Because there was no title in this story people weren't able to guess what was going to happen so they just had to read the whole story to figure out. Without there being an ending it got the reader to have to read to the end to find the answer to their question. I felt the void with the mystery paper but not with there being a delayed ending or having text clues throughout the story.

How do Composers Create Tension in their Music?

One way that composers can create tension in their music is by adding a crescendo in their piece right before a sudden stop. This makes the climax in the piece begin and then it stops. The listener starts to ask them self what is going to happen next? Is it gonna end happy or sad? The crescendo signifies the beginning of the climax and the sudden stop is a time where the composer gives time for the listener to ask questions. The composer could then give the reader and answer by composing a nasty sound for a sad ending or a nice sound for a happy ending. The good part about a void in a piece is that it gets the listener hooked and wanting to hear more so that he can be relieved from all the tension created because of the void.

ISKL Band Mission Statement

The International School of Kuala Lumpur provides an exceptional (silence) education that challenges each student to develop the attitudes, skills, knowledge and understanding to become a highly successful, spirited, socially responsible global citizen.

I thought that adding the silence after exceptional was the right place to put it because it got the reader to ask what ISKL was exceptional at. Once someone starts to read the mission statement they start to get a feeling that ISKL is gonna be something great until there is a pause after the word exceptional. The reader asks questions like "What are they good at? Is this actually a good school? Do they care about their education?" They ask all those questions until the quote continues and it says our school is very good at teaching our kids information and teaching them how to be responsible global citizens. A void makes people ask questions and it makes them wanting more.