Final Blog Reflection

          This semester has been quite an interesting and trying experience; it's my final semester at this school and my final semester of student teaching. Would I do things the same way again? Probably not. Having to take college courses while going through student teaching (four periods) at a middle school is not something I would recommend to anyone. Honestly, if I had to do it again, I would finish my courses before taking student teaching. If I had that luxury that is....Ha ha. I really enjoyed this course, which solidified the importance of including varying modalities in the teaching process, in particular the use of technology in instruction. I enjoyed exploring the projects we did, including the two essays, the two presentations, and the poetry writing assignment. At the beginning of the semester, I was a little nervous about the poetry writing assignment, because it was a creative writing project. I honestly do not remember the last time I ever wrote anything creatively. The last few years, as an English literature major and student teacher candidate, I only wrote response to literature and synthesis essays. Honestly, I went into the process with apprehension, but I came out stronger for it.

          The collaborative group presentations, the mythology and the media literacy projects, were fun, interactive projects. I felt comfortable with the project because I was so used to making lesson plans all year long. The most challenging aspect of any collaborative project, in my opinion, is the collaboration aspect of it. The reason being that it is really hard to gather a group of people together to work on anything. Communication and easy schedules are key! The teaching aspect of the presentations was a little challenging too because you really had to think about understanding and mastering the material in order to teach it to anyone. I think I enjoyed the World Myth project a little more than the Media Literacy presentation, because, as I have mentioned before, I am a huge fan of Greek and Norse mythology. The moment I realized we were doing a Myth project, I immediately zeroed in on Tricksters and my favorite, Loki. I have to admit that I did enjoy reading the Native American myths of Coyote and all his mischievous deeds.

          The world text analysis paper was the most challenging assignment of this semester. Connecting Lost in Translation to the provided sources was not a simple task, because of two reasons. One, I'm not sure I even enjoyed Lost in Translation. This was my second time watching the film, but I never fully grasped the reason why it was so critically acclaimed. I didn't find any of the characters likeable or relateable. The whole time I was watching the film, I couldn't help thinking “OH MY GOD FIRST WORLD PROBLEMS.” In other words, I felt the characters Bob and Charlotte to be self-absorbed and miserable for no significant reason. Second, the film didn't lend itself to be easily connected to my favorite of the sources, Martin's Risk Management Theories. It did, however, lend itself to the theories on Cultural and Urban Space, which I did find extremely interesting. I'm always fascinated by the American/Asian cultural divide that I see on screen as well as experience in my own life. As a Korean-American, I do find myself expected to fill a different role depending on the company I keeps. With other Koreans, especially older generation Koreans, I am expected to act a certain way due to my gender and age. The first questions I'm usually asked is when I am expected to marry. I think there's definitely a different expectation in America. It's much more accepted if I decide to put career first. Actually, rather than the actual decision, my own decision making process is accepted.

          I also really enjoyed keeping a personal blog. I think having a blog to publish my own essays and reflections really helped focus me during the semester. I also enjoyed finding cute pictures to post with those reflections or essays. I would definitely consider introducing the same thing to my own group of future students. I think the blog is a great choice because it keeps all assignments in one place and has a low chance of getting lost. (One of the things that I was surprised about during my semester at middle school was how easily students lose their papers!) The blog could also create a place for students to collaborate easily and give feedback. Individual blogs could also give students opportunity to be creative and express themselves through web design and blog content.

          Overall, English 495 ESM was a fun and interactive course. I genuinely enjoyed Dr. Wexler's taste in texts and presentations, and found them all relevant; I would utilize many of what I have learned in my own classes, such as the individual blogs and media in education. I wish everyone good luck on their finals and a Happy Holidays !

World Text Essay - Lost in Translation and Cultural/Urban Space

Eun Hae Lee

Dr. Wexler

English 495 ESM

09 December 2013

Lost in Spaces

          Lost in Translation, a dramatic film by Sophia Copolla, follows an aging actor, Bob, who is dissatisfied about his current nonexistent career and situation in life. He is an American living in Japan, shooting a commercial for Japanese whiskey. Bob is closed off to the new cultural experiences Japan has to offer, becoming frustrated by the lack of communication in his professional and personal life due to cultural and language boundaries. He spends the first half of the film "lost," as per the tittle of the film; Bob is literally lost in the middle of this big Japanese city (Tokyo) and he is essentially lost in himself because he is unsure of how he should live the rest of his life and what path he should take. His tone soon changes when he meets Charlotte, a young American wife who followed her husband's work to Japan who is as equally displaced as he is. The film depicts the theories in "Cultural Space and Urban Space: The New World Disorder" which defines space as a “construction and material manifestation of social relations which reveals cultural assumptions and practices.” The film explores the cultural space in regards to Bob and Charlotte's gender roles in Japanese society in contrast with American society. The film also explores the urban space in Japan's metropolitan city of Tokyo which closely resembles New York City. Lost in Translation also depicts the city as a source of Western contamination as explored in Randy Martin's “Where Did The Future Go?”

          The theory of the cultural space categorizes the different spaces, or spheres, into roles that men and women take in society. Women are delegated to the domestic sphere, of the "private" sector, whereas men are of the "public " sector. Essentially, women are expected to stay home and tend to family needs while men work outside the home, usually in the political world. The modern world, especially in America where women received the right to vote in 1920, is always struggling with the balance and occupants of these spaces. American women work in the public sector while some men also stay in the private space. There still is no complete gender equality in America, but there is a significant advantage for women rights in America over Japan, where tradition rules. This struggle/problem can be seen with Charlotte, the young American wife with a Harvard degree, in Japan due to her husband's work, a celebrity photographer who is oblivious to his wife's growing boredom and loneliness.

          Bob and Charlotte's encounters and loneliness is set in the backdrop of Tokyo, Japan, a city that has as much character and life as the human characters that dwell in it. Ernest Burgess in “Cultural Space and Urban Space: The New World Disorder” defines Urbanism as “a way of life, social existence.” Wirth defines Urbanism as a “large number of people in close proximity without knowing each other.” Indeed, a key image from the movie is when Bob wanders the city of Tokyo, utterly alone, while random faces and figures walk past and around him. As such, a key figure and character of this character named the “city” appears to be loneliness, something both Bob and Charlotte and the many faceless inhabitants suffer from. Urbanism is also depicted as something of a Western infection or contamination as explore in Martin's “Where Did The Future Go?” in which Martin's obvious Marxist influences and ideals of the city as an American institution. The film juxtaposes traditional Japan with its Western influences. However, the film seems to show the darker side of Western influence by showing us scenes that are displaced in traditional Japanese society. For example, when Charlotte finds Bob in a strip club was somewhat shocking, especially in comparison to the scene of a traditional Japanese wedding just a few minutes before. The film explores this idea of Urbanism, but casts a negative light on it, depicting Urbanism as a lonely and seedy existence.

          Lost in Translation features a middle aged man and a young woman who are similar in their isolation and loneliness. Bob and Charlotte, the man and woman, are portrayed as being something akin to “soul mates,” where they have a connection of the heart and soul rather than a physical attraction. The film depicts their meeting as being fated, as the only real and warm thing found in the lonely artificial construct of the city. In the Urban space that creates loneliness and the cultural space that leaves them confused and lost in translation, Bob and Charlotte find a true space where they could belong in each other. However, the end of the film sends a mixed message regarding this connection, because Bob has to return to his life and family while Charlotte has her husband. The film ends with them separating to go back to the life they have found unbearable. Perhaps life is simply existing in the space that we find ourselves in, finding meaning in the brief encounters we may have.

Works Cited

Harvey et al. Cultural Space and Urban Place. California State University Northridge. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

Lost in Translation. Dir. Sofia Coppola. Perf. Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson. Focus Features, 2003. Film.

Martin, Randy. “Where Did the Future Go?” Logos 5.1, 2006. Web. 9 Dec. 2013.

Weekly Reflection 12/2/13

          This week everyone will participate in another peer review; this time on our World Text Essays relating Lost in Translation to one of the related readings. I am honestly having a hard time with the essay because I never really enjoyed Lost in Translation. This is the second time I'm watching this movie and I think the reason is because I just didn't want to see Bob and Charlotte be miserable when they had so much. Honestly, first world problems anyone? <_<;; Oh boohoo, I went to a great college but now I'm bored in Japan...oh boohoo I'm an actor that still books commercials! Okay I might be too harsh, but really?! Anyways, I think the movie didn't do as good of a job depicting the dark urban space that Tokyo, Japan has. I didn't really come away from the film having really learned anything about Japan. I only learned about how it was to be a foreigner in a different country.

Weekly Reflection 11/25/13

          I have this whole week off from student teaching due to Thanksgiving week. Hallelujah! I really need the week off because I'm pretty much at the end of the rope with my stamina regarding this semester. In regards to the texts we had to read regarding the World Text essay, I really enjoyed Martin's theories on risk management. I never really thought of myself as being "at risk" because I'm a university student. If you really think about it though, it makes sense. I also never really thought about how TAs are now teaching more lower division course because they cost less to maintain. These classes were originally taught by professionals with degrees, and it really brings up the questions of the quality of education we are receiving for our buck. It also brings up the question of college itself; is it a risk worth taking? Many students come out of school in debt and many of them don't manage to get out of debt years later. Many remain in debt. In fact, our nation is a country of debt!

Weekly Reflection 11/18/13

          Today everyone presented their Media Literacy projects. I really enjoyed everyone's contribution to the class; I took away many new ideas to fill my own teaching toolbox with. I really thought teaching history through video games was a great concept. If I ever taught history, I would definitely teach it through strategy games that use the same statistics from the Civil War. I also enjoyed my own group member contributions. I thought Yasmine's website, freerice.com, was really cute. The website did a great job incorporating real world issues, such as hunger and poverty, by allowing students to contribute without having to pay any money. Just by playing games and doing educational exercises online, they can give away free rice to people in need. I thought that was a wonderful idea. Jason's contribution, luminousity.com, where students can exercise ALL parts of the brain was illuminating in that  I never thought about working out the entire brain to increase abilities in one subject area. Amanda's website that helps students with basic grammar skills was also very useful in that a future teacher could allow students to gain strength in basic skills they would not have time to catch up on in class.

Weekly Reflection 11/4/13

          Today we picked brand new groups to work on our Media Presentations. I ended up working with Yasmine again which is wonderful because she is a delight to work with. Our group quickly decided to each find educational games we would use in our classroom (an imaginary 10th grade class). I remember playing something called nationstates a while back, and I remember it being really fun and educational. It really taught me that my decisions can have extreme consequences! LOL. I remember that when I decided to halt production to this shopping mall to help save my national animal, the bushy squirrels, my economy imploded. Not only that, but the population of the busy squirrel exploded and people were running into them everywhere! WHAT?! I only wanted to save a cute animal! Who knew that a simple decision could have so many consequences. I really think a text-based game such as nationstates could benefit the students in my class. They would learn about responsibility and cause/effect. They would also learn about how governments work.

Weekly Reflection 10/28/13

          We presented our project on tricksters today (with a heavy emphasis on Loki <3 ). I pushed our group to explore the story about Loki, and we all voted yes on it. Turns out, we were all secret Loki fan girls. Ha ha. I thought it was kind of great coincidence that the group ahead of ours also concentrated on a Norse myth, which correlated very well with our own. There was some overlap in terms of characters, especially since Loki was such a prominent figure in Norse mythology.... honestly, he had his finger in every pudding! It was a nice segway into our own presentation which really concentrated on the character of Loki and tricksters in general. One of the most interesting thing about tricksters is that they are agents of chaos and change. They often learn nothing at the end of their stories, even if they are punished for their misdeeds. Many tricksters, like Curious George, are mostly mischeiveous and harmless in their adventures, but tricksters such as Loki and perhaps Batman's Joker seem to harbor more malice in their mischief. I guess they would be "dark" tricksters.

Weekly Reflection 10/21/13

          We presented our myth projects today, but our group was unable to present ours due to running out of time. We will present next week instead. It was really interesting hearing everyone else's presentations! Some of them were really expansive, especially in comparison to our topic of "tricksters" which are more character-oriented and character driven. I immediately decided to go with tricksters as my topic, because Loki was my favorite Norse God. I really enjoy reading about characters that are not good or bad, but somewhere in the mysterious middle. I like the fact that the motives of trickster characters are rarely known. They may as well betray you even if they were once your friend! Those types of characters are so fascinating and interesting to me. 

Weekly Reflection 10/14/13

          I'm excited about my Myth Collaborative Project. I've always been fascinated with both Greek and Norse Mythology from a young age, and always bemoaned the fact that we rarely get to explore mythology in school! I had a brief taste of it way back in middle school and I was hooked ever since. I remember reading about the journey and deeds of Hercules in class. I immediately went to the library and borrowed on book on mythology. I remember being fascinated by Zeus, Hera, Aphrodite,and Ares. I soon read about the lesser known characters like Jason, Medea, Cupid and Psyche!Some of those stories are so timeless, I really wish it was part of the curriculum in middle school and high school! I would love to teach my students some Greek mythology and analyze the stories.

Weekly Reflection 10/7/13

          This week's class was short but effective. I think having to peer review each other's works is a great opportunity that is always helpful in creating a better final draft of your essay. Often, my peers will offer great advice or catch errors that I missed. They also help to clarify any ideas I failed to express clearly in my essay. I ended up writing about Robert Frost (My Favorite Poet!) and "Mending Wall," because I really enjoy the whimsical undertones in the poem. I took a different look to it, however, taking a more "property" and "ownership" approach to the poem, which gave me a new perspective on it. When I first read the poem, I always assumed the neighbor was a fuddy-duddy, but years later, upon reflection, I think thew neighbor was perfectly in his right! LOL. We all love our privacy.

Poetry at the Breakfast Table: Sonnet and Free Verse

Sunday Breakfast - Sonnet

One lazy Sunday morning, I awoke an hour
Later than my usual six. Tired, with sleep
In my eyes, I looked across the table with a glower
At my husband who sat in front of a heap

Of toast and enjoying a cup of coffee.
Looking at the empty spot in front of my chair,
Which only looked worse by proxy
To the glorious spread; so unfair!

Out loud, calmly, I only said,
"Good morning. Are the kids still asleep?"
He, with his usual monosyllabic talking head,
Looked up briefly to acknowledge my tell,

And gently pushed the plate of toast in front of  me.
Crisis averted, we ate breakfast in silent harmony.

Recurring Nightmare - Free Verse

In the distance, the lone blue building stood
Like an oasis in the middle of a desert.

The line that lead out its door stretched
As far as the eye could see,
Forms and figures becoming mere specks
Of dust in the far distance;
Like illusions of weary desert travelers.

The sun beat mercilessly down
On my uncovered head, caught unaware
Of the heat that mornings could bring.

Stranded, stuck, tired, and hungry,
I tapped the shoulder of the stranger in front of me.
"What's with the long line?"
She turned to me with a face that reflected
All the tortured thoughts I also shared.
She sighed, resigned, and said,
"Apparently, kids eat for free at IHOP."

Weekly Reflection 9/30/13

          Let me just say that I'm not a creative writing major, nor have I ever considered becoming one. The idea of creating and writing poetry is almost terrifying to me. Last semester as an English  major and I'm so used to writing analytic essays that I've completely lost how to start writing creatively.....and poetry to boot! Wait a minute, did I ever have a hold of the creative writing process to begin with? Where do I even begin? Should I write a bunch of sentences, throw them at notebook paper, and hope one of them is usable? Would it not be -poetry- if I write about mundane things like waiting for the bus or eating breakfast? Help!

Poetry Analysis Essay - "Mending Wall" by Robert Frost

Eun Hae Lee

Dr. Wexler

English 495 ESM

23 September 2013

Community in Property Ownership

          In “Good Fences Make Good Neighbors,” Zev Trachtenberg argues that “the social contract tradition prompts us to think of society in terms of the cooperative human enterprise of protecting individuals' interests” (Trachtenberg 114). In other words, a society is only formed when there are formal voluntary agreements and associations between people – namely laws and rights – that protect people and their property. Property can be accused of dividing human relationships in the same way that it divides the actual land on which human beings reside. However, one can also argue that the best kind of individuality can only be achieved in the comforts of one's own property where one has the freedom to live in whatever way he/she chooses. The mutual protection of this division of property can thus be seen as the best kind of community and human interaction. In his poem “Mending Wall,” Robert Frost tackles the issue of maintaining individual freedom through mutual understanding and property ownership, suggesting that the division, not the bringing together, of property is what brings people closer in a community.

          The poem contains two characters: the narrator and the neighbor, who own adjacent farms and meet every Spring to repair the stone wall that divide their properties. An initial reading and popular interpretation of the poem has the narrator take a skeptical stand towards the existence of the wall while the neighbor remains firm on the benefit of the division. The neighbor's slogan that “good fences make good neighbors” is not given to much disparaging interpretation; the neighbor is pro-property and he will not budge on this opinion (46). However, the narrator's attitude is a bit more ambiguous, and is not as simple as an initial reading would suggest. The narrator's attitude is best expressed through the playful way he claims that “something there is that doesn't love a wall,” suggesting that the yearly upending of the stone wall is caused by natural forces (1). The narrator repeats this phrase throughout the poem, adopting it as a counter-slogan to the neighbor that seemingly personifies his stand on the issue of property ownership: the narrator is anti-property because nature does not support it. The fact that “something” sends “the frozen ground-swell under it, / And spills the upper boulders in the sun” proves that natural forces dictate that people should not have divisions on their lands (1-2). As a result, these same natural forces forcibly remove the obstacle dividing their farms.

          However, upon closer reading, a question arises. If the narrator is so against the mending of the wall that natural forces dictate as wrong, then why does he bother to inform his neighbor every year of its broken state? If the narrator supports the destruction of the stone wall, then is it not more logical that he simply ignore the broken wall until his more serious pro-wall neighbor calls attention to it? But no, the narrator is the one who takes initial action:

                             But at spring mending-time we find them there.
                             I let my neighbour know beyond the hill;
                            And on a day we meet to walk the line
                            And set the wall between us once again (11-14).

The narrator is the one who lets the neighbor know about the wall and proactively sets a date to meet in order to work on the wall together.

          Additionally, the “game” that the narrator keeps referring to when referring to the wall can be read as playful banter. The mischievous tone and casual attitude of the narrator also supports his pro-property stance as it suggests that the narrator is not completely serious when suggesting they remove the stone wall that divides their land (21). Spring, as he claims, “brings the mischief in [him]” and can explain the reason for his questioning of the existence of the wall (28). He mentions elves as a possible culprit for the broken stone wall, only serving to lessen the seriousness of the situation. He banters with his neighbor because it is the social norm to converse with your neighbor. The banter and the annual fixing of the stone wall is the “out-door game” that the narrator refers to; it is a yearly tradition that keeps him and his neighbor on good terms with one another (21). Thus, the fixing of the wall is simply a tradition, a holiday like Christmas or Thanksgiving; it is a day that serves to reaffirm their agreement to maintain their division. Both the narrator and neighbor agree on this day, every year, that the division of property is what keeps them good neighbors and good members of the society they belong to. Protecting the other's property and, as a result, their individual freedom and rights, is what helps them stay good neighbors. As the narrator explains, “He is all pine and I am apple orchard;” the stone wall allows for the pine and apple to remain as themselves (24).

          In “Architecture in Frost and Stevens,” David Spurr argues that “The wall also has a sepulchral function, as a kind of memorial to the generations from which it is inherited, just as the “saying” of the neighbor is inherited from his father, and the ritual repetition of this saying accompanies the annual rite of wall-mending” (Spurr 75). The neighbor is obviously guilty of this “repetition,” as it is the only response he gives all throughout the poem: He will "not go behind his father's saying, / And he likes having thought of it so well / He says again, "Good fences make good neighbors" (44-46). However, the neighbor is not the only one guilty of repeating a “saying.” The narrator is just as guilty. His annual greeting can be represented by the repetition of the line “something there is that doesn't love a wall." This back-and-forth and repetition of the two slogans serves to emphasize the absurdity of the idea that the wall can be torn down. Every year, the narrator tosses his line to his neighbor with the knowledge that the reply would be that the wall is an absolute necessity. It is a ritual, a dance, a tradition between the two neighbors; one that probably goes back to their fathers and their fathers' fathers. In the end, the wall is always mended. And the two farmers can always trust that they will be back again next year to fix the same wall again.

Works Cited

Spurr, David. "Architecture in Frost and Stevens." Journal of Modern Literature 28.3 (2005): 72- 86.         Project MUSE. Web. 20 Sep. 2013. <http://muse.jhu.edu/>.

Trachtenberg, Zev. "Good Neighbors Make Good Fences: Frost's 'Mending Wall'." Philosophy and    Literature 21.1 (1997): 114-122. Project MUSE. Web. 20 Sep. 2013. <http://muse.jhu.edu/>.

Weekly Reflection 9/23/13

          This week's class began our journey into the world of poetry, a place I don't think we go to often enough in K-12 classrooms. I wasn't exposed to much poetry until my third year of college when I took a poetry course as part of my major. Though I did have a middle school teacher who was passionate about Robert Frost, I don't think children these days get enough poetry in their school experience. I personally love reading poetry out loud and find it fascinating how so much could be conveyed in so few words. To this day, I love Robert Frost, especially "Mending Wall," which I think I am going to focus on for my essay. I also enjoy Frost's shorter poems "Fire and Ice" and "Nothing Gold Can Stay." I credit my sixth grade English teacher for my everlasting love of Robert Frost. A little crazy and a little drunk he may have been, his taste in poetry was exquisite. Thanks Mr. Leon!

A Musical Post - "Eet" by Regina Spektor

Lyrics:
It's like forgetting the words to your favorite song.
You can't believe it; you were always singing along.
It was so easy and the words so sweet.
You can't remember; you try to feel the beat.

Bee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-
Eet eet eet.
Ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-
Eet eet eet.

You spend half of your life trying to fall behind.
You're using your headphones to drown out your mind.
It was so easy and the words so sweet.
You can't remember; you try to move your feet.

Ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-
Eet eet eet.
Ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-ee-
Eet eet eet.

Someone's deciding whether or not to steal.
He opens a window just to feel the chill.
He hears that outside a small boy just started to cry
'Cause it's his turn, but his brother won't let him try.

It's like forgetting the words to your favorite song.
You can't believe it; you were always singing along.
It was so easy and the words so sweet.
You can't remember; you try to move your feet.
It was so easy and the words so sweet.
You can't remember; you try to feel the beat...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     This song by one of my favorite artists, Regina Spektor, always confused me. What is she singing about?! I had to do some research and learned that the word "Eet" is actually the backspace on a typewriter. Of course, if anyone remembers, a typewriter didn't completely erase your previous word. It only removed the black ink and wrote over it. So you could still see a little bit of the previous ink.
     That got me thinking..... if the word "Eet" is backspace on a typewriter, perhaps the song is about trying to forget the bad memories of your past: "You spend half of your life trying to fall behind. / You're using your headphones to drown out your mind." But after spending half your life trying to forgot the things going on around you, you actually START to forget things ......even the good, important memories, hence the lyrics: "It's like forgetting the words to your favorite song. / You can't believe it; you were always singing along."

An Introduction

     My name is Eun Hae (Jennifer) Lee. I was born in South Korea and raised in Southern California. I work in adult education at North Valley Occupational Center. I'm currently in my final semester at CSUN and in my final semester of student teaching. I hope to survive this semester intact (without becoming too much of an alcoholic) so I can become a high school English teacher. In my spare time, I love to read, watch TV, and play video games. One of my guilty pleasures is to read adolescent literature...probably because I'm still a kid at heart!
     I have mixed feelings about technology. On the one hand, I love to utilize technology in my everyday teaching. I'm all about video/music clips and power points. However, I'm not sure about this new school movement to get every student an Ipad. I feel like the introduction of such expensive technology will only widen the gap between the haves and the have-nots. What if the student's parents cannot afford the 500 dollars needed to receive this technology? Will they just have to do without? The constant access to the internet and technology will also cause problems with classroom discipline. In order to make sure students stay on track, technical support with proper internet restrictions and programming restrictions need to be absolute. This means schools absolutely need to have a technician on site every day. Is this even possible in public schools? Where will the money come from?
     The money will most likely come from firing more teachers and school staff. Classrooms will have upwards of 50 students and administrators will expect Ipads to replace teachers. What do you mean you can't handle 50 kids in a class? You have Ipads don't you? The one thing I have experienced during my years with adult ed and student teaching is that classroom size is a big factor in student learning. You can introduce any amount of technology into the classroom, but nothing will replace a quality teacher with a small, manageable number of students.