Response to Course Material #3 (11/4/12)

So...I know I'm posting this two days after the due date, and I just wanted to say that I'm not making habit of turning in my work late. (I'm really not Ms. Holmes! I promise!) I was in cold-induced coma this weekend/Monday. There was coughing, a sore throat, drippy snot, and lots and lots of sleeping. It wasn't pretty. But I'm back and (kind of) functioning again, so back to work!

Focusing: covering the tail end of the The American Dream, I really, really liked this play. I didn't understand half (most?) of the little details but that's what I loved about it! I feel like I could read this over and over and notice something new each time. I'll be keeping an eye for a theatrical production of the play. I think it'd be interesting to see this in action.

Another play I think I'd want to see in person is Death of a Salesman. I'm not really sure what to say about this...I mean, it's interesting...but I don't really have much of an interest in it. The American Dream was weird! Questionable! Absurd! I made me really think.
And although Death of Salesman is a little more...normal, it's so far it doesn't seem as interesting! The characters are so annoying. I mean, I hate whining. If you have a problem, I think you should do whatever you need to to deal with it - think about it, cry about it, talk about it, whatever - but eventually you have to take action, and do something! There will always be more problems around the corner, so deal with what you have going on right now so you can be open to what life has to offer. (I am obviously one of those people. Glasses are always half full and logically speaking, no matter where you are the grass will always seem greener on the other side...so what's the point in worrying about your neighbor's grass? Ah, to be young and ignorant!)
But as far as the actual content of Death of a Salesman is concerned, I understand that because the characters are more normal they're more relateable (sp?), and they're facing real-world problems. Depression, age, debt, family tension - it's something most people have experienced, whether directly or indirectly. Because I find psychology and sociology interesting I really like looking at the development/structure of societies and relationships. Death of a Salesman characters present themselves as a perfect springboard for me to bounce ideas off of.

And finally...the terms test. This is so frustrating! I mean, I did horribly. Worse than my first time around! But I don't care as much about my grade - I'm frustrated because I can't keep things straight. Each word has a specific definition that only works with a specific type of example. But there are so many words and definitions and their differences are oh-so subtle and then everything gets all jumbled up! It's a little frightening.
I'm much better at approaching things with broad "what do I feel about this?" ideas, not straight-up text book facts and definitions. Which is great for creative writing, not so great for AP classes.

Sticking true to my "no whining" policy, I'll just keep reviewing, keep looking up examples, and hope this doesn't come back to bite me in the butt when the AP test rolls around.