Dishonesty in The Importance of Being Earnest

          In The Importance of Being Earnest humor is used a lot through epigrams. All of the characters say you shouldn't do exactly what they're doing. The always end of contradicting themselves and look foolish. In this play marriage is treated like a matter of buisness. Algernon thinks marriage is like a transaction and does not take it seriously untill he meets Cecily. Jack, however, is hopelessly devoted to Gwendolen and strongly disagrees with Algernon. Algernon later changes his mind and totally proved himself wrong. In the Victorian era the upper class looked down on working. Basically if you had a job to provide for your family, that was trashy. Religion was an interesting topic back then... People were just starting to break off of main religions, so everything got a little messy. Lady Bracknell would only allow Jack to be with Gwendolen if he was of a certain religion. To the upper class, suc as Algernon, Lady Bracknell, and Jack, the less you knew the better. Ignorance was bliss. As for Ernest/Jack his name did not do him any favors. He was the exact opposite of earnest, which means to be honest. He got himself into many "scrapes". The upper class only cared about their pleasure. To them nothing was serious.
          Oscar Wilde was trying  to say many things through this play. He used it as a device to get people to revaluate their way of life. He is trying to tell people that they are acting immature, petty, and shallow. Oscar Wilde when through a lot in his life and I think his messages are important. He shows dishnesty through Jack and Algernon's "bunburying" and them making up the name Ernest. He shows how silly it is to not work or have an education through Lady Bracknell. He also shows shallowness through Gwendolen and Cecily for not wanting to marry Algernon and Jack because their names are not Ernest. Oscar Wilde was way ahead of his time and people should have taken this play as a life lesson.

Animal Farm Project Evaluations

Katie: (Picture) Katie's picture was creative in the way that nobody else would do that scene. I thought she could have put a little more effort in, but it was pretty good.

Paul and Will: (Comic strip) This project was really good and really artistic! I wish they would have added more though. Overall, it was really well done.

Reagan: (Poem) Reagan's poem was very well written and I loved how she spelt out "tyranny". I thought she put a lot of time into this and it turned out great.

Emery: (Slideshow) This project was a good idea and Emery did a good job with it. I thought he could have shown foreshadowing or irony better though.

Donna: (Video) This video was very good and very detailed. It showed many aspects of Animal Farm and really portrayed the characters well.

Brooke: (Song) A song was a very hard thing to do and I think it was done well in this case. All of the music fit the plot and I think it sounded really nice.

Kayla: (Class pyramid) Many people probably had this idea, but Kayla did it really well. It looks really technology savy and nicely put together.

Melanie: (Slideshow) This slideshow was well put together and everything fit. The music was a good choice for this story and it worked well with the slideshow.

Rachel: (Game) This was definitely the most creative project. It was such a ood idea and Rachel did a fabulous job. You can tell she put a lot of time into this.

Grace: (Movie trailer) This movie was phenomenal. It looked professionally made and it portrayed the book perfectly. It really was and enjoyment to watch.

My Project:
          My project did not fair so well compared to others. I'm really not good with computers, so I definitely had some problems. I know I could have put more effort into this and I'm sad I didn't. Most of the projects were great, creative, and well planned. Mine could have been a lot better and the sad thing is I had almost 3 weeks to do it. Next time I will plan better and do my best.

Extra Credit: New Year's Resolution

          This is Diego. (Sorry about the bad picture)  He was my christmas present. So far things have been a little rough and he has given me quite a bit of trouble. Some days are really good though. My new year's resolution is to work things out with him. I need to have more patience with him... even though he can be competely stupid. By the end of 2011 I would like to have him doing 2nd level dressage and jumping at least 2'9. We'll see though. I think Diego can teach me a lot and we can go far together.
          My other new year's resolution is to swim more often. I have had shoulder problems and been really lazy for the past 2 months, so I would love to get back in shape and back in the water. I want to start competing more often and get new best times. This is all a lot to hope for in the year 2011, but I know it is all possible. I hope all goes well!

Animal Farm Project

  My picture is of the farm in general. The farmhouse is on a hill because the pigs are in charge of everyone else. This represents tyranny. The windmill is a symbol for all of the struggle the animals go through for nothing. Napoleon lives in a the house while the animals aren't fed enough in the barn. The rainbow over the house represents the pigs way of life. They barely do any work and just sit around and take credit for doing the dirty work. The rain and storm clouds represent the other animals way of life. They do all of the work for the pigs, are under fed, and never get time off.