Look @ Me Now
In the Look @ Me Now project, my class described our lives using literary devices. The literary devices that we used were theme, conflict, characterization, protagonist, antagonist, flashback, irony, symbolism, and foreshadowing. For our finished products, we had to make a poster with all of the literary devices on it, with a few paragraphs to describe them.
Theme:
“If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.” -Margaret Atwood
This quote could be considered the theme of my life because of the mention of writing, which is one of my passions. It also has a mention of perfectionism, which I really struggle with in everything I do. While it can be helpful, I do firmly believe that perfectionism holds creativity back, and sometimes wish it weren't so much a part of me.
Conflict:
As a teenager, I think I am still trying to figure out my place in life, and who I really am as a person, and all of that other deep stuff. I don’t think this is a conflict in typical terms, more an inner debate, akin to the angel/devil on your shoulder. To resolve it, I would need to resolve that inner debate, and figure out the meaning of life... or something.
Characterization:
These characters receive the award for going above and beyond in everything they do. These characters have supported me through all of my life, and were a primary component in my birth. They have really gone above and beyond in everything (everything important, that is) that they’ve done for me, including not doing things (so I can learn? The world may never know). Thank you, Mom and Dad.
This character receives the award for best long distance friendship. This character has been friends with me since we were just about to start school, and best friends for a long time out of that. Their personality is very shy normally, but if you can get them to come out of their shells, it is well worth it. This crazy and fun loving, yet also down to earth and understanding friend has been incredible to know. While they are a year younger than me, we never really cared. They moved to Washington state two years ago, but we’ve kept up a close correspondence through e-mail, phone calls, and letters. Thank you, Melanie.
This character receives the award for most trustworthy companion. While this character has already started another, slightly otherworldly, adventure, they left a profound bark on my life. They have always been an impenetrable bank of secrets, from which nothing has ever escaped. They never judged me when I just needed to vent, and in happier times, were always there to play. Her puppy dog eyes were impossible to resist. Thank you, Sydney.
Protagonist:
In my life the protagonist is my sister, Kathryn. Like any compelling protagonist, she is not without faults, but she has been there for almost every important part of my life, and helped me through every hard time. An important moment that I share with her is her 5th grade graduation, when she gave me her lei that the teachers said to give to the most important person in your life.
Antagonist:
I tend to keep away from people who bring out the worst in me, or any potential candidate for antagonist. However, the traits of a person who might be an antagonist for me are arrogance, selfishness, and overall thinking they are the most important being/species on the planet. These qualities bother me because I think that people are not, in fact, the only species on Earth, and we need to remember that, and respect the rest of the planet. I also think I can be my own antagonist, in the form of that little inner voice that likes to point out any flaw it can find in me.
Flashback:
The day of my cousin's wedding was planned to be a joyous occasion, and it was. My sister and I had finished getting dressed and the door to where my parents were, an add on to the house completed when I was a baby, was locked. I heard muffled shouting on the other side, and I immediately began to worry. This kind of thing only happened occasionally, and when it did nothing ever came of it, but as fighting always does, it put me on edge. Afterwards, both of my parents were in a foul mood, and took separate cars to the wedding, even though it was in the San Juan Capistrano area. On the way, in my Mom's car, she said that there was something important to tell us after the wedding. We pressured her to tell us then, but to no avail. She was adamant.
The wedding was great, it was the first one I had ever been to. The bride even had some relatives that were around my age. After, though, once we left in our separate cars, my Mom told us her message. My Dad wouldn't be coming home that night. This eventually evolved into a week, then eventually, they were separated. A few years after that, the divorce papers were settled. This event has shaped me into who I am today, for better or worse.
Irony:
One day, I was sick and had a headache, so I decided to take a bath to relax. Near the bathtub, there was an “essential oil reed diffuser” (A few bamboo sticks in a jar of scented oils). I never really liked them, but I knew people who loved their smell. A half an hour later, still in the bath, I had an even worse headache than before, and I didn’t know why. My mom noticed that the oil container had fallen to the ground, making the whole room smell like whatever scent it was meant to resemble. I left the room almost immediately, but I still had a headache for the rest of the day. I think it’s ironic that something that was supposed to smell so good gave me such a bad headache.
Symbolism:
A symbol of me that I have in my room are all of my books. They symbolize who I am because of my interests, both in art and writing, my imagination, and my general love of reading. Without books, I think I would be a very different person. I might be less imaginative, and definitely wouldn’t be so passionate about writing. One of my first memories of reading was when my Mom read a short chapter book to me, about a girl who had to hunt down escaped pixies, and send them back to their home. Overall, having books all throughout my life has shaped me into the person I am today.
Foreshadowing:
I think (hope) that a piece of foreshadowing in my life is that I love to read and write now, and will continue that trend into adulthood, possibly making my love of writing into a career. A possible career might be a journalist, author, or even editor. To achieve these goals, I would most likely need to major in some form of Humanities, like English. As for continuing reading, I think I will always love to read, even if my passion for writing dies down.
“If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.” -Margaret Atwood
This quote could be considered the theme of my life because of the mention of writing, which is one of my passions. It also has a mention of perfectionism, which I really struggle with in everything I do. While it can be helpful, I do firmly believe that perfectionism holds creativity back, and sometimes wish it weren't so much a part of me.
Conflict:
As a teenager, I think I am still trying to figure out my place in life, and who I really am as a person, and all of that other deep stuff. I don’t think this is a conflict in typical terms, more an inner debate, akin to the angel/devil on your shoulder. To resolve it, I would need to resolve that inner debate, and figure out the meaning of life... or something.
Characterization:
These characters receive the award for going above and beyond in everything they do. These characters have supported me through all of my life, and were a primary component in my birth. They have really gone above and beyond in everything (everything important, that is) that they’ve done for me, including not doing things (so I can learn? The world may never know). Thank you, Mom and Dad.
This character receives the award for best long distance friendship. This character has been friends with me since we were just about to start school, and best friends for a long time out of that. Their personality is very shy normally, but if you can get them to come out of their shells, it is well worth it. This crazy and fun loving, yet also down to earth and understanding friend has been incredible to know. While they are a year younger than me, we never really cared. They moved to Washington state two years ago, but we’ve kept up a close correspondence through e-mail, phone calls, and letters. Thank you, Melanie.
This character receives the award for most trustworthy companion. While this character has already started another, slightly otherworldly, adventure, they left a profound bark on my life. They have always been an impenetrable bank of secrets, from which nothing has ever escaped. They never judged me when I just needed to vent, and in happier times, were always there to play. Her puppy dog eyes were impossible to resist. Thank you, Sydney.
Protagonist:
In my life the protagonist is my sister, Kathryn. Like any compelling protagonist, she is not without faults, but she has been there for almost every important part of my life, and helped me through every hard time. An important moment that I share with her is her 5th grade graduation, when she gave me her lei that the teachers said to give to the most important person in your life.
Antagonist:
I tend to keep away from people who bring out the worst in me, or any potential candidate for antagonist. However, the traits of a person who might be an antagonist for me are arrogance, selfishness, and overall thinking they are the most important being/species on the planet. These qualities bother me because I think that people are not, in fact, the only species on Earth, and we need to remember that, and respect the rest of the planet. I also think I can be my own antagonist, in the form of that little inner voice that likes to point out any flaw it can find in me.
Flashback:
The day of my cousin's wedding was planned to be a joyous occasion, and it was. My sister and I had finished getting dressed and the door to where my parents were, an add on to the house completed when I was a baby, was locked. I heard muffled shouting on the other side, and I immediately began to worry. This kind of thing only happened occasionally, and when it did nothing ever came of it, but as fighting always does, it put me on edge. Afterwards, both of my parents were in a foul mood, and took separate cars to the wedding, even though it was in the San Juan Capistrano area. On the way, in my Mom's car, she said that there was something important to tell us after the wedding. We pressured her to tell us then, but to no avail. She was adamant.
The wedding was great, it was the first one I had ever been to. The bride even had some relatives that were around my age. After, though, once we left in our separate cars, my Mom told us her message. My Dad wouldn't be coming home that night. This eventually evolved into a week, then eventually, they were separated. A few years after that, the divorce papers were settled. This event has shaped me into who I am today, for better or worse.
Irony:
One day, I was sick and had a headache, so I decided to take a bath to relax. Near the bathtub, there was an “essential oil reed diffuser” (A few bamboo sticks in a jar of scented oils). I never really liked them, but I knew people who loved their smell. A half an hour later, still in the bath, I had an even worse headache than before, and I didn’t know why. My mom noticed that the oil container had fallen to the ground, making the whole room smell like whatever scent it was meant to resemble. I left the room almost immediately, but I still had a headache for the rest of the day. I think it’s ironic that something that was supposed to smell so good gave me such a bad headache.
Symbolism:
A symbol of me that I have in my room are all of my books. They symbolize who I am because of my interests, both in art and writing, my imagination, and my general love of reading. Without books, I think I would be a very different person. I might be less imaginative, and definitely wouldn’t be so passionate about writing. One of my first memories of reading was when my Mom read a short chapter book to me, about a girl who had to hunt down escaped pixies, and send them back to their home. Overall, having books all throughout my life has shaped me into the person I am today.
Foreshadowing:
I think (hope) that a piece of foreshadowing in my life is that I love to read and write now, and will continue that trend into adulthood, possibly making my love of writing into a career. A possible career might be a journalist, author, or even editor. To achieve these goals, I would most likely need to major in some form of Humanities, like English. As for continuing reading, I think I will always love to read, even if my passion for writing dies down.
Reflection:
The most important thing that I learned in this project is about myself. Figuring out the literary devices, and how they connected to my life was really eye-opening, especially the conflict and antagonist. I wish I had spent more time thinking about some of the other literary devises, though, like foreshadowing and symbolism. On the other hand, I think my best work in the project is probably the theme, conflict, and characterization paragraphs. I really liked how they turned out because of both the subject matter, and the flow/wording.
My favorite part of this project was thinking about the literary devices, and making the poster. As a high school student, you don't get to work with fun kindergarten materials very often. My least favorite part of the project was the short time frame. I think we really could have used another class period or two (maybe a critique session) to polish the poster. If I could help the teachers to make this project any better, I would probably fix that.
The most important thing that I learned in this project is about myself. Figuring out the literary devices, and how they connected to my life was really eye-opening, especially the conflict and antagonist. I wish I had spent more time thinking about some of the other literary devises, though, like foreshadowing and symbolism. On the other hand, I think my best work in the project is probably the theme, conflict, and characterization paragraphs. I really liked how they turned out because of both the subject matter, and the flow/wording.
My favorite part of this project was thinking about the literary devices, and making the poster. As a high school student, you don't get to work with fun kindergarten materials very often. My least favorite part of the project was the short time frame. I think we really could have used another class period or two (maybe a critique session) to polish the poster. If I could help the teachers to make this project any better, I would probably fix that.