J Balogun's Online Journal

The tempest is a very mixed mood story, it involves love , revenge , anger , passion and forgiveness. Prospero the rightful duke of Milan, has had his dukedom stolen by his brother Antonio. Prospero is then banished to an island where he has a slave named caliban and daughter Miranda as companions. The plan to revenge upon Antonio breaks down when he leads them to the Island and finally meets up with them. Ariel a magic spirit performing tasks for prospero feels sorry for them and provokes that feeling into Prospero. Prospero then forgives them and promises to give up on magic.

In times of war and chaos, it is imperative that we differentiate between our roles and responsibilities in dealing with extremism and the need to care for humanity. I cannot even imagine that living under ISIS, drones, revenge attacks, bombs, and explosions is an ideal situation for anyone. The millions of refugees in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and in many other countries in the region are fleeing from something. They are not running toward “Sharia Law,” the “Islamic State,” and they are not running toward “jihad.” They are running for their lives. They are running from the constant state of worry that their lives, their schools, their stadiums, their restaurants, and their homes will be next.

In the United States and Canada, the sharp contrast to Europe in the response to refugees has been upsetting, but I cannot say I’m surprised. CNN suspended global affairs correspondent Elise Labott for a tweet that said, “House passes bill that could limit Syrian refugees. Statue of Liberty bows head in anguish,” linking to a CNN article on the vote. She later apologized, but her reference to the Statue of Liberty was apt. At the famous monument gifted from France in 1886, a symbol of freedom and democracy, there is inscribed a poem by Emma Lazarus:

“Give me your tired, your poor

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

What is noteworthy about this poem, in particular, is that Lazarus was aiding Jewish refugees as they arrived in New York from Eastern Europe. In Canada and the United States, Muslims are facing threats and abuse of all kinds, and we are also told to flee this home of ours, to go back to our own countries. We are told that we cannot be safe here, that we cannot be equals here, and that we do not love freedom and democracy. We are told Islam does not welcome the West, so the West should not welcome Islam. Our religion is painted as violent and intolerant, but my hijab was not ripped off in Bangladesh, or Turkey — it was in Canada, at the age of 12.

To the Canadians who feel Muslims are not Canadian enough and that refugees are asking for too much, I’d like to ask — how do you expect us to create change? What is more democratic than Muslims taking to the streets to demand reform and change in their government, and what can be a clearer sign for the desire of freedom than fleeing a land of war? What is more democratic than Muslims who run for office, and what is a clearer sign of freedom than wearing what you want as you become a citizen? And so, as I sit comfortably in my home, able to study, eat, sleep, see my family and friends, and report any incidents to the police, my thoughts go to the refugees who do not have these luxuries.

While Muslims may not have the peace and comfort we want from our fellow Canadians in times of distress and conflict in the world, we have freedom and democracy. Our brothers and sisters, however, do not, and I am ashamed to stand for principles that apply to some of humanity, but not all of us. Yes, I am safe, for now, but refugees cannot say the same, nor do they have the time for idle fear.

Migrants protest against restrictions limiting passage at the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija, on December 1, 2015.
Published on Dec 02 2015
Marzia Niamah Hussain
The recent incidents of hate crime in Toronto have shocked me to the point of disbelief. I am sure — and hope — that many Canadians feel that this is not the Canada that we all know. As I read about every incident, multiple incidents each day, the possibility that it could happen to me becomes all the more real. However, until that happens, friends and family repeatedly insist that if I’m safe, it will all be OK. As I think about that piece of advice, “stay safe,” I think about the millions of refugees who must suffer for the actions of a few who have the power of fear, and the inactions of the masses who have the power of authority.
In times of war and chaos, it is imperative that we differentiate between our roles and responsibilities in dealing with extremism and the need to care for humanity. I cannot even imagine that living under ISIS, drones, revenge attacks, bombs, and explosions is an ideal situation for anyone. The millions of refugees in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and in many other countries in the region are fleeing from something. They are not running toward “Sharia Law,” the “Islamic State,” and they are not running toward “jihad.” They are running for their lives. They are running from the constant state of worry that their lives, their schools, their stadiums, their restaurants, and their homes will be next.

In the United States and Canada, the sharp contrast to Europe in the response to refugees has been upsetting, but I cannot say I’m surprised. CNN suspended global affairs correspondent Elise Labott for a tweet that said, “House passes bill that could limit Syrian refugees. Statue of Liberty bows head in anguish,” linking to a CNN article on the vote. She later apologized, but her reference to the Statue of Liberty was apt. At the famous monument gifted from France in 1886, a symbol of freedom and democracy, there is inscribed a poem by Emma Lazarus:
“Give me your tired, your poor
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
What is noteworthy about this poem, in particular, is that Lazarus was aiding Jewish refugees as they arrived in New York from Eastern Europe. In Canada and the United States, Muslims are facing threats and abuse of all kinds, and we are also told to flee this home of ours, to go back to our own countries. We are told that we cannot be safe here, that we cannot be equals here, and that we do not love freedom and democracy. We are told Islam does not welcome the West, so the West should not welcome Islam. Our religion is painted as violent and intolerant, but my hijab was not ripped off in Bangladesh, or Turkey — it was in Canada, at the age of 12.
To the Canadians who feel Muslims are not Canadian enough and that refugees are asking for too much, I’d like to ask — how do you expect us to create change? What is more democratic than Muslims taking to the streets to demand reform and change in their government, and what can be a clearer sign for the desire of freedom than fleeing a land of war? What is more democratic than Muslims who run for office, and what is a clearer sign of freedom than wearing what you want as you become a citizen? And so, as I sit comfortably in my home, able to study, eat, sleep, see my family and friends, and report any incidents to the police, my thoughts go to the refugees who do not have these luxuries.
While Muslims may not have the peace and comfort we want from our fellow Canadians in times of distress and conflict in the world, we have freedom and democracy. Our brothers and sisters, however, do not, and I am ashamed to stand for principles that apply to some of humanity, but not all of us. Yes, I am safe, for now, but refugees cannot say the same, nor do they have the time for idle fear.

Within “The Pleasure Of Hating”, Hazlitt imbedded a lot of persuasive writing which had do be looked into deeply to be discovered. Hazlitt readers may not know or realise how persuasive Hazlitt is being within the text. I will now analyse the areas of persuasion of which Hazlitt has Imbedded.

Hazlitt uses personal experiences of what happened in a spider encounter, and the actions taken. The anecdote at the beginning of the story, allows the reader to trust that Hazlitt knows what he is talking about, as he speaks from personal experience. Unfortunately that isn’t how Hazlitt persuades the reader but how Hazlitt makes persuasion easier upon the reader. Hazlitt then inputs the sentence “but I hate every sight of them”, that sentence was an extremely smart way of asking for the readers opinion. A rhetorical question then occurs, for example, do I hate spiders? The next thing that would pop into the readers head must be, I also hate them or I quite like spiders. If you are a reader who also hates spiders, that was Hazlitt’s way of bringing you onto level terms. So now you are in the same position as Hazlitt, by also hating spiders. It also influences the reader because due to Hazlitt’s anecdote in the beginning your opinion on “hating” spiders will be firm due to Hazlitt clever technique of persuading you into also hating spiders with him. This is extremely effective but why? Hazlitt has now made a bond with the reader, Hazlitt and the reader has now got something in common. This will now entice the reader to continue reading as Hazlitt and the reader are so alike. This shows and tells the reader that Hazlitt’s interests are your interests so therefore there is a common denominator. The bond is made and that is extremely effective in persuasive text.

Persuasion text is not only a way in convincing you to believe in something, but also convincing you to agree with something. Within the text Hazlitt tries to teach and tell us that hating is not such a bad thing. In fact “without something to hate, we should lose the very spring of thought and action.” Expanding on that, hate is a great way to differentiate, your feeling to someone or something, without hate humans cannot work the way they do. Some humans may not move on to a better job due to not hating there jobs. Some humans may have an awful boss, but can’t hate them. Hatred is not such a bad thing but it is the way it is used and made to cause someone to act to another. Without hate we cannot think the way we do as everything will just be accepted, many opinionated pieces may not have existed, Wars and historical landmarks may not have been built because the hatred towards other countries may not have existed. Racism may not have existed. Without hate the human being and life would be completely basic. Looking deeply into this Hazlitt is trying to persuade and tell the reader, if they thought otherwise that “hate”, is actually not a bad thing. This is extremely effective because it changes the view of a reader and is a very good persuasive text. This can now teach the average or above and below average human, in there daily lives that hating isn’t so bad.

Hazlitt then within, “The Pleasure Of Hating”, then continues to be persuasive using intelligent techniques to disguise it. Hazlitt then imbeds the quotation “Do we not see this principle at work everywhere?” This quotation is a quotation which persuades you into agreement. He compares it to people’s everyday life, and asks them to agree. In life conversations occur many times about problems and stresses. To compare Hate to work. It relates because at work there are a lot of cases where, people dislike there co workers. This essay influences the reader as in current paragraphs I have mentioned, to know that hating isn’t bad. Hazlitt comparing to everyday live is using and anecdote’s technique, as instead of telling you about his experiences, he is asking for the readers life and experiences. “Do we not see the principle at work everywhere” compares to a persons every day life. That influences the reader as because the quotation compares to every day life, that the reader may relate to. That seeks the influence of the reader as it may persuade them to do things a different way as they can relate, so Hazlitt’s persuasion in also advise.

Hazlitt is admitting that he is not an advisor but is also taking his own advice. Hazlitt is not trying to make it seem as if he is the perfect human being, but is trying to show the reader and himself, ways to be a better one. His advise is not criticism. Hazlitt writes like a perfectly humble man, but himself he has got a bad temper. “They might say this is owing to my bad temper” shows that himself also had a bad temper, rage and a bit of hate in him. That is extremely persuasive to take his advice because he shows us that he is not perfect. It shows he can admit things without shame, as he himself went through what an average human, and the reader has gone through. Hazlitt just by using that sentence within the text, convinced and influences the reader to take his advice, as he was once the opposite of what he writes about, the perfect human. This Hazlitt technique was very smart but goes unnoticed, that sentence influenced us as now we know the past that he came from. He is not criticising everyone that has a bit of hatred in them, but is telling them the good and bad parts of the hatred. It can also be advise on how to use the hatred. So Hazlitt is showing people that he has a bad past, due to him admitting his background, we understand that he is just like us, so his advice is very helpful as his advice may help us the way it helped him to become an excellent writer. The thing most appreciated by the reader is Hazlitt’s honesty, it backs up everything that Hazlitt has been completely honest throughout the whole text. That quotation is very important.

This is the way that this essay seeks to influence the reader, and that is also the areas of the text are these techniques likely to be most affective.

Jose Murinho has claimed that he will loose every game if he repeats the Newcastle flop again. I surprisingly agree. We are 16th in the league and have no sense of respect for ourselves. Chelsea supporters are buying Man City shirts with De Bruyne shirts, when the game before it was a Chelsea shirt with Pedro on the back.

Why does Chelsea give up so early in the season? Don’t they understand that they have a reputation to withstand. We are last season champions, who are playing as if we were on the verge of relegation. Why can’t we just step up our game. We are a good side, we need to play like one. People may call us rubbish but we are Chelsea. We are a clubs that exceeds expectation and are now ruining reputations. Many clubs has surpassed up but we need to show what we are made of. So to The Sun news who believe that Murinho is correct, we are the fans and we know that its a mind game to manipulate the mind of other teams to believe that we have dropped in performance. We are going to come back into the top 4 and thats a promise.

I was asked by a a friend of mine to do a review on the game Tekken, and as you can tell from the tittle I wasn’t very pleased with the game. There were many disappointing aspects of the game which, made me realize what a waste of time the game was. You’d expect a game producing company like NAMCO would present something better, wow. Thats poor.

Teken is a fighting game which limits your movement. It doesn’t make any sense, in fights the movement is wild. The fact that they can make a fighting game so basic. It completely contradicts the point of fighting games and sports in general. I’m sure there is more movement in a game of chess than a develop NAMCO game. The fact that they move side to side completely limits the fun of the game. You cannot discover the whole area, but can be amazed by the  different colorful backgrounds. Whoo. Not many people would be. The side to side movement shows that they are not as advanced as the creator of Dragon Ball Z. Street Fighter has the same side to side movement but is a game I love so there must be something about Tekken I hate.

The game itself is bias. Jin and Steve which are actually known to be the main characters of the game are generally unbeatable by a weaker or “unknown” character, its been proven that they cannot beat them as good as the players are. That ruins the game, what if you come across them in a story mode at a hard difficulty you cant win. The game need to be fair or there is no point like football it’s a guessing game. But put £1,000,000 on Jin against Ken-Hu and your a millionaire. Don’t know who Ken-Hu is, ironic. The game has to be fair. Or there shouldn’t be one.

That was a waste of two and a half hours of my life. I could’ve been playing a good game. That was only a brief overview of why I hate Tekken. From my last post you would know I use the word “hate” as an exaggerated term. This time i’m using it correctly. I hate Tekken. Well there is is two and a half hours I can never have back.

To Nicky Morgan,

I strongly believe that students should study poetry in school because it teaches them various language techniques. Poetry can help you with your English as there are many language   techniques in poetry which occur in your everyday English lesson. For example the repetition of the same same first letter of a word may poetry may lead to teaching students about alliteration. or example in the poem The Eagle written by Tennyson was a very complex poem which had specific language devices of which if you didn’t learn poetry you may not have known about this language device. In  the whole poem Tennyson personifies an an eagle. You may have learnt about personification by reading previous poems but if the government didn’t allow people to study poetry they would not understand or discover many language techniques, which in use may give them very vital marks on a test.

Joseph –

You have a good understanding of prosopopoeia, and you use examples to explore it well.

The written expression here shows evidence of being rushed. Have a read through and see if you can spot where you should have started a new sentence.

-RP

David Simon, all throughout Homicide, uses many language techniques to create suspense. He writes in a certain way to drag and bring the audience into the story. Simon makes the audience believe they are the centre of the story, and does that whilst building suspense. I will now explain the language techniques, which Simon uses to create suspense, in further detail.

The first language technique that Simon uses, is writing in second person. In Homicide you are the killer, you are the one who is made to think like a criminal. Writing in second person involves the whole audience. It makes you believe that you are the character in your story, but why? Simon puts all of the “characters problems” onto you, and makes you wonder what you would do in this position. This builds suspense, as you start to ask questions to yourself, and believe that you are in the story. On page 201, the last paragraph Simon says “You have committed a crime of violence”. That instantaneously brings up follow up question to the audience, and the character themselves. Suspense is built because you don’t know what to do, or what is going to happen to you. You ask yourself questions on why you have done what you have done. Suspense is built as second person effect allows the audience believe they have committed that crime, in a real life situation, and how they will pull through it. On page 203 The Miranda Warning, “You have the right to remain silent” you and the audience reading, asks questions that build suspense. It also makes the audience ask big questions for example, what will happen to me next?

Another literal technique that Simon uses is Situational Irony. As you know, you’ve committed a crime. A detective who is trying to get you to confess, and trying to throw you into a dark and lonely jail “comes back and asks if the coffee is okay.” Situational Irony occurs when what actually happens, is the opposite of what is expected or appropriate. So a detective “The man who shouldn’t be mistaken for a friend” asks if the coffee is okay. A character who is trying to punish you for your mistake, and throw you in jail, is being friendly to you. This builds suspense because, it allows the reader to ask question and tamper with the trust of the detective. They ask rhetorical questions like, is he my friend? This builds suspense, because it makes the reader wonder and confused. There is a slowly built friendship,  and tension. You are confused and do not know what decisions to make. Suspense is built due to confusion, and not knowing what to do.

Another way Simon creates suspense is by using Dramatic Irony. “The detective looks up from the form, his eyes soaked with innocence. He came at you huh?” That shows the detectives eyes, are trying to lure you into a trap of trust. When the detective eyes are soaked with innocence you are misled to believe that you have a bond with him. “He came at you huh?” that quotation allows, and fools you to believe that you and him are friends. As if he knows what kind of situation you are in, and he says it as if he has been in the same position. That sentence instantly fools you and gives you a fake bond, it makes you believe he knows what it’s like to be in your shoes. You confess due to believing everything is okay with this detective and say “yeah, he came at me.” The man we warned you not to mistake as a friend, has now betrayed you and accepted your confession and has told you to “Get used to small rooms because you are about to be drop-kicked into the lost land of pre-trial detention.” You have been fooled into believing that this man whom soaked his eyes with innocence, and seemed completely harmless to a point where he made you believe that he is your friend, has now managed to make sure your put in a cell with all the other criminals. That same friend, has compared you to all the other killers and psycho people on earth as your put in a prison with them. What a great friend. Suspense is built as you don’t know what your so called friend is capable of, you confess surely out of trust but what happens next, does he turn you in? Does he help you? That builds suspense because you don’t know what’s going to happen next. Once you confess your heart begins to pound, your palms begin to sweat, and once you realized he has betrayed you, you feel like a fool for being misled and giving a detective your trust so easily. That is how suspense is built.

I conclude that this is how David Simon creates suspense, in the book Homicide.

Joseph Balogun

Joseph –

This is a very clear and analytical piece of literary writing. It would not take many changes to give this credit for the “Literary Essay” achievement. However, when I look at the criteria I see that:

• “Punctuation features are used consistently and correctly and in some instances are used to illuminate the analysis”

Compare this with this sentence:

“Suspense is built as you don’t know what your “friend” is capable of you confess surely out of trust but what happens next does he turn you in?”

Hopefully you can see that this is not yet clear enough. Punctuation will help. You should make revisions to this piece so that it is clearer and pay particular attention to the punctuation. If you do this by Thursday then I will be able to credit you with it for your next assessment.

-RP