Comments Q2W6

Why Every New Star Wars is Horrible - Matthew Bickham

Free Post - Saad Ali

Free Post - Review of COD: WWII

          I recently picked up Call of Duty: WWII, the newest installment of the long-running Call of Duty video game series. As I've already put in about 25 hours into the game since I purchased it a few days prior to Thanksgiving, I have been able to collect sufficient information to accurately put it against the standards set by previous installments in the series, namely COD: World at War (2008). In this mini-review, I will address several points about what has improved, what has not, and the several controversially significant appendages to this game that has made it stand out in the series among the community. 

          Although I would rather not begin on a bad note, a major point that is on nearly every online forum addresses a severe issue with the servers. Frequent crashing, bugs, and other technical issues have plagued the online services of the game, but personally, this is more minor to me as it is easily fixed by restarting the program (which only takes about 10 seconds realistically speaking). On the positive side, I have heavily enjoyed the historic approach that the series took with this game, returning to the series' original WWII setting. The campaign (a single-player, story-driven game mode), although rather short, does create an immersive--albeit not quite realistic--adventure for the player. The famous Nazi Zombies mode (a cooperative mode in which the player(s) survive for as long as possible against waves of gory zombies) has retained some familiar aspects: combinations of big and small maps (in-game worlds), "Wonder" (special) weapons, and interactive "Easter Eggs". Being a major component in COD Zombies in the recent installments, the Easter Eggs were less exciting than what I had expected (and much shorter). Moving on to the largest component of COD games in general, the PvP (player vs. player) multiplayer has been an addicting experience for me. Although the community is still displeased with the server issues and microtransactions, the gameplay itself has been a somewhat-blissful yet somewhat-rage-inducing yet awe-inspiring experience for me. The introduction of "Divisions", the return to "boots-on-the-ground" style, and the familiarity with iconic WWII-era firearms has made me more-than-content with this game. Moreover, despite microtransactions still present as aforementioned, they all simply contain cosmetic collectibles and upgrades (no gameplay advantage), so it is much less of a "pay-to-win" style COD. Overall, using an IGN scale, I would rate this game 9.3 out of 10 for its immersive campaign, somewhat-compelling Zombies mode, and traditional COD multiplayer mode. 

Thesis Draft

          Golding creates a sibling-like rivalry to illustrate an unspoken covenant between two people who treat each other like enemies but think of each other as family. Regarding the filial side of my statement, a clear bond is shown between the two boys fairly early in the novel. “At the return Ralph found himself alone on a limb with Jack and they grinned at each other, sharing this burden" (39). During this first major trial for the boys, being the starting of the fire on the mountain in chapter 2, Ralph and Jack find each other deeply connected and form an (almost) everlasting bond throughout the novel. As we know that Ralph and Jack's relationship is generally full of conflicts, both verbal and physical, we can infer that underneath their bickering and fighting, these two boys are still brothers.

Comments Q2W5

LOTF Response - Saad Ali

LOTF Passage - Matthew Bickham

Symbolism Flash Fiction (#3)

          The wind picked up. Coffee-stained leaves blew past my hands. I felt like an old man. I watched the dazzling, bright sky with the intent to burn my eyes. The driver turned another corner; who was the driver again? Where are we going? The driver rolled up his window; I didn't. Turning my attention back to my window, the leaves that were spotted red and orange disappeared. The trees turned barren, the breeze became a flurry. I felt prickles on the tip of my nose and the insides of my fingers. The van seemed to move slower. It rained small pieces of ice with designs never seen before. I could no longer withstand the frozen wind. I slowly rolled up my misty window. As it fully shut, I felt my eyes darkening. The road ended in a tunnel. At the end, there was a bright light.
          The light was unbearable. I felt wet and putrid. Around me, dahlias and tulips bloomed. I found insects crawling up my tiny legs and hands; I forgot their names. Goliath trees stood tall and dignified above my spherical little head. Their bright leaves let in minimal sunlight. I wonder where it comes from? A furry little version of me with 4 legs passed by. I tried to name it, but only a babble of sounds came out and my mind couldn't quite make it out. I found two larger humans cradling me. I fell asleep once more.

P.S. The symbolism in this story is about the seasons and reincarnation. As the narrator progresses through fall and winter in his old state, he finally reaches "the light at the end of the tunnel" (AKA death). Then, he is reincarnated as a baby again in the spring.

LOTF Response: p. 83-84

[Piggy:] "I don't agree with all Jack said, but with some.  'Course there isn't a beast in the forest.  How could there be?  What would a beast eat?"
"Pig."
"We eat pig."
"Piggy!"
"I got the conch!" said Piggy indignantly.  "Ralph--they ought to shut up, oughtn't they?  You shut up, you littluns!  What I mean is that I don't agree about this here fear.  Of course there isn't nothing to be afraid of in the forest.  Why--I been there myself!  You'll be talking about ghosts and such things next.  We know what goes on and if there's something wrong, there's someone to put it right."
He took off his glasses and blinked at them.  The sun had gone as if the light had been turned off. [...]
"Life," said Piggy expansively, "is scientific, that's what it is.  In a year or two when the war's over they'll be traveling to Mars and back.  I know there isn't no beast--not with claws and all that, I mean--but I know there isn't no fear either."
Piggy paused.
"Unless--"
Ralph moved restlessly. 
"Unless what?"
"Unless we get frightened of people." (83-84)

Above is the passage that I am analyzing.

          As we are almost finished with Lord of the Flies (I can't believe it myself!), now is the time to reflect on what we have learned through Golding's rhetoric so far. This passage above from pages 83-84 of Lord of the Flies holds much code to be deciphered. To start from the top, as the boys argue over the existence of a "beast" on the island, Golding here uses some possible foreshadowing. In lines 2-5, as the Piggy asks the others "What would a beast eat?", someone replies with "Pig", then Piggy responds back with "We eat pig," while someone else shouts "Piggy!" In short, the foreshadowing takes place in that Piggy says that they eat pigs, while someone shouts his name (Piggy) the next line, possibly foreshadowing that Piggy could be "eaten", which we all know too well to be true.
          A different hidden message in this passage refers to Simon's view of the beast as an entity. Going back to the first few lines, when the second speaker responds to Piggy's question with "pig", but Piggy also says that they eat pig, it helps reinforce Simon's idea that the beast could perhaps be humanity itself. Not only these first few significant pieces of dialogue but as well as the last line in this passage: "Unless we get frightened of people." This last statement hints at the idea that perhaps they themselves could become (or already are) beasts. So, the fear comes not only from an imaginary, supernatural creature but also from among themselves.

Q2W4 Comments

LOTF Reading Response - Saad Ali

Vocabulary Free Post: Pancakes or Waffles - Evan Meek

Vocabulary Free Post

          I remember my 5th Grade year very well at Episcopal. I can't even remotely remember a significant amount from my 7th Grade year, nor much from even my 8th Grade year, as my most memorable experiences took place in the school year of 2014-2015. These experiences taught me how to life lessons, how to behave, and it opened my eyes to other new experiences. I had never felt more sanguine at school than when I was pushed to learn through fun and 10-year old joy.

          The more notable experiences that I had during that year included both on-campus and off-campus activities. My "homeroom" and science/social studies teacher was Mr. James, who is now retired from teaching. As one of his side-jobs at Episcopal, he was a gardener and in charge of the recycling projects here. Every Friday or Monday all of the classes at each of their own periods that day would spend most of the class touring the Middle School and Lower School classrooms and would empty their recycling bins in a large container. It was not appealing at first for me, but incrementally I learned to love it. Mr. James used it to teach us how to be polite and serve others humbly. It also eventually became a lesson in teamwork, as we worked in teams of two or three. Another more physically intense activity, this time off-campus, was our class's trip to a bayou for (my first time) canoeing. Each canoe held two or three of your selected buddies. We canoed along the bayou to Lake Pontchartrain and back. As a painful yet determined challenge, perseverance and teamwork became the core lessons in this activity. There were a plethora of meaningful experiences that each of us in my 5th Grade class had gone through. Sadly, however, as we graduated from Lower School, the fun in our classes began to deteriorate. Although 5th Grade is long past, my classmates and I will remember our time that year for as long as we are here at Episcopal.

Reading Response - LOTF

          Lord of the Flies is a story of perseverance, survival, and togetherness. These topics show up in the book many times, but they aren't always surfaced easily. Instead, the reader must dig deep into the language and literary devices Golding has put forth and decipher what every event truly means at its core. Togetherness, however, stands out to me as the most important and prominent topic in the novel as a whole so far. This idea of working together to reach a common goal has never failed to reach out to me as a realistic and morally ideal topic.
          To be specific, in Lord of the Flies, as the boys work together to survive and to attempt to keep a signal fire going, they start out somewhat successful. As their time on the island continues to lengthen, they start to fall apart as a group. They start breaking up into factions and eventually stop keeping the signal fire altogether. They become increasingly aware of their demise, especially with the thought of a "beast" on the island. This "beast", although it brings them back together for a short time, doesn't have a significant effect on their conflicts between themselves in the end. Therefore, with their togetherness crumbling, they fight with the reality that they may never be rescued.