Pink Floyd, Animals
If you don't know the idea of this album, what "Pigs," "Dogs," & "Sheep" are all about, well, check it out.
[Hint: it's very loosely based around the ideas in Animal Farm, but has nothing to do w/ communism; in its time it was a statement about the (then) contemporary politics in Britain]
It's an amazing album.
It's fitting for a day like today.
STATEMENT ABOUT VOTING & POLITICS IN THE CLASS & BEYOND ALERT
I do not get "political" in class because that is not my job. I know some teachers disagree w/ this idea & try to foist their opinions on you, but I feel they do you a great disservice. I let you know what I think & I listen to your opinions when things "political" or "religious" come up, as they often do in discussions of literature.
(& I have had enough students who think I'm a rabid right-winger, balanced by the many who think I'm a bleeding-heart liberal, to know I must be doing at least that part of my job pretty well.)
I belong to the party of my own thought, free from any inherent bias towards others. I don't read the flyers folks send me to tell me how to vote, I don't watch those horrific ads on the telly (I've seen enough in the past & read enough about the present to know I would not lower myself), & I don't listen to the voice mails the candidates leave me.
I study the issues & the candidates, I make my informed decision, & I abstain if I do not know enough.
Remember, the key to democracy is an informed populace, not a bumper-sticker contingent.
Yep, I voted, & I wore my sticker to Pick Up Stix & Best Buy.
Oh, & I was out because of the rise of the sinus infection: it's taking over our whole house . . .
Juniors:
You wrote your 1st "creative" assignment, for which you were given a word count, line count & title. Meet those simple requirements, & get your points.
You re-read the "How to Read a Poem" section from Barron's, focusing on the "answers to "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer."
Then you read "A Poison Tree," & you made your own attempt at those "answers."
& yes, I put the word "answers" in "quotation marks," because, come on, now . . . it's poetry.
It's open to interpretation.
In 3rd person, he reminds you: that's one of the reasons English is cool.
Sophomores:
Big ol' Antigone & drama notes quiz.
You matched the person or place or thing or idea to its description, & then you wrote a short response about hte "tragic hero," as brought to us by our old friend Aristotle.
You will continue & conclude the "wrap-up" group work tomorrow, & we will discuss some issues raised in the text.
& I can kind of tie all this together in finishing w/ the fact that Aristotle compared the politician (like Creon) to a craftsman . . . kind of like a poet, mayhaps?
be cool
Go Green.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, voting is not a legitimate excuse to miss school, sir.
I mean, voting is great and all, but it does not take all day.
ReplyDeleteI like to think that I am a fairly well-informed person, but I feel like a total maroon at the polls. Yes, I can search the internet to dig up dirt on the candidates and what-not, but it's all those propositions . . . half of them I had never heard of until I got there. ( and yes, I'm aware that you can gloss over the neat little descriptions that explain them )
ReplyDeleteIn any case, after I vote -- I'm grateful that I had the opportunity to do so, and I feel very thankful for certain freedoms both as a woman, and as a citizen-- but sometimes the choices of what we get to vote for ( or who) scares me more than watching the news.
Heading under my rock to hide now, people. Have a good night.
pink floyd! awesome
ReplyDeletei listened to Death Cube K as i went to bed last night, didn't have nightmares, but the wall did say to something that there wasn't enough room for another one.
yeah voting, think lots of little raindrops people
lets hope they know what they are doing
skidaleedo! =D Animals was my first Pink Floyd album and still my favorite. :) Don't get me wrong, Dark Side of the Moon, The Wall, yada yada, fantastic stuff, but I love Animals the most. =D Pink Floyd really got me when I listened to the whole album in the dark (per my dad's request) but it made it really difficult to complete my math homework at that time. I'm even considering using "Pigs on the Wing Pt. II" on my Waste Land Soundtrack, but I cannot find the perfect songs for the CD. It's annoying. ^.^ Not to mention making the CD covers without a handy printer...
ReplyDeleteSo, in general McBride (no details necessary cuz I don't want you fired), you happy with the voting results? To be honest I, like a majority of America, have no idea what's going on when it comes to politics. However, I, unlike a majority of America, don't have to cuz I don't count anyway! =D
I still can't believe some of the Tea Party got elected...well people get what people vote for...speaking about voting, only 37% of Americans even voted and I'm pretty sure some of the 63% that did not vote will be complaining why the country is in the shape it's in. They should hurry up and make THE SITUATION president....THE PRESIDENT I like the sound of that.
ReplyDeleteYes, & of the 37% of those who voted, I wonder how many really understood that for which they voted.
ReplyDeleteI'm all for voter apathy if it leaves the uninformed at home.
The whole process has come to intrigue me, sometimes in a good way, & sometimes not so much. The 2-party system seems antiquated, but too entrenched to go away anytime soon.
Senza: comme-ci, comme ça