Week 5- Hamlet

Hamlet- written by Shakespeare and became a historic masterpiece in literature. For the plot of Hamlet revealed a mysterious twist with a series of events consisting of lies, truth, corruption, lust, and love. Hamlet appears as a depressed and emotionally passionate guy, but behind his "smart" remarks are a hint of sarcasm and hidden insults within his lines and statements. Hamlet can be seen as a simple guy angry at the world filled with complex and difficult tribulations, a world Hamlet feels as unworthy to live for anymore. A world where he feels himself as just a speck of existence. He does not see any hope in his downfall- losing his father and obtaining a replacement in his father's place, his uncle. Hope does not seem self-evident until a truth is exposed. It is then in the bright truth in the midst of dark chaos, that Hamlet is determined and feels he "was born to set it right". In that moment Hamlet finds a motivation to persevere in life again. Hamlet is perceived as a normal human with relatable and realistic tribulations and trials and although life's hardships knocked him down, he found an initiative and the vigor to carry on and endure the rocks of life.
Though several individuals disagree with the thought of Hamlet to be a literature masterpiece, the story has inspired several motion pictures such as Lion King and crime television shows. Hamlet related to different types of audiences through suspension, drama, tragedy, and a love story.

Week 5- Ne-yo Lyrical Smash-Up

You understand me

At least you say you do
Lately that’s enough for me
Looking for perfect
Surrounded by artificial
You're the closest thing to real I’ve seen
Sure, everyone has their problems that’s a given
Yours are the easiest to tolerate
This wasn't what we was wanting
How we're living
But let's take this good enough and turn it to great
yes sometimes it’s gonna hurt
We can be as happy as we want to be
But we gotta make it work
Sometimes I love you
More than you'll ever know
Other times you get on my nerves (hey)
That's just reality
No, it can't always be
Kisses, hugs, and beautiful words

Because of what I just found
I found love,
I ain't playing no more
Wasn't looking for it but I can't ignore it

For the way you changed my plans
For being the perfect distraction
For the way you took the idea that I have
Of everything that I wanted to have
And made me see there was something missing
For the ending of my first begin
And for the rare and unexpected friend
For the way you're something that I'd never choose
But at the same time, something I don't wanna lose
And never wanna be without ever again
You're the best thing I never knew I needed
So when you were here I had no idea
You the best thing I never knew I needed
So now it's so clear, I need you here always
My accidental happily ever after
The way you smile and how you comfort me with your laughter
I must admit you were not a part of my book
But now if you open it up and take a look
You're the beginning and the end of every chapter

The way you stare as if you see right through to my soul

Our quiet time, your beautiful mind

Invading your space

Stories you tell as we lay in bed all afternoon

Much as you blame yourself, you can't be blamed for the way that you feel
Had no example of a love that was even remotely real
How can you understand something that you never had
If you let me, I can help you out with all of that

I can see the pain behind your eyes
It's been there for quite a while
I just wanna be the one to remind you what it is to smile
I would like to show you what true love can really do

You were looking for
What you found is with potential
And no, I’m nowhere near perfect
But I’m around

A heart of numbness, gets brought to life

Time and patience is essential

Week 4- What makes a sonnet?

The sonnet I chose was William Shakespeare’s “Let me not to the marriage of true minds” (Sonnet 116). Shakespeare’s sonnet revealed the genuineness of love- the realness of love. The depth of essential and honest love. With lines of  "Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds", "is never shaken", and "Love's not Time's fool". All pertaining to real love not watered down, shallow love, as today in society love has altered and took a toll where there is now two types of love- real love and shallow love. Shakespeare emphasized the depth of genuine love.

What makes a sonnet? 
The basic metrical scale of quatrains and the sequence of series abab cdcd efef gg. The rhythm patterns of stressed and unstressed pronunciation and enunciation. The quatrains and couplet within. The ten syllables within each line, otherwise known as an iambic pentameter. These are the foundation of manifesting a complex sonnet that seems simple to create but difficult to construct. How Shakespeare had the patience to formulate each line with diction filled dynamics to reveal or emphasis a mental revelation or mindful creation for his own sonnet's, I will never fully comprehend. 
Although the rhymes and syllables make the physical, structural foundation of a sonnet, the contents within those stressed and unstressed patterns bring out immaterial essence of a sonnet. The flow with the meaning of those simple words creating and building a mental invigoration. The ability to assemble simple words while arranging those same words to create a new found knowledge, adds to the greatness of manifesting a sonnet.

Week 4- Anthony Hamilton Lyrical Smash-Up

I had a habit of messing up
I let you down a thousand times
Broken promises
It's like I ran away from you

You woke up my heart
And I saw again what I found in you

I was convicted cuz your love never wavered
I know you love me more than me
And you vowed to love through anything
Looking at you, I can tell, you’ve had hard times in your life
Now it’s time for me, to make everything right
I wanna shower you, with lovely thangs, help you smile again,
I wanna get to know you, make it right, so you can breathe again

I see the scars from the broken heart; life’s got you down
And the bags under your eyes have the smiles inside, that’s tearing you apart
You’re looking at change, I’m a man that prays and I’m strong in faith
God must’ve had a plan, placed you in my hand, let me lead the way.

How many times have you searched and just gave up on love
Having the same batch of luck that never amounts to much
Seems nothing ever matches up

Got your life all tied up in work and so should they
Only make time to get up go to work and home again
Seem the only one lonely is you
O love I'm waiting on you

How can I prepare you
For how I wanna love you
And I know you've been hurt and pain and love
Is all the same in your eyes
So baby take a chance to
Really let me show you
And if you open up,

 I’ll teach you how to love for life
Cause the lonely never win

Sometimes in life
You run across a love unknown
Without a reason
It seems like you belong
Hold on dear life
Don't go off running from what’s new
I became somebody
Through loving you
Love comes thru open doors
Be ready when it comes
Stepping in your life
Cause all is fair in love

Wish I could see through
See deep into you
And know what you're thinking now
And if I'm what you're needin'
I need some kind of sign
Let me know cause I can't read your mind

Cause I just can't stay in this guessing game
Don't keep me hanging on the line

Don't keep me here guessing You play it so cool
Won't let nothin' show through
Won't show what you're feeling
And you like to keep me here in the dark
And I can't see through into your heart
Let me in, in on this mystery

Week 3- Imagery

In class, the chapter Imagery was assigned. Imagery works and reveals itself through several aspects. Poems in its contents, books and its passages, music and its lyrics.
The poem Shopping in Tuckahoe by Jane Flaunders, depicts a parent waiting on their indecisive daughter during a shopping trip. To occupy their boredom, the parent finds and cleans a vacant lot through clearing up the weeds within the lot. Jane Flaunders images and metaphorically implies the parent's lot clearing through comparing the lot as a clearance sale and describes their self as the bargain hunter hunting down bargains, which in this case the clearance material are weeds. "A weedy lot its conducting its own January clearance" is the vivid imagery which appeals to a mental picture and brings out looking at the empty lot in a different perspective.
What if people spoke with explicit imagery? If simple words turned into beautiful complex descriptions. How would diction and language change? Would language become more sophisticated and refined? Would formal and informal language change from what it is today? A simple description of "life is hard" could be transformed and registered as "our journey and walk in humanity is a complex and simple battlefield".
Imagery is an art of manifesting simple words into a complex and sophisticated description. Imagery within books and music lyrics determine the appeal of being favored or not. Imagery is a beautiful aspect within speech and writing. Imagery adds originality in a conformed world. It is self-evident imagery is an art.

Week 3- Bay Area

The Bay Area

The clear, cool breeze night in the middle of an active city

The city lights illuminating the graffiti art in an uninviting alley

The clank sound as you accidentally crush dry, beer bottles mixed with damaged broken glass that belongs from the windows of a broken into car

The ear splitting, shocking snore of a poor homeless person asleep on the rock solid, chilly pavement

The delectable smell of opened door restaurants

The powerful, thump of R&B Hip –hop music playin’ from a stranger’s junkie, low riding car

The eerie feel of driving down the steep, lofty San Fran streets swiftly

The diversity of the people

Every age, every race

Everyone with their own struggles and stories, living life with a different view

An unknown, independent walking boy, lost and corrupted by the ways of the city

An anonymous book and street smart girl that outsmarted the city’s ways

The laugh of unwinding teens, cousins, friends wandering around Pier 31

The ways of the city, the freedom

The sights good and bad, enjoyable and humbling

The ways

The sights

The choices

The city’s life, the life inside, out, and all around

The Bay Area

A home town is not just a place. It is life within itself where chaos and harmony is all in one. A place can bring a flood of emotions of joy and freedom, to a remembrance of pain, an imprint of the past. Bittersweet experiences. Similar to several places, nothing can never be experienced the same in  place twice in the same manner. Certain familiar sounds of the place. The essence and aroma of a hometown during a certain time of year. A hometown is more than a place- the reason for an individual to have more than one.

Week 2- Creativity?

The 80s and the 90s- a time where Disney Channel and Disney "works" flourished with heartfelt movies intriguing and memorable towards several individuals today. The nostalgic memories of Lion King, Toy Story, and the Fox and Hound still to this day bring out the child in several people. As one VHS tape turned to eight VHS tapes later, the simple story plots with the usual happy endings left children yearning for more and became a comforting tactic for several sick children. The 80's and 90's was where it was at when it came to nostalgic memories. The television shows like Boy Meets Girl, Hey Arnold, Rugrats, Little Bear, and Franklin brought little kids together as they went over to their friend's house to play board games while watching. The 80s and 90s became the standard for quality children entertainment when it came to television and movie production. The 80s and the 90s had creative screenwriters and story makers with original ideas.
Today, there are shows for young minds that involves talking dogs with blogs. Yes, that is unusually "creative" but seemed like Disney needed a new show so they threw something together on the spot. What happened to the fun screen writes such as Kim Possible- a teenage spy that saves the world or a guy that turns into a dragon and falls in love with the enemy- a dragon slayer (American Dragon: Jake Long). Creativity seems to lack in adults who just see as being a screenwriter as a job. There is in deep need for passionate screenwriters who is not afraid to bring out their inner child by having an imagination like one. Creativity where are you in the midst of a company that is for children but ran by adults with no passion but with one motive- self- interest business.

Week 2- Mirror Mirror

The poem Mirror written by Sylvia Path was discussed and pondered during class. Mirror beautifully depicted the perspective and perception of a material's point of view rather than a person's point of view; as it personified itself as an individual and not an item through the statements of " unmisted by love and dislike", "I think it is a part of my heart", and comparing itself to a lake. The line "she has drowned a young girl, and in me an old woman rises" despite others perception of the line as a literal murder and referring to several lines before, I perceived it as a lake- a clear lake. A clear lake swallows up and absorbs reflections just like the same manner of a mirror. A lake as well as a mirror reflects what is shown. Therefore mirrors and lakes are one and the same, in a reflection perspective.
The way Path scripted the words in the perspective of a mirror,-a material having emotions and thoughts was mentally and imaginatively unique. Path's poem reminded me of a short film on YouTube called When Five Fell created by Wong Fu Productions. The Mirror seems to be a muse and inspiration for the short film as the personification of the poem is imitated and reflected in the short film but in different ways with different materials.
Therefore poetry of the past influences modern day writers and film makers. Everything old becomes new again, in somehow some altered way. Poetry is a history of continual manifestation for creative outflow and output.