Malaysian Celebrations

Before this, I never thought that there are so many festivals that were celebrated in Malaysia. Am I being ignorant? Em… I do not think so. It is because some of the celebrations are only some of people that were in certain religions and races. Lucky me to have Dr Edwin as my lecturer since it was him that wants us to list down all the celebrations.

At first, all the celebrations that are listed down seem to be relevant and I do know them. However, after Dr Edwin asked for more celebrations, some of my classmates have listed down a whole lot more celebrations that a few of them are rarely heard or really celebrated. In the end, there are about 32 of them! These celebrations then are put into three categories; religion, cultural practices and races, and others. It was fun listing down and discussing about these different celebrations. Yet, it turned to be the other way round when we were assigned to do research on each of the celebrations. It is definitely be an easy task for common celebrations like Hari Raya Eid Fitri, Chinese New Year, Christmas and Deepavali but it would be in contrast to celebrations such as Vasakhi, Nuzul Quran and Cheng Beng (Honouring Ancestors).

Nevertheless, we managed to give information on each of the 32 celebrations through the end of the task! Dr Edwin said that he would compile all of the celebrations and put it in CDs before publish them. I would wait for the day it is publish. I hope it is not a dream! It would be the happiest one to see our work publish!

5 points of Position Paper

After our thesis statement has been approved by Dr Edwin, we have to come out with five supporting details. This is when my problems started. To be honest, I really hate it. It is due to the reason that there is not much to talk about Lear’s blindness. I get stuck when I only have two thesis statements. Just after I thought I can get released by having all five statements, most of them are rejected by Dr Edwin and only two that he thinks are the right one to be use. I tend to be repeating or redundancy in my points. I kept thinking of giving up with my thesis statement and plan for a new thesis statement. However, when I think for a few times, I think I would just be repeating the same situation. I might probably face the same problem now. It would only waste my time to think and think again of the thesis statement and come out with another five supporting details. I guessed what most people said about there is no use of running away of problems is indeed true.

So, my five thesis statements are:

1. Use silly games of life to judge his daughters

2. Irrational in giving punishments and judging his daughters actions.

3. Failed to understand Kent’s judgment or advise about his daughters

4. Failed to distinguish his daughters’ love from flattery

5. Go against God’s law by handing his kingdom to his daughters

I think I am so lucky to have Dr Edwin as my lecturer because he really helps us a lot in making this assignment. I do not think I can make it on my own since it is in fact not an easy assignment to do.

presentation of my position paper

Just like what have I expected. I would not be the so lucky one in Dr Edwin’s class in doing presentation. Yes and I am the third one among the 52 of my classmates to present my position paper. I still remember being the first one to do the simulated teaching in his class last two semesters. So, this time I tried to take away all the nerves in me. Yet, I love to take it positively as if I go first, I’ll finish first and there’s no turning back.

When my time of presentation takes turn, I was so nervous and panic that I have mistaken my turn with one of my friends. Plus, Dr Edwin has praised him and mentioned that his presentation is a good one and he even gets 4.5 marks. All of these stuffs make me go more nervous. As I do my presentation, I then realize that are some silly mistakes that I should have not done. I seemed to see that I should and the fact that I could do better actually, but I did not because I have always just want to finish and I would rarely think of the effects or consequences of the actions taken. Luckily, I managed to stand on my opinions and Dr Edwin accepted them. Yet, it was absolutely untrue when he said that I was giving him a high pitch because I hardly heard what he said from the back side of the class. Here, we can see that having a crystal clear communication is indeed a good thing to have in a presentation.

Through the end of everyone’s presentations, Dr Edwin mentioned that there is immaturity in most of our discussions. We are dealing with adult issues but unable to articulate well. For example; people may marry for various reasons and love is not the only one that matters and as a matter of fact, it is a reality. Yet, most of us said that people have to marry due to love and not any other reasons. Perhaps, we are lack of experiences as this is indeed our first time doing the position paper. Luckily Dr Edwin had given us time to rework on it.

Letters

Before this, I never thought that letters are one of the literature stuffs that we need to learn and examine. As we learned letters of John Keats and Vincent Van Gough, I tend to understand why their letters are studied by literature students, educators and others. When Dr Edwin read the letters to us, I can see that their letters are so beautiful. I would be very happy if someone sent me letters like that! Erm… I wish so.

Von Gough’s letters are so incredible. As I read them, it sounds like a poem which has rhymes and others that are definitely beautiful. One of the lines in his letters is and above all have patience. He who believes, does not hasten. For Keat’s letters, it was my first time to read someone’s letters that writes at the bottom of the letters like this one;

…..In the hope of soon seeing you (I) remain

most sincerely yours,

John Keats.

The sentences seemed to be one even though they are written separately. I think it is a creative one. I am sure the next time I am writing letters informally, I would do the same because it is so nice to read someone written like that and who knows my letters would be like Keats one day! :p

However, I do not think I would keep all my letters…I hope I can burn them all before I die. It would not be so fun and interesting when people read my letters because they will know everything. I still remember when I was in Form 2. I used to burn all of my best friend’s letters when we had misunderstandings and had a small argument. At that time, I did that because I was influence by drama or movie that I can hardly remember now. When someone was so mad and hate a person or they are no longer are friends, he or she would tear off or burn all their letters. At that time, I think it was so dramatic and that is why I tend to do what was in the drama or movie. It was so cool. But then sometimes I felt regret to burn all of the letters because I could not read them anymore. Well, what’s is done right?

Hands and Day of The Butterfly

After thinking and looking at all the previous literature stuffs that I have learnt before, I decided to do the short stories Hands by Xiao Hong and Day of the butterfly by Alice Munro. I am going to examine on how peer pressures can affect a child’s life especially in their growing up years.

I like both short stories because they deal with children’s issues and even the narrators of both stories are children. I tend to see right away from their point of view. I can also see how their peers influenced each other. These influences can at a stand hurt a person so much. Here, we get to understand some of the children’s world. Although there are so small and innocent, they can be so cruel to their friends. It could be worse when it involve bullies.

However, some of these peer pressures are not so obvious and adult most of the time did not realize it. I think it is quite dangerous for certain core cases because the peer pressures may turn to be a phobia. The children involved can brought it to their adulthood.

Back to ‘Hands’ and ‘Day of the Butterfly’, I think both stories are suitable for students to study besides the values that they can learn from them. These stories are more or less equivalent to the schooling-hood. They perhaps can relate the stories to their live. Both short stories are indeed authentic materials even though they are not the recent publish short stories. I think students can make the lesson as a meaningful one.

Research Paper

When I first time met my advisor, he asked on the topics that we were thinking of doing for our research paper. We were to do the outline of the research first so that he know what we are going to do.

There are many short stories and novels that came to my mind. The first thing that I was thinking is the novels by Jane Austen; Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibilities. It is because they are merely about women and how Jane Austen treats her heroes of both stories besides the issues of women and man’s treatment that are obvious in both novels trigger me most. However, I found that there are some of my classmates are going to do Jane Austen’s works. So, I decided to find other stories that may be not so many people that would do. Well, I do not want them to think that I am influenced by others’ ideas. As a matter of fact, this is my research paper and I absolutely do not want people to have such thoughts of my works.

For this assignment, we can choose to do whatever literature elements that we want whether it is novel, play, drama, short stories, poem or speech. However, we need to deal at least with two texts and it also depends on our advisor as there lecturer that wants us to use at least three texts. Perhaps, he or she do not want us to stuck in the middle of our work and have nothing to argue or discuss more.

To me, research paper is something we want to do because of the ideas or issues in the texts trigger us most and we want to highlight them and make it as something significant may be us or others. It is definitely something that we give all of our thoughts and ideas in it. Well, I hope my research paper will be a good one!

diaries

I still remember the first time when my mom bought me a diary. I was nine years old. She said that I can write any events, anything that have I done or happened each day on that diary. At that time, I do not really know what to write. What I wrote was what my homework was and whether I went to school or tuitions or not. Sometimes, I just ask my mom to write what have happened on that day for me. Isn’t it funny? Asking someone else to write in your diary? But I take it differently and I think my mom cares so much of me that she knows everything that I have done each day…may be I was so innocent that days. Yet, when I grew up, I tend to hide my diaries and I extremely do not want her to read any of the stuffs that I have written in them. It was the time when I think my mom loves my younger sisters more than me and the time when I had boyfriends and what I shared with my best friends. It’s not that I have making something behind her back. It’s only the place for secrets to be kept. Yes! That’s what I called my diaries.

Nonetheless, when I take this course, I have to read other people’s diaries like Andy Warhol and many other famous people. Before this, I never thought that diaries can be one of elements in literature. Through these diaries, we tend to understand how they think, their way of life and we certainly can see how passion and genius they are. I guessed that is why we still read, use and learnt these people’s diaries.

On the other hand, until today, I still kept all my diaries and there are about ten or more of them. However, I think I’ll better burn all my diaries some days…because I definitely do not want other people to read them. Aren’t they supposed to be private and confidential?