“Serial” an Engaging Insight on the Unraveling of a Murder Mystery

When I first listened to Episode one of the Podcast “Serial” I was immediately drawn in by the mysterious music and intriguing concept. I think that by turning a murder investigation into a podcast , it was an effective way to keep listeners engaged and feel interactive with the information being told. I feel as if the podcast made me feel transported into the interviews and explained situations.

By including prison phone recordings with the accused murderer (Adnan) I felt that it gave me a better sense of understanding the characters feeling and how he felt about the situation. By including other recorder interviews and old evidence from the case , I felt that this showed the narrators efforts to ensure the listener felt connected to the case by being able to hear different peoples side of the story and what their reaction to the whole situation.

When the narrator bring up the challenge of remember little details on days which occurred in the past. I could relate to her argument that it is very difficult to remember little details of your day especially if nothing significant occurred. I have had times where I do not even remember what I wore the day before or what I even had to eat for breakfast. It made me feel that by using this argument she does raise a good point that it was unfair for the investigators to question Adnan about what he did for specifically 20 minutes of a day that occurred several weeks in the past.

What really intrigued me and got me thinking is how the podcast makes it seem as if Adnan could be either guilty as claimed or innocent and wrongly accused of murder. Especially after listening to his explanation that he had nothing to do with the murder. While Jay ( a close friend of Adnans) claims that he watched Adnan kill Hae. It also made me wonder how Jay was able to recall all the details of the day perfectly when Adnan claims he does not remember much at all. It also made me question if Jay remembered all the details of this day because of the dramatic situation which he claims occurred on that day .

I enjoyed listening to a investigation in the manner of a podcast and thought it was a really interesting and engaging insight on the unraveling of a murder mystery. I feel that by listening to a podcast rather then reading a text , I was able to create a connection to the characters in the story. I felt that I could understand what emotions and messages were being portrayed by the characters and the narrator. At some points I did find it hard to listen to all the information without missing some things , but overall I enjoyed listening to “Serial” and will most likely begin listening to other podcasts.

Zoe.C

You can listen to the first episode of the podcast yourself linked below:

https://serialpodcast.org/season-one/1/the-alibi

 

 

 

The Real House Wives of the 1900’s

So today I decided to mix things up and do a multimedia video showing my feminist literacy criticism on the novel “The Birth House” written by Ami Mckay.

I hope this gives you some insight on how women were repressed by society during the 1900. You will learn how Mckay brilliantly demonstrated the struggle of Canadian women during this time through her novel .

 

 

Citations

 

“Karen Horney Quote.” A-Z Quotes. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 July 2017.

McKay, Ami. The birth house a novel. Sherwood Park, AB: SCL, 2012. Print.

“Women In 1900″historylearningsite.co.uk. The History Learning Site, 17 Mar 2015. 1 20 July 2017.

Smith, Kelly. Rw. Lives of Women in the early 1800s. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 July 2017.

Healthy Wife, Happy Life

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the Birth House by Ami McKay. It is the quintessential initiation journey plot as Dora develops from a young lady into a full blown mid-wife and wise woman. Thrown into the story is also your Good vs. Evil thread as Dr. Thomas takes on Dora and midwifery in general. In this story, Dora, the main character, represents the archetype figure of the hero. Miss B represents two archetypes, the mentor and the mother figure. As well, Dr. Thomas fits the role of the villain.

The story begins with Dora, as a young girl who meets Miss B, the local midwife who takes herunder her wing and teaches her the craft of midwifery. Characteristics thatidentify Dora as a hero are selflessness, strength, courage and maturity. Wise beyond her years after witnessing her first birth at age of 17, Dora thinks, “Our parents and teachers think it is a miracle, but it’s not. It’s going to happen no matter what, there’s no choice in the matter. To mymind, a miracle is something that could go one way or another. The fact that something happens when by all rights is shouldn’t is what makes us take notice, it’s what saints are made of, it takes our breath away. how a mother comes to lover her child, her caring at all for this thing that’s made her heavy, lopsided and slow, this thing that made her wish she were dead … that’s the miracle.” (p.19-20). Dora engages in a Good vs. Evil battle with Dr. Thomas who is a male obstetrician that feels women are the weaker sex and prone to hysteria. Dora stands up to him and continues to administer women’s health services to women of the community. After Dr. Thomas attempts to run her out of town, Dora plots with her two friends, “Let’s do something about Dr. Thomas, once and for all” (pg 360). I identify with Dora as she is a strong, independent woman, who is not afraid to take risks in order to do what is right. Even though the book takes place in early 1900’s, Dora’s actions and stand for women’s rights is comparable to women who are still fighting for these rights today. Dora’s heroine figure reminds me of Moana who is a strong female role in the movie “Moana”. Moana is the princess of a small island in Hawaii . She goes off to travel the ocean finding a way to save her people and her island. She follows her heart doing what is right rather than staying on her small island and marrying a prince, as the people in her village believe she should.

Miss B. is the town’s midwife but is seen by many as a witch because she uses a lot of herbal and folk remedies to help the women of Scott’s Bay. She is a strong mentor to Dora as she takes her under her wing and teaches her all of her wisdom and practices so that Dora can continue as the midwife after she is gone. “Miss B. pulled down what looked to be an old recipe book from the shelf and placed it on the table in front of me … We put things in here we don’t want to forget (p.37)” This book starts the journey of Dora learning Miss B’s craft and wisdom. Miss B is also seen as a mother figure. I related her to the grandma to everyone in Scott’s Bay. As many of the women in the community seek her advice and counsel. Even uptight and opinionated Aunt Fran seeks her counsel, “ ‘No, no, no one’s sick. No bad news. Everything’s just fine’. She took a sip of team from the tiny cup, pinky finger high and proud. ‘Actually, I would like to speak to you alone …It’s a female concern.” (pg. 99). When making reference to Miss B. , there are a lot of religious undertones as Miss B. frequently makes reference to Mother Mary, hums hymns, and has a picture of Mary in her living room. I found McKay’s use of the maternal Mother in relation to Miss B. , further intensifies her maternal status in the story. Miss B. reminded me of the character Yoda from “Star Wars”. Yoda takes a young boy , Luke Skywalker as his appetence. Teaching Luke all that the skills and knowledge necessary to be successful as master Jedi. With the intention that Luke can carry on Yoda’s position as master Jedi once he has pasted away.  Yoda and Miss. B both take a young appetence under their wing teaching them all their skills and prior knowledge of their practise, so that they will have someone to carry on their successful practise.

 

I perceive Dr. Thomas’s character to be a villain figure, for he is persistent in the harassment of Dora and has the harmful intention of stopping midwifery as a means for women wellness. Dr.Thomas feels that women are not suitable to be part of any medical practise because he feels women are uneducated and unable to comprehend proper care and treatment. As Dr. Thomas explains to Dora “ …I could say, as your physician, that you are under great stress, that your uninformed use of ‘home’ remedies , along with your history of hysterical illness, caused this sad irreversible error. Think of it not only as a way to free yourself from quilt, but as a way to do a favour for so many women – putting the problems of midwifery to rest , setting the record straight.” (249)

 

I would highly recommend this book to people who like a Good vs. Evil read. As with many of these stories, I was happy to see the good prevail. I also found amusement in analyzing the text from a Archetypal perspective discovering Hero, villain and mentor figures and revealing the authors use of Evil vs. Good as a fundamental plot.

Work Cited

McKay, Ami. The birth house a novel. Sherwood Park, AB: SCL, 2012. Print.

 

Success at University Grade 12 English

Grade 12 English should be a requirement for all those entering university because success at university depends on one’s ability to express herself accurately in a number of written mediums and to take large amount of information, paraphrase and process it critically in a short period of time (https://www.oxford-royale.co.uk/articles/13-skills-university.html). Grade 12 English develops these required skills and will contribute to student success. This is true, regardless what program you enter. Additionally, Grade 12 English develops strong argument skill that will be required throughout your university education.

I want to go into University with the skills I need to succeed! 

Personally, like most people, I improve through practice. University will require essays. English 12 will provide lots of practice in terms of sourcing materials, finding credible sources, paraphrasing works, and critically analyzing text to be able to understand and relate it to everyday life. If I can master these skills in Grade 12 English, then I will be better prepared to succeed at writing essays when I am in university. Writing university essays takes a deep understanding of essay structure and formulating your arguments (http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/ld/resources/writing/writing-resources/effective-essay-top10). The prep work needed for class assignments and my independent study project will provide me with a lot of practice for formulating mythesis, argument and conclusion and supporting these with the appropriate text.

Like many tough things to learn , my writing will need lots of practice in order to improve

 

Developing these skills before I enter University will take a lot of pressure off me and provide me with more confidence when I need to complete essay assignments. I know I will still stress about the first essays I have to write, but anyone who has successfully completed English 12 will have a strong foundation for it.

Of course, not all university courses will require essays but they will all require note taking. Effective note taking depends on one’s ability to analyze information presented, identify vocabulary you need to learn, and to be able to review and edit your notes (https://jerz.setonhill.edu/writing/academic1/taking-notes-5-college-success-tips/). All these skills are sharpened and enhanced in English 12. Furthermore, English 12 will strengthen my ability to reflect on the information presented and how it relates to the topic at hand, helping me to better identify what I should be writing down and learning.

Being able to paraphrase information can be extremely usefully in many situations

Lastly, aside from being able to produce stellar work in class, there will come times during my university experience where I am sure I am going to have argue a point or defend my opinion. Key skills needed to get ahead in university, both inside and out of the classroom, include being able to discuss and debate issues, demonstrate sound reasoning, and formulate and defend an argument (https://books.google.ca/books?id=mVWhBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA92&lpg=PA92&dq=being+able+to+formulate+an+argument+at+university&source=bl&ots=JHAcIqmxJs&sig=iJjhTkfLbIBAAVxLdq0j_pEcyUA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj-tsSrqfPUAhXKOj4KHTHRACQQ6AEIMTAC#v=onepage&q=being%20able%20to%20formulate%20an%20argument%20at%20university&f=false ). This could be something as simple as defending my position regarding what the rules will be for my roommates, arguing for extra marks so I can make my gpa cut-off or convincing a professor to let me into a full course.

If you are familiar with expressing or arguing your point to others , it will become less frightening 

In conclusion, all university students will need to develop the skills and outcomes learned in English 12 in order to feel prepared and succeed academically. English 12 has a vast array of outcomes (http://mediasmarts.ca/curricularoutcomechart/outcome-chart-ontario-english-12-university-preparation) that will help all students also navigate the university life and my entry into adulthood.

 

Skills learned in this course will hopefully guide me to a more successful future