Nathan's English Blog

 

Today we took a test and I got a good score. I'm proud of myself but at the sams time I shant let this get to my head. Some of the questions still gave me a hard time so I have more to learn, a lot more. I'm looking forward to my growth as the end of the year slowly approaches. Haiku: Graduation nears Soon the time to face my fears Fastly approaches

Today we had a sub. She was pretty chill and we got a worksheet to do about "Mother to Son." I had trouble with the question about a complex account and couldn't even find the answer after searching it up. Regardless I answered it anyways so I'm hoping I got it right even by chance. Otherwise today was a good day and "Mother to Son" was a solid 9/10 with a good theme and good general advice for life. Haiku: From mother to son Years of advice she gave him New chapter in life

Today we learned about another of Langston Hughes' poems titled "Mother to Son". The poem was about a mother encouraging her son to continue climbing the stairs of life even though the stairs aren't easy to climb just as she does. The poem really does a good job of making that analogy of the stairs to a person's life and making an image of hardship through the condition of the stairs. Sometimes I wonder to myself if I'm still climbing or if I'm sat down on a step not moving an inch, only time will tell. Haiku: Way back when, long ago Humans faced many hardships But we've moved forward

Today we read another one of Langston Hughes' poem "I, Too" about the dream (that eventually came true) of a black American. I think this poem was almost a foresight into the future because everything the poem talks about is how America is now. I'll always wonder how people like Langston Hughes and MLK would feel if they were able to see the world today, although imperfect, its leaps and bounds better compared to the problems faced by black Americans in the past. A 9/10 in the poem books for me. Haiku: Writing haikus sucks There are still more left to write I shall persevere

We began reading and analyzing Langston Hughes' poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" in class. The poem really struck me because of the fact it was so short yet encompassed such a large chunk of history. I'm not much of a history buff or a fan of social sciences in general, but learning about African American history always gets me a bit excited because of how deep it really goes. I personally think Langston Hughes' use of rivers as a symbol of the black race's history was perfect and him tying it back to tje depth of his soul, his history, and his lineage is something I think every black person should realize. A solid 9.5 out of 10 poem in my book, the only reason I won't give it a 10 is because I might find something later that beats this. Haiku: Roses are not rose Violets are really purple I prefer tulips

Today in class we covered a brief overview of African American culture and history. Heard some familiar names, some familiar dates, and some stereotypes and true qualities of the community. The only problem is that, like always, I feel torn. I can't really associate myself with the African American community coming from a family where I'm the first generation born in America, the experience feels too different, I feel too different. I'm too Ethiopian to be African American, and I'm too American to be Ethiopian, its almost like a Limbo I've been damned to for the rest of my life.  Haiku: To be is to be To be not is to be not The rest I forgot

Today we answered some questions about "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and some were harder to answer than others. I've never been too good at poetry because I can't always read the themes right or infer about word choice. This time the question asked why the poem used certain phrases multiple times throughout the poem. My borderline educated-guess was that it was done to emphasize certain parts of the poem, specifically the depth of the rivers relating to the depth of the history of the black race and the speakers realization of that. Other than that however the other questions were pretty easy to get done 4/10 difficulty. Haiku: Haikus aren't easy School work is not that bad though I would rather sleep