An Ode upon The Class of 2011's Departure

Tis time to leave all stigmas behind

To begin anew with the lives we find

And we mustn't fail to forget

All tensions we have beget

Our class has become one over the years

As we overcame all the pains and the tears

And with a skill unsurpassed

 The competition we shall fly past

But I guess the glory days are over

We are no longer the top rovers

Again we will be the bottom

But the future holds stardom

For like birds we will traverse the states

Looking for a new relationship that creates

The friendships we've left behind

Never truly able to survive the grind

But Alas! Do not fear Class of 2011

We will persist through the seas of seven 

And with a timely facebook page

We shall usher in a new age

And as we go on we remember

All the times we had together

And though that line is stolen

For us it stays golden

 

 Like lightning we will tear the sky

All lost with rapture as we pass by

Wait! A quick thanks to the teachers

Cheering from the bleachers

Thank you for the essays and the due dates

For opening all the flood gates

You are the reason for success

We've learned from the best

And now a final goodbye to Buckley and its wonders

With all your beauteous beauties and blunderous* blunders

There is no doubt we will miss you

And no chance we will forget you

But now we must tear through the Buckley Cocoon

And like a comet dash towards a new moon

For our future is beholden within the stars

In Jupiter, Pluto and Mars

And for he who shall remain forever young

Our lives will be the chorus to your song

And though your future is gone

Your love of life lives on...

...through us

 The Class of 2011

Its Always Darkest before the Dawn

And now its official. The Class of 2011 has lost every Spirit Week in High School. Should we hang our heads in shame at such a feat. Should we blame each other for not cheering loud enough or for not buying more cans. I say no. Our class has overcome so many obstacles during this year. And it is safe to say that this was probably the most difficult second semester any Senior could hope for. But we made it through. Losing Spirit Week is by no means a representation of our class spirit. Our class has the biggest heart and the most unity regardless of what the judges saw this week. And lastly I like to end with a mantra that President Obama has recently adopted as his own. The Class of 2012 may have won Spirit Week, but we the Class of 2011 will win the Future. We have the smartest and most talented class that has ever gone through Buckley. We are all individuals with our own bright futures. This is only the beginning.

Conformity at the Heritage Festival of San Diego

This weekend at San Diego Buckley walked away with many awards. The Spirit Award is by far the most prestigious award we won this year. I can not remember the last time we won the Spirit Award at Heritage. Nevertheless, the purpose of this blog is not to reflect on our numerous rewards but on a specific performance that I was forced to witness during this three day event. Though I have forgotten the name of the school I will never forget the overwhelming visual that was presented before my eyes. Not only was this one of the biggest full orchestra's I have ever seen but the intense homogeneity of the group was even more staggering. This group was comprised of only Asian performers with two or three individuals of other races and they all played string instruments. However their racial homogeneity was made even more ostentatious when one heard the skill with which they all played. Now, we all know that off stage these are all individuals in their own worlds, with own ideas and personalities. But when they were all on that stage together playing in such unity such conformity, each sacrificing their sound for the enhancement of the group, it was truly impressive.

MARCH MADNESS!!: And the METHOD behind it

Every year there comes a time when we are all consumed by an omnipotent force. Whether we know it or not, our lives and thoughts succumb to....the madness. We do not know why or even how it has come to this. None of us follow college basketball throughout the year. I mean, we're in high school and have not even reached the insanity that is college. And yet there is just something that draws you to such a tournament. Something that makes you want to forget you ever cared about anything else. Is the many wondrous memories that arise when 68 teams representing 68 different schools compete together in one final battle. Or is it the immense heart-wrenching drama that comes from filling out one's own bracket. The many days that some commit to attaining the perfect bracket leads them no near....madness. As we speak I am checking the scores of 4 different games. And as Utah St. begins to drive me towards near insanity, I shall conclude that March Madness is the ultimate form of conformity.

Intro Parargraph

In order to lead a fulfilling and rich life one must seek out one's personal balance between societal conformity and complete individualism. Total societal conformity leads to a loss of the individual and complete individualism can lead to chaos and lack of direction. Freud states that the instincts of man are primarily characterized by greed and lust which society must curtail through societal norms and values. However, there is also an individualism that is innate within every person that is in jeopardy of fading as these norms invade individual pursuits and desires. What's more, to understand the ideal balance one must take into consideration the many forms and types of conformity and individualism. For this balance can be achieved through education, family, media and even through sub-conscious fulfillment. Therefore, everyone gains their individual balance in their own way. Gregor in Kafka's Metamorphosis was unable to attain his own balance and his outright conformity lead to his ultimate demise. While Kurtz in Conrad's Heart of Darkness died trying to fulfill the desires of his id while abandoning society all together. Finding this balance is a life-long struggle and many may never  truly find it. The pressures of society may be too strong or an individual may get lost in the rapture of his own desires. But once this balance is attained, one can thrive as individual within society.

The Costs and Benefits of a Leaderless Discussion

What I witnessed on Monday took me by surprise. I didn't know whether to be excited at tthe fact that the students would be in charge of their own discussion or dread the idea of having to endure 20 minutes of random ideas being tossed into the air. But in the end I have to say that the benefits of having a discussion in which the students are responsible for guiding the discussion. As I saw on Monday, we are ultimately forced to become more engaged in a discussion with our peers and thus we will inevitable gain more information. And though there is no established leader, there always seem to be an unspoken leader who automaticly takes control of the conversation. The one caveat to such a type of discussion is that there may be multiple individuals who seek to inherently take control of the conversation. Luckily that problem didn't not occur on Monday but it is possible. Overall, a leaderless discussion is good at certain times and must always be overseen by a teacher in order to ensure that the discussion does stray to far from the topic at hand. I would like to do this again.

Marlow's Psychological struggle with the Hypocrisy

       In Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Marlow is thrusted into a world with a skewed sense of morality and justice. His mental word is constantly going through metamorphsis as he struggles to understand whar he is witnesssing on numerous psychological levels. Marlow attempts to undestand the many scenes of torture, death and slavery within the realm of the hypocritical rhetoric that is used to justify those actions. But obviously attempting to understand their backwards way of thought is impossible. The very reason for Marlow’s presence in the Congo is hypocritical. The Company stated he was there to “trade” but Marlow has only witnessed oppression.Therefore, one could assert that Marlow finds some sort of resolution to this hypocrisy with the emergence of Kurtz. For Kurtz is blatantly honest in his dealings. He does not try to skew what he does but instead through some preverse honesty tells Marlow the reasons for his actions in Africa. Moreover, it is safe to say that Kurtz holds a pivotal position is Marlow's psychological growth. He is able to dismiss the hypocrsiy of the "traders" by understanding the truth of Kurtz's purpose. However, there is also a much broader aspect that arises from the metamorphsis of Kurtz's psyche. The struggle between the truth of justice and the blindness of the European Imperialism is simply microcosm of the larger struggle that is present across all humans of that time. Essentially Conrad uses Marlow's psychological struggle as a backdrop to a larger hypocrisy that is presented through the painting of the blind lady of justice that is revealed Kurtz's room.

Essay Ideas for Heart Of Darkness (supplemented by Fredrick Karl)

As of now I am still trying to process all the information. The works by Fredrick Karl have really revealed to me the many nuances of Marlow's journey. However, I have found an interest in exploring Marlow's perception of imperialism and Africa. Sub-topics include; his role in this process, and its effect on Africa and the natives along with how that affects the way he perceives his journey. The difficult part will attempting to include a psychoanalytic aspect to this entire perception.

The Psychological Journey

The reader's own journey into the "heart of darkness" is governed entirely by Marlow's subconscious. We see the Congo with all its wonders and horrors through the memories of Marlow as he relives his own personal journey and encounters all the emotion and pain that he left behind in the Congo. Further,  since the prominence of this journey lies within it being a psychological one, the reader must understand that every minute detail that Marlow conveys to his audience is underscored by the deeply seated beliefs and emotions that Marlow had while traveling. Therefore when one takes this concept into account, we are left with a brilliant depiction of a man's journey into his subconscious as he grapples with the painful experiences and emotions that the Congo left him with.

The portrait.

At first glance this portait may look like a noble picture of a woman lighting the darkness for all to follow. However, the true meaning of this nuanced picture lies within the minute details that Marlow gives to us. Firstly and arguably most importantly, we must consider the blindfold. I noticed immediately that the presence of the blindfold across the eyes of someone carrying a torch its quite ironic. For if one is blindly lighting the way one could easily be leading there entire group further into darkness. Moreover, there is a direct correlation between what is happneing in the portait and the actions of the Europeans in Africa. The Europeans claim to be lighting the way for the people of Africa, but in realityre only leading them further into darkness.

Questions for Discussion #2 p. 429

When Marlow speaks of the people of England in the olden days, he characterizes them as barbaric and uncivilized. He then goes on to describe how the Romans invaded and brought with them their culture and technology. These series of events are quite similar to Africa and its colonization by the Europeans. Thus, Marlow's purpose in introducing old England is to set the stage for his exploration of Africa and to simply give a historical perspective to the country's condition.