Morning Reflection: Jaymee Pride Mos Def "Mathematics"
DEFINITIONS:
par·o·dy
ˈpær
ə
di Spelled [par-uh-dee] IPA noun, plural -dies, verb, -died, -dy·ing.
noun
1.
a humorous or satirical imitation of a serious piece of
literature or writing: his hilarious parody of Hamlet's soliloquy.
2. the genre of literary composition
represented by such imitations.
3. a burlesque imitation of a musical composition.
4. any humorous, satirical, or burlesque
imitation, as of a person, event, etc.
5. the use in the 16th century of borrowed material in a musical
setting of the Mass (parody Mass).
verb (used with object)
6. to imitate (a composition, author,
etc.) for purposes of ridicule or satire.
7. to imitate poorly or feebly;
travesty.
Source: www.dictionary.com
or films into genres
for the convenience of shoppers seeking a specific category of literature. CONVENTION: A common feature that has become traditional or expected within a specific genre (category) of literature or film. In Harlequin romances, it is conventional to focus on a male and female character who struggle through misunderstandings and difficulties until they fall in love. In western films of the early twentieth-century, for instance, it has been conventional for protagonists to wear white hats and antagonists to wear black hats. The wandering knight-errant who travels from place to place, seeking adventure while suffering from the effects of hunger and the elements, is a convention in medieval romances. It is a convention for an English sonnet to have fourteen lines with a specific rhyme scheme, abab, cdcd, efef, gg, and so on. The use of a chorus and the unities are dramatic conventions of Greek tragedy, while, the aside, and the soliloquy are conventions in Elizabethan tragedy. Conventions are often referred to as poetic, literary, or dramatic, depending upon whether the convention appears in a poem, short story or novel, or a play.
Mini
Writing Exercises
1. Write a paragraph that describes a
monster (whether it be a vampire or another magical being that you know
well). Make sure that this
description fits with the conventions of the genre to which the being belongs
(i.e.—a vampire might have fangs; a zombie might eat brains, etc.). Use rich language and adjectives to
create a vivid image for your reader.
HMWK: For Monday, read to Ch. 14
I thought todays morning reflection was very awesome in my opinion. I have interest in rhythm, poetry, and rap. It hooked to my attention as it sent a message about the movement of todays society and how it connects with the past. Not much has changed.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure exactly what happened, or what he was talking about? But I'm sure that it was good or at least had a good message. I don't know what that message was but im sure it had one. What a very continuous beat. I cant really relate to this so. godd job i suppose
ReplyDeleteI liked he video a lot. I like how the beat didn't overpower the lyrics like most songs today. I liked how the song had empowering lyrics that had a nice message. Nowadays, most lyrics have little to no meaning, and it was nice to listen to.
ReplyDeleteSounds like the video was moving and I'm really sorry I missed it!
ReplyDeleteThe message of the song was powerful. The comparison between mathematics and everyday issues really helped get the message of inequality across to the listener. I wish that there was a video other than just the lyrics, but it was good nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteI chose to share the song Mathematics by Mos Def because he reflects on what is going on in society through his art, which is important and what I aim to do through writing. I was introduced to Mos Def by my father. He would often play his music while we driving in the car as opposed to mainstream rap on the radio. It saddens me that there is great art like this that carries powerful messages, but it isn't being heard anymore. This song was released in '99, but I know there are new artists out there speaking truth but it isn't what the media is looking for. We need new, fresh and intelligent people like this and I really hope to relay important messages like this as a writer someday.
ReplyDeletethis song is very righteous. it showed me the commonalities of the numbers don't add up. we pay so much for self defense and yet we still live in fear. America is free and yet our government is butting heads. we spend more then we profit. the actual issues of today are ignored until we bring them into the light by reorganization.
ReplyDeleteThe song's premise and overall message was very, at least to me, intriguing about the modern youth and their perspective of something so complex, such as mathematics. The song itself was also exceptionally well crafted, as it had perfect pacing and a good poetic nature. The inclusion of various themes, from Playstation to simple numbers, was something I felt could engross a wide range of audiences.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed Jaymee's morning reflection greatly! It showed me why I love listening to rap music because it' so much deeper than how people portray it to be and it's not always about violence, drugs or sex. Mos Def uses his talent of writing and rapping to convey a powerful message and create awareness. After listening to this I really wish that rapping could go back to how it used to be, and I wish when I was younger I was more exposed to this music genre.
ReplyDeleteJaymee's morning reflection was quite interestimg. The song was rap very powerful and different. I think that it was brilliant to include math and compare it to our daily lives. I wish that there were more rap artist that could use their talent for something positive.
ReplyDeleteBig foot
ReplyDeleteBigfoot stands at an average seven to ten astonishing feet tall. With footprints as large as seventeen inches long, Bigfoot might be the scariest thing you can run into in the dark, death cold, windy, and gloomy woods. Covered in a pitch black coat of thick fur, Bigfoot runs through the woods, and usually Bigfoot is spotted by humans as they’re minding their business hunting food, looking for places to hide or start a home, or even just lying and walking around. Bigfoot walks up straight just like humans do, only its stench is somewhat relative to a rotting corpse. At times it may roar in the woods, but not like a typical dinosaur, more like a deep scream that sends chills through the bodies of those that are near, if you do hear it in the same woods. Most commonly seen in warm areas like the South’s hot, sticky, muggy woods, Bigfoot tends to have territorial issues when it comes to people entering the woods it stays in. This is not surprising, knowing that there are not many other species like bears, coyotes, and others that you would normally find in these woods.
Monsters Inc Sulley
ReplyDeleteJames P. Sulley from Monsters Inc. is a humungous hairy blue monster with purple spots and periwinkle eyes. He has coiled horns and white claws that he painted black to look eerier. Fangs that are blade sharp, blue spikes that run down his backside to the end of his long dinosaur-like tail, and he has a large furry belly. He has bushy intriguing eyebrows with a dark teal nose.
nymph
ReplyDeleteShe streaks in between the trees, running. Her white dress flows behind her. Her hair, which compliments her porcelain skin, always stays in a braid, lots of times with flowers. She never wears shoes. Sometimes you will find her dancing in a clearing. The whole forest is her playground, dance floor, bed. She spends every day in the woods, preferring the trees to humans. The trees never hurt her feelings like the humans have. The forest considers her a friend and protector; humans consider her an undiscovered being, who they should shy away from. The forest talks to her, tells her how nature hurts. She tries to heal her friends, her only companions. If her friends all die so will she. The forest depends on her just as much she does it.
The Abominable Snowman
ReplyDeleteThe Abominable Snowman, residing in the Himalayan Mountain Range, has been one of the most mysterious creatures of all time. It’s only been verified as something through tracks left in the snow and “encounters” with humans. It hovers over us at a grand height of 8 feet and is covered in head to toe with scruffy dark black or red hair. Its hair is long and stringy and hangs low covering its eyes. People have referred to it as an enormous bear and ape mix, therefore it’s double the savage and double the scary. Its mystery and lack of evidence makes this monster scarier than other creatures because it still is yet to be proven and no one can pinpoint where it is. So beware.
Grace Keller
ReplyDeleteOctober 2, 2014
Gamzon
Contemporary writers
Describing a monster writing exercise
Description of the murderer
The murderer is a man. He carries his weight in his stomach. The murderer is that of a spider. He hides in the darkest of places; never in place sight. He spins his web. An intricate plan of attack. Then he waits. He waits until the very second is right. He waits for his victims to get stuck in his web, stuck in his grasp. Then he gets you.
The murderer stands regularly at roughly 5’6 but when he wears his boots, he is a strapping 5’8. His soles of his boots are worn down, after years and years of ware and tare. Always muddy. A deep black color regularly, strung and tied with yellow laces. He ALWAYS has yellow laces. The murderer’s pants are a light wash denim with stains of grass and mud. The back pockets are worn down, nearly torn all the way through. Most often he wears his windbreaker. Purple, navy blue, and teal with geometric cuts. He’s had it since the 90’s. The murderer wears his grandpa’s class ring on the middle finger of his right hand and he never forgets to take it off when he meets his victims. The ring is gold and black. He likes to roll it between his thumb and pointer finger while sipping Scotch. His hands are strong and solid, knuckles bulging. He has dirt underneath his nails more often than not and hangnails that appear to bleed. The murderer has scruff on the sides of his face, chin, and above his lip. In his eyes you read the words “homicide”. A light blue pool of manic thoughts. The window to his soul.
Be wary of the murderer for he hides in the shadows of the night.
Doppelgänger
ReplyDeleteA Doppelgänger is someone (or something) that looks almost identical to a person. It’s a German word meaning “double walker”. It was first used in a novel in 1796. Some say that it’s a sign of bad luck if a relative or a friend sees a Doppelgänger of someone they know. People also say that if a person meets their Doppelgänger, it’s an omen of death. In Ancient Egyptian mythology, it’s said that one’s Doppelgänger can have similar(or the same) memories and feelings as the person. In recent years, people have found their Doppelgänger not face to face, but in history photos and on the internet. There are also websites that shows photos of people who have met their Doppelgänger, and they were complete strangers when they first met. There’s no evidence that shows that they are related in any way. I totally believe that everyone has a Doppelgänger, whether they are alive or dead.
Zoë Hodge
ReplyDeleteMs. Gamzon
Contemporary Writers
Thursday, October 02, 2014
Mini Writing Exercises
1.) Werewolf
The wolf’s electric yellow eyes radiated power and hatred as it stood on top of the mountain. A low, menacing growl soon changed into a spine-chilling howl as it reared its head back and looked towards the moon. The moon shone brightly casting a spell of light on the wolf’s jet black fur. The wolf’s claws elongated as its fangs lengthened to a point. The wolf’s yellow eyes turned into an eerie red color that shined with wickedness and deceit as its body filled with power.
Gaping Dragon:
ReplyDeleteAs it emerged from its bottomless, echoing pit, I could only catch a momentary glimpse of its enormous form, its rather tiny head poking above the surface like a mole, before I was forever lost in its oozing, exposed stomach. Its purple scales, moist from the disgust of this dark dungeon, gleamed against the sunlight that was exposed by the few holes from the decaying stone walls. Its four wings, torn and battered, raised into the air as its gaping stomach, lined to the brim with what seemed like an endless amount of broken and rotting teeth, opened over its enormous, snake-like form. As it strode toward me, each of its eight feet, the foremost of which appeared more like hands, made imprint and imprint upon the solid, aging ground. Its gigantic talons, which could very well tear apart the face of a mountain, reached out as though to grab me. The instant I turned around, it had me within its firm, rough grasp, and twisted around with an audible, almost deafening crack of its wrist. Before I could even utter a mere squeal, it loosened its grasp, letting me fall into its exposed stomach, impaling myself upon one of its many teeth, lined and gleaming with its burning stomach juices. With that, I felt the pain of a million spikes and spears japed into my stomach, back, elbows, arms, head, eyes, face, and an infinite number of areas, before I finally felt my brain lose itself, and my vision gone dark with the rest of the world.
GODZILLA
ReplyDeleteStanding over one hundred and sixty feet tall, Godzilla crashes down on downtown Tokyo. His guttural screech fills the ears of those unfortunate enough to be in his wake of destruction. He stomps down on a residential district, unable to feel remorse. His gigantic feet cleared through not just the village, but also the earth itself. Its scales were as big as eighteen wheelers and were as rough as concrete.
People were running, but it wouldn’t matter. For every mile a human walked, Godzilla took one step, and the runners were gone. He kept walking, mindlessly destroying anything and everything. He let out another shriek, but something new came out with it. Blue fire spewed from its mouth, decimating tanks and skyscrapers alike. It didn’t burn. It simply didn’t give time to burn. All it did was disintegrate. Metal, wood, buildings, weapons, earth, and people stood no chance against this wonder of terror.
No Face
ReplyDeleteI have noticed in my more recent days, of a tall black figure with a white mask following me around. When I would walk through the forest on my way home from work, he would be there about twenty paces back following me. He wore some sort of black robe that became more transparent as it approached the ground. His small arms faded in and out of his figure. He always walks behind me and I can hear his footsteps on the leave and sticks- very soft footsteps. He had been follow me for a month and every week he would get closer. His mask was white with eyes and a mouth mark. It was accented with purple markings above and below the eye markings.
He had the ability to disappear at will and of course he would if I would stare at him for extended periods of time. I also noticed that he seems to adopt my emotions and personality when he's around me. He is very timid and when I noticed him for the first time he drifted behind a tree and waited for me to carry on. I decided out that I would approach him, and as I gather my confidence so did he. I approached him and as I got near his transparency fades in and out and I notice his organs appearing and disappearing. He grows taller as I stop in front of him and his arms poke out of his body and he cups his hand in front of me as if asking for something. He makes a moaning sound, “Ah” and he does so he rocks his hands toward me. I stare down at his hands and he nods at me. Gold pieced begin to form out of midair. And his hands gradually fill with a pile of gold. I was shocked and concerned. Why was he giving me this? I dug my hands into the pile of gold and looked at him. Out of his black robe materialized a grin or smile. And the gold disappeared. His hands engulfed mine and he opened his mouth and forcibly engulfed my entire body.
Describing a Monster
ReplyDeleteIts size was mesmerizing and stunning; it left me still in my tracks. It seemed to start from nowhere and its rough red skin wrinkled and stood tough it looked almost impenetrable but I wouldn’t get closer to inspect it. The thing had green hair that grew in patches, and I couldn’t seem to find its eyes. Although the strangest part of it was, the way its arms came alive and it would start creaking in the force of the wind. I was standing in the wake of a giant redwood tree.
Vampire Attack Parody
“Okay this isn’t normal, Michelle do you see that guy?”
“What is he doing?”
“It looks like he’s biting a raw steak.”
“That’s a perfectly good steak.”
“Is that stealing? Did he pay for that?”
“He didn’t even get out of the Deli section, I doubt he paid for it.”
“He’s still going.”
“I wonder what it taste like.”
“Is the steak turning grey?”
“Did that steak have blood a second ago?”
“Alright I’m done. Let’s go.”
“But-“
“I’m leaving,” turns and walks away.
“Okay, okay hold on.”