Final Writing Test

The young heart of an old man

Santiago, the main character in Ernest Hemingway’s “The old man and the sea”, is seen throughout the entire book as a hero, who personifies honour, endurance and courage. Along with these major themes, symbolism plays a big part in setting the overall tone of the novel. As the old man sets out on a venture far out in the Gulf Stream and struggles beyond his strength in his attempt to bring his catch on shore, the series of events that he goes through makes it clearer and clearer that the man’s spirit is undefeatable. Although Santiago doesn’t escape from poverty, along with a few of his fellow Cuban fishermen, he still manages to live a happy life by doing what he loves most: fishing.

The old man is portrayed as a wise and sensible person who takes great pride in his work, and who shows a lot of respect to the living beings sharing the same aquatic surface. In fact, his attitude toward the marlin, his greatest catch of all times, shows the extent of his honour when he emphasizes his admiration for the strength and endurance of his opponent: “I wish I could feed the fish, though. He is my brother.” (18) Also, when Santiago first notices the approaching sharks, his first reflex is to protect the marlin from the famished beasts to preserve its dignity.

“[...] his hands had the deep-creased scars from handling heavy fish on the cords. But none of these scars were fresh.” (1) This description of Santiago’s hands provides insight into yet another important theme of the novel: endurance. The multiple battles that the old man underwent throughout his life left him with a couple of marks, positive reminders of his great strength and indescribable willpower. The choice of Santiago to never back down and battle until the end may have provoked mental anguish in the eventuality that he loses the fight, but that type of pain is endurable, seeing as the outcome is less important than the struggle itself. Another essential link to his eagerness to follow his calling is his idolisation of the great “DiMaggio”, a baseball player who suffered from a bone spur, that didn’t give up on his ongoing dream and overcame his pain even in the roughest times.

The saying “believing you’ll do well is half the battle” can easily be applied to Santiago’s never-ending motivation at success. His courage and determination illustrate the kind of person the old man really is, despite his weakening body. In fact, the author includes some foreshadowing, like when Santiago often dreams about playing lions, providing him with a link to his younger days, when he was sailing around the African continent. This also reinforces his idea of idealism and his general light-hearted outlook on life. Some may see it as a negative response to his ageing body, but it is most likely the pleasure of looking back on life and enjoying the bits of memories that sculpted the happiness in his soul.

In any case, through themes such as endurance, courage and honour, “The old man and the sea” depicts the inner success and happiness of an exemplary man that almost any reader can relate to, since he makes us see that defeat isn’t losing a fight, it’s refusing the battle.       (556 words)

Appreciation of "La Sagouine" 

I really enjoyed the play overall, although it was a bit long for what it had to say. What I liked most about it was the way La Sagouine played throughout the piece and of course, the themes (both implicit and explicit) that were explored. For instance, the part when she said that happiness lies not in the happening of a desire, but in the wait for it to happen was a big eye-opener for me. She had a great flow in the tone of her voice as well as in the realism of her actions onstage. Right from the beginning, she captivated the attention of her audience by invoking rhetorical and sometimes amusing questions about life. Indeed, her view of the world was either simplistic or complex, depending on the interpretation of the viewer. The contrasting imagery used in the play really adds to the persona of the characters as well as to the general meaning of the piece. And so, I wouldn’t necessarily go see it again, but I could certainly recommend it to anyone seeking a subtle emotional thrill.

Revising and Editing Assignment

Pre-test score = 84%
L3=17/18   L6=10/10   L8=19/20  L9=33/35   L10 =15/15    L11=28/28    L12=39/40   L13=14/14 L16=16/16   L19=20/20

Post-test score= 89%

The course was effective overall; everything was clear and well-explained. I acquired a great amount of rules and my proofreading and editing skills improved beyond my initial expectations. I pay much more attention to syntax and punctuation, among other things. For instance, lesson 3 (Avoiding awkward sentences), lesson 6 (Transitions) as well as lesson 11 (Using modifiers) were good resources for me, seeing as I am trilingual.

What I liked most about the course is its conciseness. Being straight-forward, it encouraged me and had my undivided attention at all times. The part I liked least about it is that there weren’t enough exercises supporting each lesson. I know that the whole point of the course is improving proofreading, revising and editing skills in only 20 minutes a day, but everyone knows that practice makes perfect!

My overall rating of the course would be a 9. I think the whole “book” is a success in its concept, its design and its purpose. I would recommend it to whoever wants to improve their English skills.

Mid-Term Correction

A soul free at last!

 “The Story of an Hour” was written by Kate Chopin, whose early success as a writer allowed her to raise her six children… alone. This is an important element in her life, since Kate Chopin was actually one of the first independent women fighting for the first form of feminism. At first, she could not express her opinions because of the circumstances during the 19th century; instead, she wrote short stories filled with irony. After her husband passed away, Kate Chopin used her everyday life to inspire her in her works. In fact, literature in general during the second half of the 1800’s mainly portrayed reality, in its simple, yet complex context. In her case, Kate Chopin’s works not only focused on the realism behind the words, but also on a more delicate matter: feminism. 

“The Story of an Hour” is a short story in which a woman, Louise, after the death of her husband, realizes how bored and unhappy she was, living with that man. After a great deal of internal dialog, her character completely goes out of proportion when she realizes that she now has the power to act or think without imposed restraints. Louise has a breakthrough which not only builds back her strength but also gives her a new way of looking at life. In other words, it gives her hope and makes her believe that she has a purpose again. In fact, this new permanence by virtue of the power to resist any more stress is described fairly well. Obviously, her whole state of being only lasts “an hour” since she literally drops dead after later seeing her husband walk through the door. 

Of course, by the way the story is written, the reader can predict the ending quite easily because we see early on that this whole story is pretty ironic. These elements take away the momentum throughout the whole story. The whole setting is based on how Louise seems to be this fragile and vulnerable being, trapped in her own misery, and as the story evolves, she gets a taste of actual emancipation, which is then taken away from her once again at the end. The emotional rollercoaster she experiences is described so blatantly by the author that the reader can foretell her actions. This goes to show that the lingering description can have a pretty significant outward appearance on the main focus of the story. That being said, the reader is forced to expect the unexpected. 

In conclusion, “The Story of an Hour” describes, with an ineffective ironical tone, how a woman was never as free or independent as a man in the 19^th century. The aspect of feeling so free after a loved one passes away may be a frightening thing to consider. In fact, one can ask himself why human beings are so urged and eager to go after a self-destructive relationship. Would it be the fear of solitude? Would it be the need of acceptance? Why do we put ourselves in circumstances that we know aren’t necessarily good for us? Anyways, many writers and filmmakers around the world always find themselves taking these questions into account because they are fundamental. They have been there since the beginning, and will be there until the end of times.

Mid-term Test

A soul free at last!

 “The Story of an Hour” was written by Kate Chopin, whose early success as a writer allowed her to raise her six children… alone. After her husband passed away, Kate Chopin used her everyday life to inspire her in her works. In fact, literature in general during the second half of the 1800`s mainly portrayed reality, in its simple, yet complex context. In her case, Kate Chopin’s works not only focused on the realism behind the words, but also on a more delicate matter: feminism.

“The Story of an Hour” is a short story in which a woman, Louise, after the death of her husband, goes through a series of mental states of being which makes her more and more convinced that she is something more than she thinks she is. After a great deal of internal dialog, her character completely goes out of proportion when she realizes that she then had the power to act or think without imposed restraints. Louise has a breakthrough which not only builds back her strength but also gives her a new way of looking at life. In other words, it gives her hope and makes her believe that she has a purpose again. In fact, this new permanence by virtue of the power to resist any more stress is described fairly well. Obviously, her whole state of being only lasts “an hour” since she literally drops dead after later seeing her husband walk through the door.

Of course, by the way the story is written, the reader can predict the ending quite easily, partly because of the passivity of the characters, and the dullness of the whole plot which makes it seem like a never-ending soap opera. These elements take away the irony throughout the whole story. The whole setting is based on how Louise seems to be this fragile and vulnerable being, trapped in her own misery, and as the story evolves, she gets a taste of actual emancipation, which is then taken away from her once again at the end. The emotional rollercoaster she experiences is described so blatantly by the author that the reader can foretell her actions. This goes to show that the lingering description can have a pretty significant outward appearance on the main focus of the story. That being said, the reader is forced to expect the unexpected.

In conclusion, “The Story of an Hour” describes how love and hatred are closer to each other than we could expect. The aspect of feeling so free after a loved one passes away may be a frightening thing to consider. In fact, one can ask himself why human beings are so urged and eager to go after a self-destructive relationship. Would it be the fear of solitude? Would it be the need of acceptance? Why do we put ourselves in circumstances that we know aren’t necessarily good for us? Anyways, many writers and filmmakers around the world always find themselves taking these questions into account because they are fundamental. They have been there since the beginning, and will be there until the end of times.

520 words

Tell Tale Heart : Thesis Statement

All throughout Edgar Allan Poe’s short story, “The Tell-Tale Heart”, the narrator creates a huge build-up that keeps the reader imprisonned in its suspense. He does this by using a large amount of figures of speech, such as repetition, simile and metaphor.

For instance, the use of repeated words creates a great deal of tension, like when he says; “I undid the lantern cautiously-oh so cautiously-cautiously (for the hinges creaked) [...])”, and “It was open-wide, wide open [...]”. The narrator also sets up an eerie, bizzare atmosphere by mentionning things like “All in vain; because Death, in approaching him had stalked with his black shadow before him, and enveloped the victim.” Even with his similes, he manages to keep the reader’s attention by almost forcing him/her to anticipate what will happen next; “A watch’s minute hand moves more quickly than did mine. [...]”, or “It increased my fury, as the beating of a drum stimulates the soldier into courage. [...]”

The most important part of the whole story, for me, is the fact that he repeats one of his previously said sentences; “[...] There came to my ears a low, dull, quick sound, such as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton”. The two contexts in which he says the same sentence are so different and yet complete each other so well that it outlines a standpoint, a sort of conclusion to the story. One in which he admits that he’ll never be able to keep what he did to himself.

In the shoes of Noëmie

Noëmie has one of the greatest goals in life. Aside from wanting to get good marks and finish her college, she wants to get the best out of what she has and what she'll get out of life. Her main goal is to develop her skills and to study about what she likes best: the World! The most interesting part about it is that she later told me that she is doing it for herself as well as for others. She told me that her long-term goal in life was to be the greatest person she could be. Good start, Noëmie.

One of Noëmie's main achievements in life was to go to Africa. She really seemed passionate when she was telling me about her big, exciting journey. Apparently, she went there to work with people and to help out however she could. She organized a bunch of gripping activities for the people out there and she was able to get the most out of it. She also said that it was a great exchange, and that she learned alot from the experience.

Besides what Noëmie does during her weeks of traveling, she has fascinating interests at home as well. She enjoys reading, cooking (she still works between chefs), learning about anything and everything, discovering, exploring, and so on.. The fact that she has a good sense of humor, adapts to new environments quickly, and knows how to set up the right mood and chemistry between people really helps her out in the kitchen!

Basically, it would be really fun to be in her shoes, just for one day, or even an hour, just to be able to experience what she feels all day long, with her helping hands and her great outlook on life.