Mullin,+Jon

January 26, 2011
 * Gareth's Presentation**

I found Gareth's presentation incredibly interesting, not only because I enjoy reading the tale of Beowulf, but because I am also a big fan of artwork, and graphic novels are a type of artwork that I have never really explored. He started off his presentation with a sketch on the board, which amazed me, because I had never really seen such a talented artist draw in front of me. It seemed as though he started with a few lines, and before I knew it, it was a face, and then a whole person. Another thing that I really enjoyed was Gareth explaining his different methods that he used, for the different sections of the story. One point that stuck out to me was the New York skyline representing our empire, when the King, I believe his name is Hrothgar, is talking about the power of the empire, and how we could never imagine if the empire ever came to an end. I thought that this was very interesting because as we all know, on September 11, the twin towers were brought down by terrorist planes. IT is almost like a foreshadow to what was going to happen, and Gareth even says that that still gives him chills. Overall, great presentation, very interesting way to start off the semester.

February 7, 2011
 * The Ending of Beowulf**

I think that during the entire story of Beowulf, he is made to seem almost immortal, and the end really shows us, as the readers, that he is not immortal, and that he has grown old. His death symbolizes the end of the reign Beowulf, and this humanization makes all of the things that he accomplished even more amazing. Also, the way in which he dies is very important. He dies while doing something that he loves, and he can die with the highest honor. As a King and a great warrior, Beowulf wants to die on the battlefield, not in his sleep, so this death is a very honorable ending for the hero. Some may be disappointed by his death at the end of the story, but it seems to be the only logical way to end the poem, and what better what to go out than fighting a fire breathing dragon? This ending captures the essence of the whole story or heroics, and I was very pleased with it.

February 23, 2011
 * Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - Passage Analysis**

I found lined 1581-1595 to be very interesting. Part of it reads: "The beast saw the man with his weapon in hand, Raised his bristles erect, and so fiercely snorted, That many feared for the man, lest he got the worst of it" When I was reading this part, it made me think of what Gawain was going to have to do in a few weeks. The king goes head to head in battle, where he is the underdog, and comes out victorious. I felt as though that this passage was foreshadowing the fate of Gawain. As the text talks about the king approaching the boar, I imagined the Gawain approaching the altercation with the Green Knight. The whole third part of the story plays off parallels between Gawain and the King that has been so hospitable to him, so I figured that the king's victory in his hard battle may foreshadow the victory of Gawain against the Green Knight.



February 28, 2011
 * Undressing Lady Bertilak - Response**

March 7, 2011
 * My Favorite Pilgrim**

The Pilgrim that I liked the most was Miller. Though he is not the sharpest tool in the shed, and he has a bad reputation for getting drunk and ruining and breaking objects. I found him to be very interesting and entertaining, and one of the more radical personalities that I found. I also like his tale, and thought it was pretty risky for the time. He is in a sense a villain, but sometimes the villains are the most interesting.


 * The Pilgrims - In class grading**

I thought it was interesting to hear all of the different opinions about the different pilgrims. This exercise definitely helped me really make a clear picture of all of the characters that we are going to focus on, and I felt like it was a very constructive exercise.

April 6, 2011
 * William Tyndale VS. Other Bibles**

For the most part, Tyndale's translations are pretty much the same as the other translations. What I noticed that Tyndale did was that he shortened some of the saying, and worded them differently, making them easier to read. For example, at the beginning of the creation story,

April 25, 2011
 * Ideas for Final Project**

I had two possible ideas for my final project. The first would be an Essay about how the way people in modern times view "Utopia" compared to Thomas More's version, and also some of the problems that are in the community that More has created. Secondly I was thinking about doing the creative option, and writing my own tale of the Canterbury Tales. I'm leaning more toward the first topic about Utopia.

May 2, 2011
 * Poem Response**

//The Nymph's Reply to the Shepard -// Sir Walter Ralegh (pg 719)

This poem comes off as a negative poem, but I feel as though this poem is about self confidence, and the importance of memories. In the poem Ralegh talks about beautiful things, and continues the poem by telling the reader how eventually all of these beautiful things fade and are eventually lost. The poem ends with Ralegh saying, "But could youth last, had joys not date nor age no need, then these delights my mind might move, to live with thee thy love." What I think this means is that time can fade these good things, but the memories of these good things can't be taken away, and these memories leave a sense of hope.