Hamlet the Movie

Josh Harness
 4-25-12
 English
                                                                     Hamlet

 Cast -

Hamlet- Leonardo DiCaprio- He’s very emotional

-King Claudius- Jack Nicholson- Has quite the dark side.

 -Queen Gertrude- Meryl Streep- Innocent and a wonderful actor.

 -Ophelia- Hayden Panettiere- Gorgeous and has a look of innocents.

 -Laertes- Shia LaBeouf- has tons of energy and he’s young.

 -Polonius- Liam Neeson- Can pull of any role and is very believable

 -Horatio- Brad Pitt- Brave and Loyal.

 -Rosencrantz and Guildenstern- Will Ferril and John C. Reilly- Both are really goofy.

 -Ghost- Johnny Depp- Depp plays a lot of dark and creepy roles. He makes a perfect ghost.


Setting - The movie will take place on the Amalfi Coast in a large castle overlooking the Mediterranean sea. I believe that the Amalfi Coast is one of the most beautiful parts of the world. The view it provides is stunning.


Time Period- The movie will take place in 2012. I would rather have an up to date, real-life movie than one that is made in the medieval times. The modern time will allow a larger audience to understand the plot of the movie.

 Costumes- The actors will be outfitted with very preppy and elegant looking attire. I still believe that staying true to the original works of Hamlet is necessary. The brands of clothing that will be used are; Vineyard Vines, Brooks Brothers, Ralph Lauren, Lacoste and J. Crew. In the movie the men will wear either polo’s or buttton down shirts with flat front shorts that could be colored or khaki or seersucker. Men also have the option of wearing pants or jeans. When cold the men will wear sweaters or nice jackets. On the other hand the women will be wearing nice dresses or jeans of some sort. For formal events, women will wear elegent dresses. Men will wear a tux or a blazer and tie or bowtie, with dress pants.



 Language- The movie will use a modern upper class English language that everyone will be able to understand. I belive that using a modern in English language will make the movie more understandable. The modern English language will also attract a wider audience and make the movie more exciting.

Shakespeare

Josh Harness 4-5-11 English Should We? or Should We Not? I think that students should learn about Shakespeare in high school. Although I believe that the way in which it is taught is wrong. Learning about Shakespeare doesn’t really help you in the world except if your going into a English field. Though learning about Shakespeare makes you a more well rounded individual, you never know when someone might start talking about Shakespeare. To begin, I think that there are numerous ways in which the way Shakespeare can be taught, to engaged students. I don’t think that delving into the text book right away is the best way to do it, students just become board and confused. By, starting out with some type of informative, yet engaging video that gets students excited about learning about Shakespeare. After this, I think watching a movie on the certain play your going to read will help students understand what is going on in the story, rather than diving strait into the text. By watching a movie first the students will have a better picture in their mind about what is happening in each scene. Students always seem to understand a topic better when they already have an idea of what’s going on. Moving on, by reading an updated text that doesn’t use so much Old English will help students grasp a greater understanding of the text. Through these steps I feel that students will gain a greater appreciation for Shakespeare. In my opinion learning Shakespeare, helps you understand many aspects of life. Many movies have used numerous lines from Shakespeare, as well as many musicians. Shakespeare is everywhere in our society, you just have to look hard enough. I think reading Shakespeare has been very informative and exciting. Acting it out in class has been kind of fun. In all, Shakespeare should be continued to be taught in school, but through more engaging ways.

Xtranormal video

A Day at the Golf Course
by: josharness

Iraq war/Things Fall Apart

                                                                                                                                Josh Harness
                                                2-23-12
                                                                                                                                English
                                                       

I believe that it was morally right to invade Iraq and overthrow it’s leader and encourage democracy.  By invading Iraq the US military threw out and executed one of the most dangerous men in the world, Saddam Hussein. Perle and Kegan were very vocal about this very point.  Saddam was threatening the world with nuclear weapons as well as controlling the lives of the people of Iraq and wouldn’t step down. The Iraqi’s didn’t truly know how to run a country using the governmental system of democracy, since they were under a dictatorship and it was our responsibility to create and help them run this system.  After the system was put in place the Iraqi people seemed to understand the concept and today it’s progressing day by day.
The missionaries like the coalition forces in the Iraq war both came to try to help the people of their country/villages establish new governments and help improve their infrastructure by building hospitals and schools as well as helping them create jobs.  One of the most important points conveyed by Perle and Kagen was that in order for our efforts to be successful, we must take the time and truly understand the customs and culture of the Iraqi people and work with them in establishing a democratic government that they can run themselves.  In Things Fall Apart, Mr. Brown  states similar beliefs and feels that  each leader will come away with a greater understanding of the others faith if  time is taken to get to know each other.
Unlike the missionaries who wanted to convert the African people to Christianity, the coalition forces did not try to impose their religious beliefs on the Iraqi people.  Another difference is in the manner in which each country/village was approached.  The entrance into Iraq, was a war and included much violence and death, whereas the missionaries came in peace.
I feel strongly that it is the responsibility of nations to act where injustices exist.  If a country is threatening others with hostile intentions, such as nuclear weapons, it is their responsibility to intervene.  Also, it is necessary to provide humanitarian efforts to countries whose people are being persecuted and exterminated.

Diversity

                                                                                                                            Josh Harness
                                                    2/9/12
                                                                                                                            Mr. Darby

                                                               Diversity


Diversity is one of the most important aspects of our world.  It makes us who we are and in what we believe. America was given the name “The Melting Pot” referring to the fact that it was built by a diverse group of people. Diversity has created a world of people from different cultures that have various experiences, life styles, backgrounds, perspectives and especially ideas.

I believe, overall diversity is a good thing because it gives people exposure to other cultures, religious beliefs, etc. that they would never encounter without this opportunity.  However, there are many that are not as accepting of others beliefs and create difficulties for these groups, via protests, bombings, war etc.  They often feel  that special treatment  has been given to those just because they are minorities and are not necessarily worthy of  the opportunity or they disagree with their beliefs or customs.

As of recent years, diversity has been given much more acceptance in television, literature and movies.  For example, the very  popular television show, “Modern Family”,  portrays families intermingled with  Hispanics, gays, and tradition families.  The show is well done in that the characters live out their day to day lives without any judgment of each others diversities.  Other such popular shows include Greys Anatomy, Private Practice, and How to Make it in America, as well as many more. Popular culture had been much more inclusive of racial diversity in all media forms.

It is extremely important to me to be open to experiencing all types of diversity.  I appreciate and celebrate our differences. Being open to other cultural beliefs  helps me to understand why people are the way they are. It interests me to explore our differences and helps to educate us all to become more tolerant of those unlike ourselves.  I have seen first-hand what it is like to encounter various reactions due to my diversity; my learning disability.  Overall, people have been understanding , however over the years, I have had my fair share of students that simply think I am stupid and have no understanding of what a learning disability truly involves.  This is one of the many reasons why I have such strong feelings about  an inclusive  and diverse society.

How the Fish got it’s Third Eye

How the Fish got it’s Third Eye
Under the deep blue sea and multitudes of coral lived a colorful, lively fish named Alexa. Alexa had large piercing black eyes and yellow flowing stripes. Because her eyes and colors were so distinct, she attracted many fish, some not so nice. She was quite timid, except when it came to her best friend, Ollie. Ollie was a fun loving and protective friend who happened to be an octopus. They loved to hide in the coral reefs and could also be found swimming in the deep crevasses .
One day Alexa and her good friend Ollie were playing follow the leader through the large leaves of vegetation when a school of fish noticed them and began to taunt Alexa. “Wow, get a load of those eyes said one, as another was making fun of her bold stripes. Alexa flew behind Ollie as her best friend shot ink in their direction as a warning to leave her alone. “I wish I wasn’t always so afraid of everything Ollie, I‘m tired of fish always making fun of me.” ‘I wish I could do something to scare other fish off.” “Don’t worry Alexa, I will always be around to protect you!” Alexa swam away sadly as Ollie followed behind.
On their way home, Ollie tried to cheer her up by being comical and playful, but his flailing of the arms attracted a school of fiery puffer fish who were out to ruin someone’s day. They decided to pick on the pretty little fish, however, Ollie wouldn’t tolerate it. As Alexa swam around furiously, Ollie once again, blasted the puffer fish with a shot of ink. However, this time Allie was caught in the middle of the crossfire. “I’m so sorry Alexa, I didn’t realize you were there.” A large spot of ink had landed on the end of Alexa’s back fin. It looked like she had another eye. The puffer fish took one look at Alexa a darted off.
As time passed, Alexa became confident and didn’t always need Ollie to protect her. It seems that the “third eye” would scare even the most frightening fish away. And, that is how Alexa got her “third eye.”