Reflections on Term 3 Language Arts Test

I feel that I have not done very well for the Reading and Reasoning this time. I think this is because I did not answer to the question and occasionally went off the topic. I also feel that I did not study enough of the Merchant of Venice because I was unable to answer the questions at the end and thus overall did very poorly. I will try my best the next time and do more practice papers to bring up my answering skills to a decent level by the end-of-year exams so that I can score better.

Shao Xuan

(Term 3 Post #5)

Speech Literary Devices

The following are common speech literary devices:

Alliteration

Repetition of the same sounds in the beginning of several words.

Eg. He was so fast and furious that he finished first in the race.

Anaphora

Repetition of the same word or phrase in the beginning of several clauses.

Eg. We will put this forth, we will try our very best, we will succeed!

Antistrophe

Repetition of the same word or phrase at the end of several clauses.

Eg. He tried extorting money, but to no avail. He tried to steal, but to no avail. He tried every possible mean, but to no avail.

Aporia

Feigned expression of doubt.

Eg. He was quite uncertain about it, "Was that really true?"

Antithesis

Opposed ideas in a parallel construction.

Eg. Not that I hated him, I just did not like him.

Assonance

Repetition of the same sounds in words.

Eg. How do you like to be true?

Hendiadys

Use of two words connected by a conjunction, instead of subordinating one to another.

Eg. There is no need to be terrified and be fear for the worst.

Metaphor

Implied comparison achieved through a figurative use of words.

Eg. As he heard the news, he rocketed off to see him.

Oxymoron

Paradox.

Eg. We must fail this time to succeed.

Personification

Attribution of personality to an impersonal thing.

Eg. The toilet tap started to cry.

Simile

An explicit comparison using 'as' or 'like'.

Eg. He flew like the wind.

Shao Xuan

(Term 3 Post #4)

My View on Trustworthiness

Trustworthiness is how much you believe someone's stand and viewpoint and whether you trust that it is true. Trustworthiness of a person depends on a few factors.

Firstly, whether a person can be trustworthy depends on his confidence. If a person start stammering while trying to convey his message, people will lose their trust in him because he does not sound convincing enough. Losing confidence means that he will start to fidget around and maybe start to stammer. By not being confident, the person shows that he himself does not strongly believe in his argument, so how can he even expect other people to believe him?

Next, whether his argument is logical. No one can believe someone when he says something that is illogical. It will sound contradictory and his argument will most likely fall apart. It will also not make sense to the people who are listening to him and not long later they will get confused. This is going to make his statements not convincing.

Following that, it is best to provide concrete examples like figures and data to support the argument. This will make it more easy to believe the statements. It also proves that the arguments made are true. A good critical thinker however, will know that the data provided will only be one-sided and not to believe the argument solely on the examples given.

These three factors are what determines the trustworthiness of an article. Of course there are more than these three, but these are the basic ones.

Shao Xuan

(Term 3 Post #3)

Book Review: The Labors of Hercules by Agatha Christie

Author: Agatha Christie

Title: The Labors of Hercules

Published in: 1984

"The Labors of Hercules" is a series of 12 short stories, about a world-famous detective Hercule Poirot. Poirot is shown as an old man who is about to retire, but cannot resist the temptation of solving difficult crimes, thus embarking on his final 12 mysteries. The stories go through weird and funny twists and turns, before finally revealing the mastermind and how the whole plot had happened.

I like this book because the detective, M. Poirot, is a very smart and agile one, and can solve mysteries up to the highest order. Though complicating, but he manages to unravel all the question marks of the story slowly. The best part, is that the whole story is featured in his viewpoint, and so we do not know the outcome of the story until Hercule Poirot solves the mystery.

There is one case which I particularly like. Hercule Poirot, had just received a case of an expensive stolen picture. He is then assigned to find the picture but at the same time, comes across another mystery. It actually seems like these two cases are totally different, but as it comes to the end of the story, the two cases just seem to merge, and the mystery of the missing girl seems to have some connection to the mystery of the missing painting. The outcome had surprised me a lot.

To read the rest of the book, which I strongly recommend, you will find out the details of the abovementioned case and the other 11 cases which are very amusing. Go and grab the book now!

Shao Xuan

(Term 3 Post #2)

Reflections on Merchant of Venice

There are many people, after reading the Merchant of Venice, who think that Antonio is a 'saint', while Shylock is the mother of all evil. But personally, I know that Antonio should be depicted as the good guy while Shylock the bad, but I can't help but sympathize for Shylock. Just because he chose, or probably passes down from his ancestors, to be a Jew, he has to suffer the discrimination of Christians. Even though Antonio spat on him and despised him, it was because Antonio was prejudiced against him and not because Shylock offended Antonio in any way. Furthermore, in the end where Shylock, Antonio and Bassanio went to court, even though Shylock was wrong to obtain a pound of flesh from Antonio, basically Shylock had a right to do so. And that was also because Antonio and Bassanio did not return him the money that he had lent to them. Additionally, Shylock did not even plot against them even though he knew that there was a very small chance of a shipwreck of Antonio's ships, he did not do anything scheming at all. This shows us that Shylock is not as bad as we have pictured him. Maybe people should consider and put themselves in Shylock shoes, probably we will feel even a tad of compassion for him.

Shao Xuan

(Term 3 Post #1)