Favourite Poet

My favourite poet would be William Blake.

Willian Blake was born in London on November 28, 1757. Unfortunately, out of his six siblings, two had died in infancy. From early childhood, Blake spoke of having visions—at four he saw God "put his head to the window"; at around the age nine, while walking dathrough the countryside, he saw a tree filled with angels. Although his parents tried to discourage him from "lying," they did observe that he was different from his peers and did not force him to attend conventional school. He learned to read and write at home. When he was twelve, Blake began writing poetry. Later in the years, he studied briefly at the Royal Academy.

Blake married an illiterate woman Catherine Boucher in 1782 whom he had taught to read and write. Sadly, they had no children. However, thanks to Boucher, Blake was still remembered today because of his illuminated poetry which was produced with the help of Boucher. Blake produced his first printed work in 1783, Poetical Sketches. He also believed that his poetry could be read and understood by common people. Although Blake's poetry was not well known by the general public, he was mentioned in A Biographical Dictionary of the Living Authors of Great Britain and Ireland, published in 1816.

William Blake spent the final years of his life in great poverty and died in 1827 while he was working on his Dante Series.

Here are 3 of his poems:

To The Evening Star

THOU fair-hair'd angel of the evening,
Now, whilst the sun rests on the mountains, light
Thy bright torch of love; thy radiant crown
Put on, and smile upon our evening bed!
Smile on our loves, and while thou drawest the
Blue curtains of the sky, scatter thy silver dew
On every flower that shuts its sweet eyes
In timely sleep. Let thy west wind sleep on
The lake; speak silence with thy glimmering eyes,
And wash the dusk with silver. Soon, full soon,
Dost thou withdraw; then the wolf rages wide,
And then the lion glares through the dun forest:
The fleeces of our flocks are cover'd with
Thy sacred dew: protect them with thine influence!

To Spring

O THOU with dewy locks, who lookest down
Through the clear windows of the morning, turn
Thine angel eyes upon our western isle,
Which in full choir hails thy approach, O Spring!
The hills tell one another, and the listening
Valleys hear; all our longing eyes are turn'd
Up to thy bright pavilions: issue forth
And let thy holy feet visit our clime! Come o'er the eastern hills, and let our winds
Kiss thy perfumèd garments; let us taste
Thy morn and evening breath; scatter thy pearls
Upon our lovesick land that mourns for thee. O deck her forth with thy fair fingers; pour
Thy soft kisses on her bosom; and put
Thy golden crown upon her languish'd head,
Whose modest tresses are bound up for thee.

Night

THE sun descending in the west,
The evening star does shine;
The birds are silent in their nest.
And I must seek for mine.
The moon, like a flower
In heaven's high bower,
With silent delight
Sits and smiles on the night.

Farewell, green fields and happy grove,
Where flocks have took delight:
Where lambs have nibbled, silent move
The feet of angels bright;
Unseen they pour blessing
And joy without ceasing
On each bud and blossom,
On each sleeping bosom.
They look in every thoughtless nest
Where birds are cover'd warm;
They visit caves of every beast,
to keep them all from harm:
If they see any weeping
That should have been sleeping,
They pour sleep on their head,
And sit down by their bed.
When wolves and tigers howl for prey,
They pitying stand and weep,
Seeking to drive their thirst away
And keep them from the sheep.
But, if they rush dreadful,
The angels, most heedful,
Receive each mild spirit,
New worlds to inherit.
And there the lion's ruddy eyes
Shall flow with tears of gold:
And pitying the tender cries,
And walking round the fold:
Saying, 'Wrath by His meekness,
And, by His health, sickness,
Are driven away
From our immortal day.
'And now beside thee, bleating lamb,
I can lie down and sleep,
Or think on Him who bore thy name,
Graze after thee, and weep.
For, wash'd in life's river,
My bright mane for ever
Shall shine like the gold
As I guard o'er the fold.'

Figurative Language

A Dream Within A Dream by Edgar Allan Poe
Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow--
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.
I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand--
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep--while I weep!
O God! can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?

1. How are the figurative language used in the poem? Give the specific word(s), explain what type of figurative language it is and why the poet chose to use this figurative language?

The poet exaggerated the fact that he is having a dream about someone and to show the poet's emotions by repeating the use of the word "dream" in the poem which is a form of hyperbole. In the poem personification is used on the words "hope" and "wave". The poet described hope as a bird that has flown away from him and "pitiless" on the word "wave" to describe it as if it was a person with emotions. The poet used symbolism on the words " grains of the golden sand" to show that the grains of sand in his hand symbolises his hope. In the sentence:
"Grains of the golden sand--
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep--while I weep!"
the poet shows that he has lost all hope by saying that the grains of golden sand has crept through his fingers. This also shows his unhappy emotions to the reader of the poem.

I like this poem because of the description of emotions by the poet and the way he uses figurative language to make the person who reads the poem feel that it is very real and emotional. Although the poem appeared to be very real when I read it, the last line in each part of the poem turned out to tell readers that the whole poem was actually talking about a dream . I also like the part of the poem when the poet used symbolism to show that hope was like a bird that flew away from him and that the waves were like people.

Examinations

The IH (integrated humanities) are coming. I hope that you will not be like what is described above. Do not work hard last minute. Good luck!

Illegal Fishing

Hi everyone, sorry for not posting for such a long time. This blog post I am writing is mainly about illegal fishing. Does anyone know what is the real definition of illegal fishing? Illegal fishing takes place where vessels operate in violation of the laws of a fishery. This can apply to fisheries that are under the jurisdiction of a coastal state or to high seas fisheries regulated by regional organisations.

Here are some of the problems that some nations may face due to illegal fishing. Those countries with their citizens who are mostly fishermen would suffer as their fishing area may have a shortage of fishes if people fish at the area illegally. Since the fish has been caught illegally, the illegal fishers can sell them at a cheaper price.Because of this, the fishermen sell the fish legally would not be able to make any money as most people would buy fish which is sold cheaper.

These are not just the only problems, Governments who are trying to stop illegal fishing would also face certain kinds of problems. Since illegal fishing is a problem at sea, the government who is trying to prevent the activity may have to spend extra money perhaps to hire more coastguards or people to be the special task force at sea to spot and stop criminal ativities at sea such as illegal fishing.

Illegal fishing, is a major global issue which many countries around the world are facing. Since it is such a significant problem, I am such that the government of these countries must have come up with their own solutions to attempt solving this problem. Here are some solutions. Governments could increase the marine patrol and the amount of punishment given to offenders by increasing the fines given.

I have come to the end of my discussion on illegal fishing. Do drop a comment if you have any. Bye.

The Lottery

Q5: Relevance to today

What can we learn from this story? (How is it relevant to our society today? Do we have our own form of 'lottery' as in the story?)

What we can learn from the story is to voice out our opinions.
We should not be so cruel and do horrible things like stoning others, which was what they villagers in "The Lottery" did to Mrs. Hutchinson.

If we feel that something that we have been doing is wrong, we should stop doing it. Mrs. Hutchinson only knew that holding the lottery every year was wrong when she was the one who "won" the lottery and was going to be stoned. If knew that holding the lottery was wrong right from the start, she should have just voiced out her opinion to the villagers and not keep it to herself until the moment that she was the one that was going to be stoned. If she had voiced out her opinion earlier, the people who previously "won" the lottery would not have been stoned.

We do have our own form of lottery. However, the winner of the lottery would not be stoned or injured. But in our kind of lottery, the winner gets prize money.

Singapore - Saving Our Environment

Have you ever wondered what has the Singapore government done to help save the environment? Well, the government certainly has done some things to help save the environment. There has been many global environmental issues. Thus, everyone should play their part in helping to conserve our resources and save the environment. One more thing: Singapore only has limited resources.

Firstly, the Singapore government has instructed the management of all major supermarkets in Singapore to turn Wednesday into "Bring Your Own Bag" Day. On this day, all citizens who purchase goods at the supermarket must bring their own reusable shopping bags to carry their purchased good. If anyone does not bring his/her shopping bag, he/she would be charged ten cents for every plastic bag used. By doing this, it is said that about ten million plastic bags could be saved in a year!

Next, the government has also encouraged more citizens to reuse, reduce and recycle and not to waste Singapore's limited resources. To encourage recycling, the goverment has organised more campaigns on recycling and placed more recycling bins all around the nation.

Finally, I found out that there is a company in Singapore that recycles food waste. Currently, the local company recycles soya bean waste, spent grains and spent yeast into animal feed. A local food waste treatment plant was also set up to turn food waste from food courts, hotels and factories into compost and biogas. So start to "Reduce, Reuse and Recycle" today!

Organ Trading In S'pore. Allowed Or Disallowed?

Last Friday, my class had a current affairs discussion on whether organ trading should be allowed or disallowed in Singapore. The panellists all came prepared with speeches and powerpoints on their opinion to the topic. One of the speakers, Kevan, played as the economist (I think so). His opinion was that organ trading should be allowed in Singapore. However, many of my classmates disagreed as they think that if organ trading is allowed, only the rich would be able to afford to buy the organs but the poor can't as they are unable to pay the costs of buying the organs. Thus, when the poor people have illnesses such as kidney failure, they would not be able to immediately get a kidney as they have no money and would be out in waiting list at the hospitals. By then, these poor people would have already died while waiting for someone to donate them a kidney.

Some classmates also asked Kevan what if the poor wanted to sell their organs just for the money without caring for their health. Kevan told them that the hospital would do a medical checkup on these people first before making a decision if they are fit enough to sell their organs. After Kevan said this, I wondered what if the patients were as fit as a fiddle before selling their organs and their health deteriorated after selling their organs.

Personally, I think that organ trading should not be allowed in Singapore as this might cost the health of the poor people to deteriorate as a result of their need of money to support their own families. Allowing organ trading would also mean being unfair to the poor people as they would have no money to pay the hospital bills for organ transplant. In conclusion, I think that organ trading should not be allowed in Singapore.

Processed Food (blog prompt)

Processed food are bad for health. What are processed food? Processed food are also known as preserved food. Some examples are sausages, luncheon meat, meatballs, crab stick and other types of canned food. How are these processed food made? Guess What? Some of the colours on these processed food are actually artificial colouring and flavours are artificial flavourings! Some people like to eat crab stick and actually what are they eating? They are eating eating artificially coloured and flavoured food!

Processed food are made to be preserved for quite a long time. What is used to preserve these food? Mainly, salt is used used in preserving most kinds of processed food. Consuming too much salt can lead to kidney failure. Thus, do not become a victim of kidney failure just because you take too much processed food. The next bad thing is preservatives. Research has shown that taking too much preservatives cause respiratory and other health problems. Allergenic preservatives in food or medicine can also cause anaphylacic shock in susceptible individuals, a condition which is often fatal within minutes without emergency.

Personally, I do not really take much processed food as my parents always tell me that they are unhealthy and may cause health problems. That is why my diet is balanced. I take more vegetables and fruit instead of processed food. In conclusion, take processed food in moderation and stay healthy!

The Taximan's Story (questions)

Q1.The irony in the story is that young girls are fooling around, which includes the taximan's daughter. The taximan did not expect his daughter to be fooling around as her results in school were excellent.

Q2.The themes in the story are that we should be good children and not fool around like the girls in the story when we are still young.

Q3. The story is rather realistic, as nowadays, there is an increasing number of young students fooling around like what Dexter mentioned in his blog.

Q4.I think that the taximan is rather sociable as he told a stranger about his daughter and his personal problems. I sympathise for the taximan as he must be very angry to find out that his daughter was fooling around without his knowledge.

Q5.I do agree with the taximan's lamenting. We young people nowadays should be studying hard for exams instead of fooling around. Fooling around does not benefit us nor our parents. Our parents work hard to pay for our monthly school fees, pinning their hopes on us. We should not let them down by fooling around and not working hard.

Q6.I also sympathise for the taximan's wife. She as well as the taximan himself, would not have expected their daughter with excellent results in school to be fooling around behind their backs. The taximan's wife must be extremely upset and disappointed with her daughter.

Happy CNY

Happy Chinese New Year everyone! I hope that all of you can get lots and lots of money from your red packets! I am trying to get more money this year than all of my previous years. I hope
all of you can achieve this target too!

Cheers!

The "Answering Machine" (blog prompt)

Ladies and gentlemen,

My group and I are proud to present to you our latest invention--the "Answering Machine" !
This electronic device aims at helping students learn better in the classroom. When a student is in doubt and no teacher is around in class, he/she can just type his/her question into the
"Answering Machine" and the device will immediately give an answer which will appear on the
screen of the device. Shy students can also make use of this device to clear their doubts if they
are too shy to ask their teacher or classmates. I hope that the "Answering Machine" can help to
promote condusive learning in class. What do you think?

Thank You.

Whaling in Japan (blog prompt)

Good evening ladies and gentlemen,

I am a member of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). I am honoured
to be allowed to present a speech to raise the awareness of whaling in Japan. The cruelty of the
fishing industry to whales is considered a very serious issue by the SPCA. As the demand for
whale products and oil increases, more whales are hunted to satisfy the need of whale oil and
products for us, humans. Due to this, the population of whales is rapidly decreasing and may
soon be on the brink of extinction!

Since us humans are capable of whaling, we should also be able to stop whaling and help prevent
the species of whales from vanishing from this world forever. I hope that all whalers would
either stop whaling or conduct the activity in moderation.

Thank You.

The ballad of CHARLIE GORDON (LA ACE project)

Charlie Gordon,
Oh Charlie Gordon.
Man in Body,
Child in mind.
Given the chance,
He became smart,
Like any other.
Too bad he failed,
And became a fool again.
Unhappy was Miss Kinnian,
Dr. Strauss and Nemur.
Charlie Gordon,
Oh Charlie Gordon.
Again a man in body,
Child in mind.

My Interest !

My interest is actually cycling if you do not know. I usually cycle on my huge BMX bicycle
around my neighbourhood on weekends! What I like about cycling is that it help me to relax and
relieve stress.

Now, a brief introduction to BICYCLES...
A bicycle is a pedal-driven human-powered vehicle with two wheels
attached to a frame, one behind the other. Bicycles were introduced in
the 19th century and now number about one billion worldwide. They provide a popular form of recreation for many, including me! Not only that, different bicycles have different parts and frames to suit different uses such as racing. The basic shape and configuration of a typical bicycle has changed little since the first chain-driven model was developed around 1885. Many details have been improved, especially since the advent of modern materials and computer-aided design.

Types of BICYCLES...
There are many types of bicycles. But for me, I only like two types of bicycles-BMX and racing bikes! However, I must still introduce you to a few types of bicycles such as time trial, track, messenger, touring, recumbent and cruiser bikes. Actually, I don't like any of these bikes. I think that touring and messenger are redundant. They can be easily replaced by normal bicycles. For those who do not like cycling, I suggest you try out cycling because cycling is really a very fun recreational activity!

Cheers.