Gerard Manley Hopkins

Pied Beauty

Glory be to God for dappled things--

For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;

For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;

Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches' wings;

Landscape plotted and pieced--fold, fallow, and plough;

 And all trades, their gear and tackle and trim.

All things counter, original, spare, strange;

Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)

With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;

He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:

                                     Praise Him.

My Role as a Teacher

When I began to study English Pedagogy in 2004 at Universidad de Las Americas, I was very enthusiastic in terms of acquiring new knowledge, specially in English.

The first year (2004) was so easy to me because I had studied english before, for two years, at Universidad Cardenal Raul Silva Henriquez (ex Blas Cañas), so I was familiarized with the University's life. In that year almost all of the subjects were related to English such as Linguistics, Grammar and Phonetics.

In the second year (2005) I had my first subjects related to Education, I studied some behaviorism and developmental theories in Psicology, this was so fascinating because I could see which are the new directions in terms of Education and the new approaches in learning and teaching a foreing language.

The third year (2006) was much more interesting than the second one, because I could studied subjects related to how to manage a class and how to evaluate the students, how to make a test, also I did my first practice at school, this was so fascinating to me because I felt that I was doing what I wanted to be the rest of my life, a teacher.
But that year I realized that being a teacher is not only deliver contents to your students, is not knowing everything as an encyclopaedia, being a teacher is much more than that. I could see that in subjects such as Jefatura y Mediación Escolar and Orientación y Mediación de Conflictos Escolares, these subjects made me change my position to face the Pedagogy.

This year (2007) has been very special to me because apart from be the last year in the university, I have learnt a lot of things during this year like being a better person, in order to be the best educator in the future and try to improve the Chilean Education or at least give my efforts to do that, I found my real vocation this year, I really know what I want to be next years.
I don´t want to be an english teacher forever, I am considering to study other kinds of Educational fields such as Mediación Escolar or Orientación Educacional, because I feel very confortable and cofident with those kinds of subject.

In the future I will try to be the best teacher, I know there are some things to improve but I will face them with the same strength that I have. I will be worry about my students, I will be methodic and organized, I will keep my students' marks in order, I will try my students will be a better people in order to they change their future and make this country a powerful one in terms of Culture, Lifestyle and Education.

Education prevails, forever!!!

The Sneakers

From the primitive age, men have needed to cover their feet with some kind of shoes to protect them from wounds and cold. During men's evolution, he designed shoes, sandals, boots and sneakers, being the last one, the most popular footwear in the world.

The sneakers were invented in 1950 by the american Phillip Knight, who felt the necessity to create a footwear more confortable than shoes, he experimented with material derived from rubber and leather to give form to a lighter footwear.

Nike contacted with a shoemaker in order to he designs the sneakers' vamp, once ready, he travelled with his designs to Japan. The Japanese bought his idea and licensed his product, as the Japanese manufacture is very cheap, they began to produce several types of sneakers, which are sold around the world, most of the more popular sneakers' brands have their company in Japan, and from there, are exported to the whole world.

Because of its popularity, sneakers are the footwear that youth prefer, because sneakers are a kind of informal footwear than the shoes or boots, and much more practical at the time of deciding combinations with clothes, or the weather conditions.

The sneakers' sales are bigger than the sales of shoes or boots, because their price is cheaper than the rest of footwear, this is due to materials with sneakers are made are cheaper, which makes possible to industries to sell them in a good price without losing gains.

Nowadays, there are more sneakers' models than shoes or boots, and this is due to the great demand from the part of the consumers, they demand the industries to be innovating in the designs and also make them part of the fashion.

Sneakers' brands like Nike, Adidas, Puma, Reebok can spend million dollars in terms of publicity, because they get millions in sales, sneakers' brands choose the best sportmen and sportwomen to do commercials, well know ones are the adidas's commercials who recruited a famous soccer player, David Bekham, to promote his soccer sneakers, or Nike, which asked Ronaldinho to perform in their commercials, to these last ones the companies paid them million dollars in terms of fees.

Due to its popularity, sneakers are preferred by all the family, there is no family member who don't have a pair of sneakers, genenerally there are at least two pairs of sneakers per family member at home. The previous aspect is due to sneakers are not consider as luxury within the society, rather that is the most popular and more accessible footwear ever existed, because the market offers prices for all the pockets.

In conclusion we can say that nowadays sneakers are the top footwear in terms of wearing, sellings and popularity in the world, years will pass away and sneakers will continue fashionable and producing, without a doubt they will be a reference one in the history to the footwear of the future.

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was one of the most powerful hurricane, that caused 1.836 victims, in the history of the United States of America. Hurricane Katrina formed on August 23rd 2005 in the atlantic coast but also affected one part of the gulf coast that is to say states like New Orleans, Mississippi, Lousiana, Florida, Panhandle and Alabama . Katrina had strengthened to a category 3 storm in the Gulf of Mexico.
Hurricane Katrina caused damages counting in 75 thousand million dollars. Hurricane Katrina formed over The Islands of Bahamas on August 24th, and also attacked the City of Miami and Cuba.
A hurricane is a powerful storm that is formed in the sea and its winds can reach a velocity of 100 kilometres per hour, the temperature of the sea must be in a range of 27 -28 celcius degrees.
Hurricanes mainly appears in countries which climate is template and warm seas, that is the reason will be very strange to have a hurricane in South America.
Nowadays Hurricanes can be detected by satellites or meteorologic radars, for this reason people can be warned about 3 or 4 days before the storm formed in order to they can find a secure shelter to face this phenomeno.
Hurricane Katrina dissipated from the coast on August 31st,2005.
Hurricane Katrina wasn't the last hurricane that threated USA but it has been the most powerful ones.
Hurricane Rita was the following hurricane that attacked USA's coast on september 21st, 2005.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Frankenstein as a Romantic Hero.

As we know, a Romantic Hero is a person who doesn't fix in the frame of society, he´s rejecting by society because of his ideas, behaviour or his appearance. But he doesn't fix in the society because he thinks different about some topics , different according to the norms and convection existing nowadays. He is an outcast, he generally lives outside the cities, in a hidden place far from the rest of the people.
Romantic Hero moves acording to his thoughts instead his actions, his thoughts are stronger than his movements. He often feels represented by nature, because nature is the purest thing in life, nature can't be "corrupted" by people's mind.
Then, why do we consider Frankenstein as a Romantic Hero?
First of all, He doesn't fix in the society because of his appearance, he's too ugly in some cases disgusting to the rest of the people, he limps, he groans (at the beginning), he's clumsy.
Second, where does he find shelter?, in the forest, in nature. He wants to be in isolation, he cries, he is a melancolic person, so in a way we can say that he is very sensitive.
Third, in this case he has a uncommon strenght.
Fourth, He has a inner struggle because he wants to be love, but he realizes that he's a monster so who do fall in love with him, only another monster like him could do it, someone with the same characteristics.
Finally, this monster in despite of all, he decides to stay with his creator, his father, so in certain way he returns to his nature, the man who gave him life.

To Nature (Samuel Taylor Coleridge)(1772-1834)

It may indeed be fantasy when I
Essay to draw from all created things
Deep, heartfelt, inward joy that closely clings;
And trace in leaves and flowers that round me lie
Lessons of love and earnest piety.
So let it be; and if the wide world rings
In mock of this belief, it brings
Nor fear, nor grief, nor vain perplexity.
So will I build my altar in the fields,
And the blue sky my fretted dome shall be,
And the sweet fragrance that the wild flower yields
Shall be the incense I will yield to Thee,
Thee only God! and thou shalt not despise
Even me, the priest of this poor sacrifice.

The Retreat

By Henry Vaughan (1621 - 1695)

Happy those early days! when I
Shined in my angel-infancy,
Before I understood this place
Appointed for my second race,
Or taught my soul to fancy ought
But a white, celestial thought;
When yet I had not walked above
A mile or two from my first love,
And looking back—at that short space—
Could see a glimpse of His bright face;
When on some gilded cloud, or flower,
My gazing soul would dwell an hour,
And in those weaker glories spy
Some shadows of eternity;
Before I taught my tongue to wound
My conscience with a sinful sound,
Or had the black art to dispense
A several sin to every sense,
But felt through all this fleshy dress
Bright shoots of everlastingness.
Oh how I long to travel back,
And tread again that ancient track!
That I might once more reach that plain,
Where first I left my glorious train;
From whence the enlightened spirit sees
That shady city of palm trees.
But ah! my soul with too much stay
Is drunk, and staggers in the way.
Some men a forward motion love,
But I by backward steps would move
And when this dust falls to the urn,
In that state I came, return.

1- Who's the speaker and who's speaking to?
The Poet, in this case, it's the speaker of the poem.
2- Type of vocabulary (loving, violent, angry, etc)
The vocabulary it's very educated, intellectual, for a person who are reffering about his life.
3- Alliterations, metaphors, comparisons, assonances, personifications.
Alliterations:
- Or taught my soul to fancy aught
- When yet I had not walk'd above
- A mile or two form my first Love.
- Before I taught my tongue to wound
Metaphors:
- Some shadows of eternity.
- Before I taught my tongue to wound.
- My Consciece with a sinful sound.
- But felt through all this fleshly dress.
- That shady City of Palm-Trees.
- Where first I left my glorious train
- And tread again that ancient track!
- And when this dust falls to the run.
Assonances:
- Before I understood this place
Appointed for my second race.
- And looking back at that short space
Could see a glimpse of his bright face.
- Or had the black art to dispense
A several sin to ev'ry sense
- That I might gain that ancient train
where first I left my Glorious train.

4- What's the poem about?
The poem is about life, a life's reflection, things you did things you couldn't do. It's a remembrance about the long way or track that life is. I think he knows that sometimes he is going to die, so he looks back in his life and try to tell us his opinion.

In my opinion,I think this is a beautiful poem in which you can give yourself the time to think about you personal view of life, about your achievements and failures, the poet recognizes the life after death, "and when this dust falls to the urn, in that state I came, return",this poem has a lot of metaphors, so it is interesting to the reader. I like it so much indeed.