Pokemon Language

So the night before my capstone project was due, I was on Netflix watching my all-time favorite childhood show, Pokemon, instead of actually doing my project (in case you didn't know, the original season of Pokemon is on Netflix. You're welcome). In the show, these creatures (the Pokemons) can't speak English; they can only communicate with members of their own species by repeating their names. For example, Squirtle can only communicate with other Squirtles by saying "Squirtle." Now we have no clue what they are saying, but I think this is what makes the show so great. Because they have a language we cannot comprehend, we can only guess at what they're saying, and that itself is a lot of fun. Through their tone, we can predict their feelings and maybe what they're saying, but we never know for sure. That's why so many of us loved this show as kids. When we were young, our imaginations were wild, and it was so fun making up dialogue for the Pokemons because we are involved with the show. The show was "interactive" for kids because we could have these creatures say whatever we want.

Many other films and shows use this technique of an unknown language to add mystery and imagination to the characters and stories. In Despicable Me, the Minions had their own language that no one understood but nevertheless, it was the most entertaining part of the movie. In Avatar, there was the Na'vi language. Although we never knew what the characters in these movies/films were saying, we enjoyed them for that very reason. We, the audience, had the power to fill in the holes, to write our version of the story.

Modern Literature vs. "The Classics"

Someone discussed how they didn't really like Shakespeare in their last blog post, and I completely agree. I just want to elaborate on this topic.

We spend too much time admiring the "classics" that we often forget that modern literature is just as good. I actually prefer modern literature because it's more relevant to me, the stories are often more fascinating, and I can focus on the story itself rather than spend most of my energy deciphering the ancient jargon that Shakespeare and his contemporaries use.

Yes, Shakespeare and company were phenomenal writers, and they're work was truly groundbreaking. However, they were so popular for a long time because the language they used was relevant to their time periods. Language, especially English, has evolved significantly over the past century. Therefore, the diction and language structure that the classic writers used are no longer relevant to modern society. Because I have some difficulty understanding what the classic writers are trying to say, I don't fully appreciate their stories. And why does the language have to be so complex for a book to have literary merit? We say stories like Harry Potter don't compare with the likes of Hamlet or The Inferno. But why not? I read the entire Harry Potter series and I loved every page of it. I read both Hamlet and The Inferno and I loathed them both. First off, the plot of Harry Potter is mesmerizing. Only modern works have this kind of imagination and fantasy. The plots in Shakespeare's works, however, are recycled over and over again. Modern society demands innovation, and that's why stories like Harry Potter and the Hunger Games are so popular. The classics have become cliches, overused throughout the hundreds of years of their existence.

Time shouldn't determine the literary merit of a story. In my opinion, modern stories easily rival, and sometimes surpass, the greatness of the classics. We should stop putting so much emphasis on the classics because of their timelessness because new, great stories are emerging, and they deserve the same amount of recognition.

Hamlet Rap

So when Carty assigned us our capstone project, I immediately brainstormed a few ideas for what I can do my project on. Like all of my other projects, I wanted to do something humorous and over the top because I don't see the point of investing so much time into something and have the end product be boring and uninteresting.

My first idea was a music video. But what song can I do that's related to English? I figured that I can do a modern rap version of Hamlet, since the original is somewhat dull and the language can be difficult to understand. If I modernized the story and simplified the language, everyone who listens to my song can be exposed to the fantastic plot of Hamlet. However, about 5 minutes before writing this blog post, I googled "Hamlet rap" to see if anyone before me has done this and unfortunately, someone has. I read through the entire thing and I realized that there was no way I was capable of producing a rap song that can compete with this one (link below). Since I can't do it for my project, I decided to use it as the topic of this blog instead.

 The mastermind behind this song, Shel Silverstein, uses very vulgar and explicit slang to rewrite Hamlet as if it was "told on the streets." Silverstein managed to significantly condense the story while maintaining its plot and integrity. Through his version, we can still learn what Hamlet is all about. Our experience is not encumbered by trying to decipher what Shakespeare's complex language actually means. Silverstein's version, entertaining and humorous, captures the reader's attention and gets right to the main points of the story. I'm an impatient reader, so when I read Hamlet, I was bothered with how the fanciful language dragged the story on past the point of necessity. You might say that I have low standards for literature or I'm not educated enough for the original Hamlet, but just read Silverstein's version and you will see where I'm coming from. Although it doesn't hold the original's literary merit, it communicates the story with ease, and that's what I care about. Shakespeare's words are great and all, but I'm more concerned with the actual story, and that's why I enjoyed Silverstein's version.

Here's the link. Just a quick warning, the story has a lot of profanity.
http://ringofsteel.deathstar.org/reference/raphamlet.html

Describe Yourself in 5 Words

In one of my college applications, I was asked to describe myself in 5 words. This question took me about 2 hours to answer because there are so many words to choose from, but there seems to never be one word that captures who you really are. Your personality is made up of so many components while every word was created to describe one specific thing/idea. It's so difficult to find a word that's broad enough to cover multiple aspects of yourself but specific enough to make your traits stand out. And with this question, you always wonder, "is my word 'big' enough? Is this word too common? Do I sound cocky by using this word?" This challenge is mentally grueling because you never know where to start. What if you can't think of a word that doesn't describe exactly what you want? What if the word you use can mislead the admissions person to thinking you're something that you're not? So let me ask you this: what five words best describe you?

Just in case you were wondering, these were my five words:
Sarcastic, Meticulous, Easygoing, Peaceful, and Diligent.

Sports Chants

When I go to a sporting event, the best part about it usually isn't the actual game, it's the chants that the fans do. Nothing unites a group of fans like sports chants. Whether it's the classic "LET'S GO *insert team's name*!!", something simple like "J-E-T-S,JETS, JETS, JETS, JETS!!", or something clever like "He's big, he's quick, he's got a 12 inch ___, MONDRAGON!!", sports chants rally up the fighting spirits within the fans and create a much more competitive atmosphere. Sports chants show how powerful a few words can be. Sometimes, the chants make no sense at all; they're just random noises synchronized in tune. Nevertheless, when something is yelled loud enough by a group of people, it gets athletes motivated. It can inspire an underdog to upset the powerhouse or it can completely alter the momentum of a game. As a fan, there's no greater exhilaration than being a part of a loud fan group. As a player, there's no greater adrenaline rush than hearing your fans cheer for you in harmony.

95,000 people singing "You'll Never Walk Alone"

Best tradition in all of sports

Lam

I ran out of topics to discuss about and since I did the etymology of my last name last week, it's only appropriate that I talk about my first name. First off, my name is not pronounced "lamb," it's actually sounds like "plum" without the "p." I thought my name had a really B.A. meaning but it turns out it only means "forest." I don't really know what the reason is behind why I was named Lam. Was I born in a forest? Is Lam a famous forest that I don't know about? What do I have to do with a forest? So many people know my name and joke about it but no one knows the meaning behind it. Even though I don't understand the reasoning behind my name, it's my identity. It's different, and everyone knows me by it. Each of our names, no matter how common or memorable, is how people know and remember us. Our name, even if it's shared by others, sets us apart. My name just happens to be very different, and that's why I love it.

Maybe I'll talk about my middle name next blog...

My Last Name

I've lived in America for over 10 years and I've only met a handful of people who can pronounce my last name, Nguyen. The American pronunciation is "win", while the actual pronunciation is completely different (I don't know how to sound it out via word). It's estimated that about 40% of Vietnamese people have this last name, making Nguyen the most common surname among Vietnamese people. I was curious as to what my last name actually means, so I did a little research on it. It turns out that Nguyen is the name of a royal dynasty- the Nguyen Dynasty, which was the last ruling family of Vietnam. During its rule, this Dynasty awarded many people with the last name Nguyen. Also, many criminals during the time changed their last names to Nguyen in order to avoid prosecution. For these reasons, Nguyen became an extremely popular surname. The etymology of Nguyen is vague. The name is derived from a similar Chinese surname, and the name is believed to mean "original" or "first," but it's unclear whether this is actually true or not. If my surname does mean that, I can only imagine how it came to be. Was Nguyen the first surname in Southeast Asia? Who knows. But even if I don't know what my last name means, it still connects me to millions of people worldwide, and that's pretty sweet.