Literature: The Magic of Words
Students’ Art, Poetry and Prose
Tunes & Lyrics
The Perkiomen Stage The Silver Screen
Reflections of a Graduating Veteran
Student Issues and Commentary
Dear Reader,
Speaking on behalf of the entire PERKSPECTIVES staff, I am thrilled to announce that the third issue of the magazine is ready for publication. As I am about to leave the school, I would like to share the personal feelings I have for this publication. Through the three years of my studies at Perkiomen School—from the fledgling days of my sophomore year to the more mature focus in my senior year—I have seen the PERKSPECTIVES magazine develop into an important medium for student expression. It offers a great opportunity—now more than ever before—for all students of any artistic or literary talent to share with the entire Perk community their art, their words, their ideas. For those not familiar with the publication, it is imperative to present it as the culmination of artistic media and creations, an amalgamation of visual arts, poetry and prose as well as a collection of opinions on literature, film and music.
It is a beautiful thing for the minds of students to become lit with thought and watch as their words come to life. This is what we, as the PERKSPECTIVES staff, strive for. It has been my pleasure being a part of the staff since the very beginning of the magazine’s existence, and I wish the utmost success to all the future contributors and all the students that will have the privilege of working on the staff next year and all the years to come. Without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, we present to you the 2013 issue of PERKSPECTIVES.
Olivier Joseph Editor-in-Chief
PERK May 2013
No. 3
CONTENTS
LITERATURE: THE MAGIC OF WORDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . designed by Abi Rose-Craver
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PERKIOMEN STUDENTS’ ART, POETRY & PROSE . . . . designed by Dagny Barone
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THE SILVER SCREEN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . designed by Colin Corcoran
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THE PERKIOMEN STAGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . designed by Patrick Vetter
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TUNES & LYRICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . designed by Patrick Vetter & Joeson Zhao
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STUDENT ISSUES & COMMENTARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . designed by Olivier Joseph
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REFLECTIONS OF A GRADUATING “VETERAN” . . . . . . . . . . . . by Maggie Dougherty
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QUIZ ANSWERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . designed by Abi Rose-Craver
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CONTRIBUTORS & THE EDITORIAL STAFF . . . . . . . . . . . designed by Patrick Vetter
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Designed by Abi Rose-Craver
lit·er·a·ture noun \ˈli-tə- ə-
ˈli-t ə-
ˈli-tə -
- ə -t
-t \
1: writings in prose or verse; especially: writings having excellence of form or expression and expressing ideas of permanent or universal interest The word literature is derived from the Latin word littera meaning ‘lette .’ In Englis and man other languages, letters form words, and words, when combined, form sentences. Literature is split into two main categories; prose, the natural flow of speech, and verse, which many recognize as poetry. From that point, genres are categories that cover certain subjects of interest such as drama, tragedy, mystery, comedy, biography, epic and satire. Until the printing press was introduced to England in the 15 th century, books were not available to the general public. Since then, reading has been a favorite pastime of people around the globe.
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Throughout the centuries and periods, some unfortunate authors have been lost in the ages and mixed with modern works. In an effort to preserve the legacy of these older writers, schools have tried to incorporate them in their Language Arts curriculums. Unfortunately, these titles are usually not as appreciated as modern texts are. Have you ever heard of Henry James, Theodore Dreiser, Erskine Caldwell or Saul Bellow? I bet not. However, in their times, they were equivalent to the modern J.K. Rowling or Rick Riordan. Although they are not as well known t e
e tainl a en’t lesse in ontent. In fact, many of
these a t o s’ books have served as the inspirations for modern favorites. In this section we present brief biographical notes on Herman Melville, Jack London, William Faulkner, Pearl S. Buck, Raymond Chandler, Carson McCullers and John Updike.
Works Cited "Literature." Merriam-Webster Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013.
Herman Melville (1819-1891) Joeson Zhao Herman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist and poet. Born in New York City, he studied classics at the Albany Academy. He was a sailor and a teacher before he published his first two novels, Typee and Omoo, in 1847. These two books, just like many other works by Melville, were based on his own experience at sea. He is best known for his novel Moby-Dick 1851 w i is an ex ellent allego abo t a ge w ale. Melville’s other major works include novels Redburn (1849) and White-Jacket (1850), novella Billy Budd, Foretopman (begun in 1888, never finished and for the first time published in 1924) and a short story, “Ba tleb t e S ivene : A Sto of Wall St eet” 1853 . T e p ime ep esentative of Ame i an omanti lite at e Melville is also onside ed to be t e precursor to modernism and existentialism. He was married and had four children; two sons and two daughters. The literary reference publication 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2010, Quintessence Edition Ltd.) includes two works by Melville: Billy Budd, Foretopman and Moby-Dick. Some screen adaptations of these and other works by Melville—John H ston’s Moby Dick 1956; sta ing G ego Pe k and Ri a d Base a t Pete Ustinov’s Billy Budd 1962; feat ing Pete Ustinov Robe t R an and Te en e Stamp Ma i e Ronet’s Bartleby (1976; with Michel Lonsdale and Maxen e Mailfo t and Clai e Denis’ Beau Travail (1999; starring Denis Lavant and Michel Subor)—are remarkable accomplishments of the international cinema.
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Jack London (1876-1916) Shawn Hang Jack London, whose real name was John Griffith Chaney, was born in San Francisco, California, and died—at the age of forty—in Glen Ellen, California. He was an author of short stories and novels, but also a journalist and an activist. A strong advocate of unionization and the rights of workers (he was a member of the Socialist Labor Party), in his fiction London revealed a first-rate talent as an author of captivating adventure stories, set mostly at sea or in Alaska, in which he managed to tackle some philosophical questions that appealed to readers of all ages. His principal works include novels The Call of the Wild (1903), The Sea-Wolf (1904), White Fang (1906), The Iron Heel (1908), Martin Eden(1909, filled with autobiographical elements), Burning Daylight (1910), The Mutiny of Elsinore (1914) and the autobiographical memoir entitled John Barleycorn (1913). A hobo and a sailor in his youth, London studied at the University of California, Berkeley, but dropped out and neve g ad ated. He was ma ied twi e: to Elizabet “Bessie” Maddern (1900-1904) and to Charmian Kittredge (1905-till his death). He was one of the first writers to become a worldwide celebrity and to enjoy fame and luxurious life as a result of his writing. It is wo t mentioning t at two of London’s novels The Iron Heel and Martin Eden, are included in the reference publication 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2010, Quintessence Edition Ltd.). Out of many s een adaptations of is wo ks t e most a laimed ones in l de William A. Wellman’s The Call of the Wild 1935; sta ing Cla k Gable and Lo etta Yo ng and Mi ael C tiz’ The Sea Wolf (1941; featuring Edward G. Robinson, John Garfield, Ida Lupino and Alexander Knox).
Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951) Joeson Zhao (Harry) Sinclair Lewis was one of the most important American writers of the first half of the 20 century. He wrote novels, short stories and plays. Born in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, Lewis was educated at Yale University and worked briefly as an editor in New York before he wrote his first novel, Our Mr. Wrenn, in 1914. He started as a romantic and subsequently, influenced by such European writers as Charles Dickens and Honoré de Balzac, he wrote his famous human comedies—realistic stories dealing with a variety of political, social, moral and psychological issues. His major novels include Main Street (1920), Babbitt (1922), Arrowsmith (1925), Elmer Gantry (1927), Dodsworth (1929), Ann Vickers (1933) and Cass Timberlane (1945). The 1930 laureate of the Nobel Prize in Literature “fo is vigo o s and graphic art of description and his ability to create, wit wit and mo new t pes of a a te s” e was t e fi st Ame i an to be ono ed wit t is p estigio s recognition. Two of Lewis’ ema kable alt o g almost fo gotten novels Main Street and Babbitt, have been included in the reference publication 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2010, Quintessence Edition Ltd.). Several of his works were filmed at different times of the 20 th century. The most successful screen adaptations include John Fo d’s Arrowsmith (1931; starring Ronald Colman, Helen Hayes, Richard Bennett and M na Lo ; William W le ’s Dodsworth (1936; with Walter Huston, Ruth Chatterton, David Niven and Mary Asto Geo ge Sidne ’s Cass Timberlane (1947; featuring Spencer Tracy, Lana Turner and Zachary Scott) and Ri a d B ooks’ Elmer Gantry (1960; starring Burt Lancaster, Jean Simmons and Dean Jagger). th
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Raymond Chandler (18881959) Daniel Che A former oil company executive and journalist, Raymond (Thornton) Chandler began writing detective fiction in 1932 and soon became one of the masters, along with Dashiell Hammett, Cornell Woolrich and James M. Cain, of a new genre known as 'hard-boiled fiction.' His private eye Philip Marlowe is the main character of some of Chandler's short stories and all of his seven novels. The ones generally considered to be his best are The Big Sleep (1939), Farewell, My Lovely (1940), The Lady in the Lake (1943), The Little Sister (1949) and The Long Goodbye (1953). Chandler's eighth novel, Poodle Springs, which he left unfinished at his death, was eventually completed by another master of detective fiction, Robert B. Parker. There are many movie versions of Chandler's books; two of his superior novels—Farewell, My Lovely and The Big Sleep—were filmed twice (for the big screen). The actors who played Philip Marlowe include Dick Powell, Robert Montgomery, Robert Mitchum, James Garner and Humphrey Bogart. Bogart, who gave a first-rate performance in Howard Hawks' The Big Sleep (1946), is almost unanimously regarded as the best Marlowe and the quintessential private investigator. Chandler himself wrote—usually in collaboration—screenplays for several outstanding movies, including Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity (1944) and Alfred Hitchcock's Strangers on a Train (1951), based on superior novels by James M. Cain and Patricia Highsmith, respectively. It is worth adding that three of Chandler's novels—The Big Sleep, Farewell, My Lovely and The Long Goodbye—were included in the reference publication 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2010, Quintessence Edition Ltd.).
The Big Sleep, a classic movie scripted by Leigh Brackett, Jules Furthman and William Faulkner from the famous novel by Raymond Chandler
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Pearl S. Buck (1892-1973) Eunice Tang Pearl S. Buck, one of the most popular authors of her days, was born to Southern Presbyterian missionaries stationed in China. She spent the first forty years of her life in China, speaking, from childhood, both English and Chinese, but she regarded Chinese as her first language. She became an acclaimed female author and Chinese editor; many of her books turned out to be best-selling ones. In 1938 s e was awa ded t e Nobel P ize in lite at e “fo e rich and truly epic descriptions of peasant life in China and fo e biog ap i al maste pie es.” S e was t e fi st American woman and only the second American writer to be honored with this prestigious award. B k’s p in ipal wo ks in l de The Good Earth (1931), A House Divided (1935), China Sky (1941), Dragon Seed (1942), The Big Wave (1948) and Imperial Woman 1956 . T e best movies based on e p ose in l de Sidne F anklin’s Oscar-winning The Good Earth 1937; sta ing Pa l M ni and L ise Raine Ha old S. B q et and Ja k Conwa ’s Dragon Seed (1944; featuring Walte H ston and Kat a ine Hepb n and Leo M Ca e ’s Satan Never Sleeps (1962; with William Holden and Clifton Webb). A very well-known museum, the Pearl S. Buck International and the Pearl S. Buck House, is located at 520 Dublin Road, Perkasie, Pennsylvania (less than an hour away from Pennsburg).
William Faulkner (1897-1962) Jessica Jiang William (Cuthbert) Faulkner was an American writer born in New Albany, Mississippi, into a well-educated family of intellectual and artistic interests. Educated at the University of Mississippi and the University of Virginia, he is one of the most important writers in literature of the American South—along with Mark Twain, Thomas Wolfe, Flanne O’Conno Robe t Penn Wa en and Tennessee Williams. His p in ipal novels in l de The Sound and the Fury (1929), Sartoris (1929), As I Lay Dying (1930), Sanctuary (1931), Light in August (1932) and Absalom! Absalom! (1936); is most memo able s o t sto ies in l de “A Rose fo Emil ” and “D Septembe ”—both published in the collection These 13 (1931). He received the 1949 Nobel Prize in Literature for "his powerful and artistically unique contribution to the modern American novel." Two of his lesser novels, A Fable (1954) and The Reivers (1962), won the Pulitzer Prize. Most of Fa lkne ’s wo ks a e set in a fi tional Yoknapatawp a Co nt w i was modeled afte Lafa ette County, Tennessee, where the distinguished author spent most of his life. His highly complex and emotional prose, placed within the traditions of modernism and Southern Renaissance, was characterized by an experimental style and frequent use of "stream of ons io sness;” t e p edominant iss es in is w itings in l de lo al politi s a ial p ej di e and sex. T e g ande of Fa lkne ’s talent was e ognized b t e edito s of t e efe en e p bli ation 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2010, Quintessence Edition Ltd.), who selected four of his works for the book: Absalom! Absalom!, Go Down, Moses (1942), The Hamlet (1940) and The Sound and the Fury. Though he did not like Hollywood, Faulkner wrote several screenplays for the big screen, including two that were based on the original works by his famous contemporaries: To Have and Have Not (1944) from a novel by Ernest Hemingway, and The Big Sleep (1946) based on a detective mystery by Raymond Chandler. Both films were directed by Howard Hawks; both starred Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.
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Carson McCullers (1917-1967) Kevin Li Carson McCullers (Lula Carson Smith) wrote novels, short stories, plays, poetry and essays. Born in Columbus, Georgia, she studied creative writing at Columbia University and published her first work, a short story entitled "Wunderkind," in 1936. She and her husband Reeves McCullers, an ex-soldier and aspiring writer, lived in Charlotte, North Carolina, but she died in Nyack, New York. M C lle s’ majo wo ks in l de The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1940), Reflections in a Golden Eye (1941), The Member of the Wedding (1946) and The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1951), all of which were adapted into successful films. T e most p estigio s s een adaptations in l de Jo n H ston’s Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967; starring Elizabeth Ta lo and Ma lon B ando Robe t Ellis Mille ’s The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968; with Alan Arkin and Sandra Locke) and Simon Callow’s The Ballad of the Sad Café (1991; featuring Vanessa Redgrave, Keith Carradine and Rod Steiger). T e e ent t emes in M C lle s’ w iting we e loneliness isolation and alienation. In e wo ks defo mit of t e body and human imperfection in general were often understood (or misunderstood) as the obstacle in experiencing love. Despite t e ab ndan e of da kness and agon e own life was also f ll of pain and si kness M C lle s’ bea tif l and got i novels eveal a g eat deal of optimism d e to t e a t o ’s st ong belief t at love o t e omnipresent and everlasting need for it) can overcome loneliness.
John Updike (1932-2009) Kitty Zhang John (Hoyer) Updike was an American novelist, short story writer, poet and literary critic. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania as an only child and grew up in a small town called Shillington. Later, he lived in a village named Plowville. He is best known for the Rabbit Angstrom series—consisting of novels Rabbit, Run (1960), Rabbit Redux (1971), Rabbit is Rich (1981) and Rabbit at Rest 1990 and novella “Rabbit Remembe ed” 2000 —the Maples sto ies and Hen Be sto ies. T e a t o ’s ot e majo novels in l de The Centaur (1963), Couples (1968), Marry Me (1976), The Witches of Eastwick (1984) and In the Beauty of the Lilies (1996). A representative of literary realism, Updike is one of the foremost American writers of the second half of the twentieth century. His numerous awards include the National Institute of Arts and Letters Rosenthal Award (1959), the Union League Club Abraham Lincoln Award (1982) and the St. Louis Literary Award (1987). All the novels that make up Updike’s Rabbit tet alog are included in the reference publication 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2010, Quintessence Edition Ltd.). While many of his works have been adapted for television, there are only two so fa t eat i al films based on is p ose: Ja k Smig t’s Rabbit, Run (1970; starring James Caan and Carrie Snodg ess and Geo ge Mille ’s The Witches of Eastwick (1987; featuring Jack Nicholson, Cher, Susan Sarandon and Michelle Pfeiffer).
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A Lonely View from the Kitchen Carly Johnson
Drawing by Nancy Lin
“Kitchen” b Banana Yos imoto is a novella that takes place in Japan during the 1980s. It discusses several themes including existentialism, gender identity, love and the meaning of life. As Yos imoto’s fi st p blis ed wo k it proves to be a strong, thought-provoking and breakthrough piece. “Kitchen” is a great novella because of its beautiful simplicity, well-developed characters and frank realism. Banana Yoshimoto, born Mahoko Yoshimoto, is a contemporary Japanese author. She was born in Tokyo, on July 24, 1964. Her father was a literary critic, so she grew up surrounded by books. Her greatest literary inspirations were Japanese comic books. Many of her books include the themes of gender roles and family. Also, the characters usually are young and urban individuals whose struggles involve love, loss and the search for the sense of life. “Kitchen” is a majo example of young and talented Yos imoto’s t pi al wo ks. “Kitchen,” a fictional story, has two pa ts. In t e fi st pa t p otagonist Mikage Sak ai’s grandmother dies. Mikage is a lovely young woman whose parents died when she was young, and her grandmother is the only family she has been left with. One of her favorite places is the kitchen. She meets a young man, named Yuichi Tanabe, who works in a flower shop that her grandmother would frequently visit. He lets e sta in is ome wit im and is “mot e ” Eriko, who is a transsexual. He helps to heal her. In t e se ond pa t Y i i also expe ien es loss and it is Mikage’s job to eal im.
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The title,”Kitchen,” is signifi ant be a se it is Mikage’s favo ite pla e espe iall when it is dirty. She loves cooking. Food represents a certain joy and comfort, two things she does not know much about. Mikage cooks throughout the novella. It brings her closer to the other characters and gives her a sense of belonging. Mikage is a well-developed, relatable character. Many people can sympathize with her struggles of self-discovery and love. Another relatable, likeable character is Yuichi. During the first half of the story, you fall in love with the generous, kind actions he shows towards Mikage, and during the second half, your heart breaks for him because of his loss. The same is true of Mikage but in reverse order. There are several themes in the book. One of the biggest ones is existentialism. Mikage lives in a big city; yet, she feels so alone. She likes people; yet, for most of her life, she only has had her grandmother. Another theme is gender roles. Eriko was born a man, but he had a sex change to become a woman. The reasons for this are a little unclear, but he seems to enjoy life as a woman. Also Mikage’s ole as a woman is q ite t pi al fo e time be a se s e spends most of her time in the kitchen. This is not because she is forced to, though. It is because she enjoys the comfort of it. Love plays a huge part in the story, both in the romantic and familial sense. Pa t of t e a a te s’ healing process is finding out what love is. One of my favorite parts of the novella is the poetic feeling in each sentence. Even though this is translated from Japanese, the intentional simplicity of Yoshimoto’s lang age is apparent. Yoshimoto is f ank and ealisti . One of m favo ite q otes f om t e book is “No matte ow fo lo n we a e we each insist on standing on o own two feet” [p. 66]. This sentence exemplifies the close, lonely relationship of Yuichi and Mikage. They are still willing to help each other even though neither one fully recovered. Overall, Yoshimoto did a great job of writing a beautiful novella. The plot is realistic yet creative, and the themes make the reader think of their own relationships. This is a must-read for anyone that has ever experienced a loss of any kind, or simply, anyone w o’s ever felt alone before.
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The World According to Garp by John Irving Emma Longstreth
After reading six or so of Jo n I ving’s novels I ave identified is majo t emes/ e ing situations: wrestling, boarding schools, taboo sexualities, Austria, and strong women who influence young, unsure boys. However, Irving is capable of rewriting these themes in a way that makes each book fresh and entirely unique. T e lengt novel sta ts wit a des iption of Jenn Fields w o as been a vi tim of so iet ’s expectations of women in the 1950s. Fields is determined to have a child, but has no desire to interact with men. She does not hate men—Irving makes that clear—but she is a solitary person, who is perfectly content to live out her days with only the companionship of a child. So, while working as a nurse, Fields becomes pregnant by a brain-damaged soldier, known only to her by the name T. S. Garp. Fields becomes a nurse at a boarding school, where her son, called Garp, spends his childhood. As I am a “fa lt b at ” a term that John Irving uses frequently throughout his works, this portion of the book was incredibly relatable. Irving describes the odd auras of an old campus, the interactions with older students that unknowingly are the role models of faculty kids, and the disturbing marks of growing up. Garp develops an interest in writing, and befriends the quiet, fiercely intelligent Helen, who is the wrestling coa ’s da g te . Garp goes to Austria, and spends time only with his mother, and the occasional prostitute, and writes to Helen, who firmly declines his advances on the grounds of her heavy academic workload. Once Garp returns to America, he and Helen get married. W ile Ga p’s ea l ild ood was w at st k me as most elatable is ma iage wit Helen is what fascinated me the most. It was raw, full of love and extramarital affairs, and flawed on both ends. Helen bea s Ga p’s infidelit wit dignit and ends up trading partners with another married couple. The entanglement of their desires leads to an intriguing web of emotions and twisted logic. All fo people involved a e tea e s w i f t e emp asizes t at all of I ving’s a a te s ave flaws despite their professions. Meanwhile, Jenny Fields has become an unexpected role model to thousands of feminists across America because of the novel she wrote describing her life. Garp has to deal with jealousy of her success, and an intense desire to escape the spotlight, as women all over the o nt a e s tinizing im as a p od t of t e famo s feminist Jenn Fields’ one-sided decision to be a single mother without a man. This novel is incredibly well-written, and spans several decades without dragging on in the slightest. It takes a while to read, certainly, but is undisputedly a rite of passage novel that changes perspectives on education, feminism, and whether marriage (or anything) is truly sacred. Let this book keep you up at night, as it did to me.
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Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer Eunice Tang How many people ever imagined that they would go on a dangerous trip alone one day? Most people would not be willing to take up such a risky venture; they would do scrupulous preparations to provide the safety of their life. However, there are many reckless freaks in t e wo ld. Jon K aka e ’s nonfiction book Into the Wild chronicles the adventures of Chris McCandless based on his journals and other people’s reports. Chris was born in a rich family and got a good education. Basically, he can get everything that he wants. But he chose to run away from his parents and pursue his quest for the beauty of wild nature. Some people believe that Chris is just an irresponsible child with aspiration to become a tramp. Others assume that Chris is a freak and does not fit in the American society. Actually, Chris is fairly insane to go on without appropriate outfits and maps. His death is an inevitable result of such a careless approach because he is too reckless about his life, influenced by too much fantasy. C is is not wise t at e j st gave p is b ig t f t e and wasted all is effo ts befo e “In t t McCandless had been raised in the comfortable upper-middle-class environs of Annandale, Virginia. His father, Walt, is an eminent aerospace engineer who designed advanced radar systems for the space shuttle and other high-profile projects while in the employ of NASA and Hughes Aircrafts in the 1960s and 70s . . . . In May 1990, Chris graduated from Emory University in Atlanta as a distinguished history and anthropology major with a 3.72 grade-point average. He was offered membership in Phi Beta Kappa b t de lined insisting t at titles and ono s a e i elevant” [p. 20]. In the description of C is’ ba kg o nd people an tell t at C is as a wealt famil that can offer him a good education and career. And in the reference, Chris also has good grades, which illustrates his intelligence. However, Chris gives up every opportunity that could lead his life to a bright future. He rejected taking part in the famous association and even more, he donated all his money, which could have paid tuition for his further education It seems really stupid that he discarded every chance to make life better, and didn’t se is talent in the right place.
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C is’ idea about the wilderness was impractical, and he didn’t even ave sufficient preparation and plan “Alex admitted t at t e onl food in his pack was ten-pound bad of rice. His gear seemed exceedingly minimal for the harsh conditions of the interior, which in April still lay buried under the winte snowpa k. Alex’s eap leat e iking boots we e neit e wate p oof no well ins lated. His rifle was only .22 calibers, a bore too small to rely on if he expected to kill large animals like moose and caribou, which he would have to eat if he hoped to remain very long in the country. He had no ax, no bug dope, no snowshoes, no compass. The only navigational aid in his possession was a tattered state road map he’d s o nged at a gas station” [p. 5]. From the quote, Chris was under very bad onditions to go on is Alaska’s t ip, which is an extremely dangerous and cruel circumstance. He didn’t take enough food, tools to hunt, and even navigation. All he had was his foolish hope and longing. Be a se wit o t a detailed map C is didn’t know t e e’s a wa o t j st beside im and e died for his ignorance. Moreover, Chris relied on luck too much, which meant t at e o ldn’t think sanel abo t isk and dange . “As t e t k l ed ove a b idge a oss t e Nenana River, Alex looked down at t e swift ent and ema ked t at e was af aid of t e wate . ‘A ea ago down in Mexi o ’ e told Gallien ‘I was out on the ocean in a canoe, and I almost drowned when a storm came up.’” [p. 5]. In C is’ own wo ds, he thinks of himself as a lucky one, one that can always turn ill luck into good. Actually, it is a really wrong or debatable standpoint when people are out for risk. Alt o g C is’ ideas a dl fit in t e so iet , and he nearly goes insane by risking his life, Chris as man me its t at ot e people an’t ompete wit “‘I’ve given jobs to lots of it ike s ove t e ea s ’ sa s Weste b g. ‘Most of t em we en’t m good didn't eall want to wo k…He was t e hardest worker I’ve eve seen. Didn’t matte w at it was e’d do it… And he never quit in the middle of something. If he sta ted a job e’d finis it’” [p. 18]. Chris is smart and well educated, but he easily gets stuck on things because he does too m t inking. T e most likel eason t at C is didn’t fit in t e so iet so well is “Sometimes e t ied too a d to make sense of t e wo ld to fig e o t w people were bad to each other so often . . . He always had to know the absolute right answer before e o ld go on to t e next t ing” [p. 18]. In fa t sometimes t e e’s no absolute right answer to this world; t ings ma be ig t o w ong on bot sides en e C is’ idea t at e p s ed is the opposite direction that the society runs. This might be the reason Chris does things overboard. In the end, Chris is on the verge of starving, and he realizes that the real happiness needs to be shared. It is in an opposite way of the initial goal of Chris, which was to find happiness away from society, and explains the fact that happiness is in fact created by society. Chris made a wrong decision to give up his bright future in favor of adventure and isolation, which makes him suffer in the end.
Works cited Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York: Anchor, 1997. Print.
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“Dover Beach” by Matthew Arnold Jessica Jiang “Dove Bea ” was laimed to be fi st d afted b Matt ew A nold on is one moon in 1851. Though the poem got its title from the spot on England coast where the newlyweds often wo ld spend t ei wedding nig ts t e t eme exp essed b t e poet is not me el “love.” For him “Dove Bea ” is not onl a s mbol of omanti ism b t also a efle tion of man fates. Through the expansion of the meaning of the beach, the poet is trying to make the argument that love is the ultimate solution for the pain in this deceitful world, and that religion is eventually failing in resolving and helping with the misfortunes in human society. Arnold builds the argument first by relating the waves and pebbles to fortunes: “Sop o les long ago/Heard it on the Aegean, and it brought/Into his mind the turbid ebb and flow/Of human mise ; we/Find also in t e so nd a t o g t/Hea ing it b t is distant no t e n sea.” [Arnold, pp. 1420]. By comparing the rising and falling of tides he heard at the Dover Beach with those Sophocles heard on the Aegean w i was t ned into s mbols of ‘ man mise ” in is pla Antigone, Arnold is conveying that inconsistency in fate is just like the crests and troughs in waves. He also sensed sadness and bemoaning of life in t e motions of t e pebbles: “Of pebbles w i the waves draw back, and fling/At their return, up the high strand/begin and cease, and then again begin ” [Arnold, pp. 10-13]. Humanity in t e poet’s point of view is j st as v lne able as t e pebbles t own and flung by the waves, faced with all the uncertainties and possibilities of being played or abandoned by fortunes. In the first two stanzas, instead of picturing the sea as sweet and romantic like most of the newlyweds would do, Arnold described his sea while bemoaning mans’ inabilit to ont ol t ei fates and the eventual decay of life. In the next two stanzas Arnold makes a comparison of “T e Sea of Fait ” and implies t e failure of religion and the disillusion of its religious promise. “B t now I onl ea /Its [the sea of faith] melan ol long wit d awing oa ” [Arnold, pp. 24-25]. B ompa ing “fait ” wit t e withdrawing waves, Arnold expresses the idea that faith and religion, which once dominated the world with superiority, has started to fade away in the explosion of new ideas and science, such as Da win’s Origin of Species, which tend to use facts and knowledge to overthrow the conventional philosophy of religions. In the last stanza the speaker points out that in this helpless world the only thing people can do to find solace from pains is to love. “[the world] Hath rally neither joy, nor love, nor light/Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain” [Arnold, pp. 32-33]. By expressing the disillusion and pessimism in the love, light and help promised by religion, the speaker makes the argument that the savior people have been expecting is not some deity but people themselves, the onl wa to save o selves f om t e pains and t eats beneat t e bea tif l lies is to love: “A love let s be t e/to one anot e !” [Arnold, pp. 29-30]. Only love is honest and real; only love can promise. A nold’s motivation in w iting t is poem, besides the romanticism of a newlywed, originates f om t e speake ’s emb a e of t e new s ien e of t e emp asis on man emotion ationality and individuality. By claiming that religion will eventually fail to help people with their vulnerability in the presence of the force of fortunes, Arnold worships rather the power of love, the strength inside people that has been repressed by the domination of religious philosophies.
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1. What do the authors Margaret Mitchell and Harper Lee have in common? a. They both were self-taught writers. b. They are female writers. c. They published only one book. d. Both B and C. 2. Which movie was not based on a book? a. Back to the Future b. The Godfather c. Les Miserables d. The Black Stallion 3. What novel ends with the following line? It is a far better thing I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known. a. b. c. d.
The Sound and the Fury A Tale of Two Cities Moby Dick Wuthering Heights
4. The movie The Cider House Rules was based on a book by which author? a. John Irving b. John Steinbeck c. Arthur C. Clarke d. John Grisham 5. Holly Golightly is a character from which book? a. Ulysses (Joyce) b. Vanity Fair (Thackeray) c. Dune (Herbert) d. Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Capote) 6. What novel starts with the following line? If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth. a. b. c. d.
The Catcher in the Rye Catch-22 The Naked and the Dead From Here to Eternity
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7. This is a picture of which author?
a. b. c. d.
Ken Kesey John Updike Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. J.D. Salinger
8. What character in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird was based off the childhood version of American author and film-writer Truman Capote? a. Boo Radley b. Jem Finch c. Charles “Dill” Baker Harris d. Scout Finch 9. What year was Robinson Crusoe published by Daniel Dafoe? a. 1845 b. 1719 c. 1953 d. 1813 10. Who wrote the following lines? Two roads diverged in a wood, and I... I took the one less traveled by. a. b. c. d.
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Emily Dickinson Robert Frost Walt Whitman Langston Hughes
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Hannie L.
Perkiomen Students’
Designed by Dagny Barone
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“Simply I” – Personal Poetic Account by Olivier Joseph I am I, I am the boy who loves to learn and loves to discuss, I am he who laughs heartily,
You know, the one in the library in the morning, But in the weight room by night, I’m as dual-natured as a coin, Minus the bipolar fright,
I’m as spontaneous and unpredictable as a genetic mutation, Yet if someone needs help you know what I’m going to do, I’m a student, I’m an athlete, but as a human I care only for you,
I’ll be your confidante, friend, or rival, Anything to see you rise above your tribulations and insecurities, And ensure your survival, As hot-tempered and choleric as I can be, I’ll be patient to anyone who needs me, Whether it be injustice or social uproar, Know that I’ll fight the good fight with Herculean fervor, Until equality, jubilation, and progress reign secure,
“Who is this, this scholastic Titan, this patriot of souls?” Is what they ask. “Why?” and “How could this be?” It’s difficult to answer; there are too many reasons, So not knowing how else to respond, I’d flatly decree, “I’m just I.”
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Hannie L.
I AM WE by Dagny Barone I am we, A part of the bigger picture, A single thread of life,
Circling on an endless spinning wheel called life,
I am we, A member of a global community, Each one different from the other, And yet connected through a vast network of thoughts and ideals,
I am we, A heart beat amidst a million others, All beating to stay afloat in this world of competition, A world of naysayers and critics,
I am we, A single voice trying to scream, To shout, To cry out to the injustice seen every day,
We are the same, Cowards and bystanders, Witnesses of oppression and injustice, People who still do nothing.
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Six-Word Story Winners First Place:
Second Place:
“’Murder,” he gasped. “Accident,” she corrected.’” – by Abi Rose-Craver
“Need help. Can’t remove the Cheeto.” – by Dan Lankry
Third Place:
Fourth Place:
“She said goodnight. She meant goodbye.” – by Jasmine Cora
“We have decided not to die.” – by Michelle Suh Issac Y.
Fifth Place: “Twin brother? No, he’s another you.” – by Edison Yao
Patrick Vetter
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Patrick Vetter
The Black in Me by Olivier Joseph
I am history. I am years of struggle and oppression.
It's about bridges built, not gaps left unfilled, It’s about overcoming those bold, bold mountains, not the silly little hills.
I am amalgamations of rich Caribbean and African cultures. I am the fire glimmering in every slave’s eye that dreams of freedom and happiness.
I tell you now-Stop discriminating and open your eyes: race and ethnicity are not decided by the
I am the spirit of my country; and the strength holding its Back
Human eyes,
I am BLACK and I’ll always be proud of that
But by the heritage alive in you, by heart and mind, by the color of the vine, by your shared, Cultures, and mine.
And yet, you say to ME "Oh no you're white...as white as we. Young man there’s no possibility of denying that reality.” Rather than resolving the conflict through my usual rage and vindication.
So I laugh at those who persecute in the name of social injustice. I tell you now I am black, indeed. because
I curbed my wrath and sought better means of education. Prick up your ears because I tell you now:
It's not a matter of Who? What?, Why?, or How?, One is black because of that fact alone It's not defined by predetermined social behaviors of race,
I have the leadership of Toussaint L’Ouverture and the courage of Harriet Tubman.
I have the vision of MLK, and brute force of Cassius Clay
I have the fire of Malcolm X
But by the plight of blood and bone.
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I have the spirit of Nelson Mandela
I have the articulation of Langston Hughes to compliment my profundity like Maya Angelou
I am history. I am years of struggle and oppression. I am amalgamations of rich Caribbean and African cultures. I am the fire glimmering in every slave’s eye that dreams of freedom and happiness. I am the spirit of my country; and the strength holding its Back I am BLACK and I’ll always be proud of that
Elizabeth B.
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I Am
I worry about failing,
by Esteban MartinezFrancia
and missing the boat of Opportunity.
I am the dreams of my mother,
I cry when I bottle up
and a proud son of Puerto Rico.
too much inside.
I wonder if I'll ever be satisfied with what I accomplish in life.
I am the dreams of my mother, and a proud son of Puerto Rico.
I hear the crowd cheering for me,
Kyle Shen
but the people are obscured by my insecurities.
I understand the hard line
I see my past and my present,
between empathy and sympathy.
but down the next road my life is blurred by the clouds of Fate.
I say love is the true meaning of our existence
I want to conquer my weaknesses
in both life and afterlife.
and make them my strengths.
I am the dreams of my mother, and a proud son of Puerto Rico.
Issac Y.
I dream of being perfect at being imperfect.
I sometimes pretend, to walk on air, from dawn til dusk.
I try to be an ally on whom people can depend and trust.
I feel the teardrops of God when rain pours down around me.
I hope for one more day every time I lay down
I touch the faces
to sleep each night.
of my grandparents to find the last feeling
I am the dreams of my mother,
of peace left in this world.
and a proud son of Puerto Rico. PERK
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The Light-Skinned Brother by Anthony Perdue I am the light-skinned brother I am black But treated like other Why can’t I fit into the pack? When I was little I was called the “white boy” Clearly, I’m not I think of myself as the light boy Sincerely, the light-skinned boy
Issac Y.
My mom is Puerto Rican My dad is black One side is a shade lighter The other is a shade darker Raised in a black neighborhood I always identified with the black side more I’m too often misunderstood Explaining myself has become a chore Sometimes I wish I was darker So no one would question my race Like just color myself with a black marker But then I get myself back into place To all those who don’t like it And can’t get with it I don’t give a damn I love who I am
Hannie L.
This is the story of the light-skinned brother Constantly feeling like the other The good thing about life is that you decide who you are I’ve made my decision I am black
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I Remember You Inspired by Dr. Michael "Mykee" Fowlin
by Abi Rose-Craver
The kid in my chem class With words sharp as glass You may not have left shards in my face Instead, lifelong etchings in my memory I remember you The teacher Who went along with it Playing the game of survival Yes, I remember you too I remember you both
And I regret not reaching out more For I did what I was supposed to do And not what I needed to do The kid Who smiled at me as I floated through the hallways Feeling more invisible than the reason of life itself Not just for sharing that smile, but for reversing the spell I remember you
The jerks, the jocks, the gossipers The wedgie-givers, the name-callers I don’t blame you for wanting to fit in You might not remember me among the countless others
You know No matter if you were one of the pack or a lone Samaritan When I’m 78 and grey
But yeah, I remember you The misunderstood kid
I’ll remember you I’ll thank you
You had FREAK taped to your forehead A label given by the clothes you wore, the music you listened to
For molding me into who I am For setting the basis for what I stand for
But so did I
For showing me that I am not perfect
I remember you
But I am beautiful.
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Everything You Do by Antonio Coleman
I appreciate everything that you do As you’re helpful and thoughtful, too. From the beginning, you've been there for me, when I was down, you were strong like a tree.
You offer so much, a heart that is kind, thinking to help others, in your beautiful mind. Your qualities combined are extremely rare, you wake up each morning, with a smile and care.
Everything you do, I respect and praise, you're a wonderful person, you always amaze. Wish to say thank you, deep in my heart, for so many lives, you're a big part.
Issac Y.
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Hannie L.
Hannie L.
You
Are Beautiful
Yilin T.
Abdel Ibrahim
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THE SILVER SCREEN Designed by Colin Corcoran
Gone with the Wind (1939)
INT. SCHUMO – MR. WILBERTON’S ROOM – AFTERNOON Amidst CLICKING and TYPING, THE EDITOR sits upon a plastic rolling chair and types an editorial for the magazine, pausing frequently between sentences. READER Yes, but what does a film section have to do with the rest of the magazine? MAGAZINE (annoyed) Have patience, insipid reader, whoever you are; all shall be revealed if you just shut up and let me tell you! You see, this section has to do with the magazine much in the same fashion as the
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literature section. We know perfectly well that none of the students are gallivanting about writing Pulitzer Prizewinning novels, just as they are not emulating the same situation, but accepting a statue instead of a medal and uttering the words, “I’d like to thank the Academy...” and so on. The blatant purpose is to provide insight on the world of the most popular form of entertainment today— READER The most popular form of entertainment today? Where are you getting your information, magazine? MAGAZINE Okay, maybe not the most popular form of entertainment today, but at least one of them. Anyway, not only does this section provide insight and information about the many different worlds of the industry, but this also presents you with some students’ opinions of films that they have seen, including reviews and commentaries. In short, it provides a new Perkspective!
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I.
INTRODUCTION TO THE CLASSICS
While looking for some objective evaluation criteria, we have decided to use the American Film Institute’s 1998 list of the top 100 films of all time and, from there, derive the top directors. Thus, below are mini-essays on the work of twelve major directors, their ranking based on the number (minimum three) and positions of their films on the list, presented here in the reversed order—from #12 to #1.
12. Charles Chaplin (1889-1977) The Gold Rush (74) City Lights (76) Modern Times (81) Sir Charles Chaplin is one of the most widely known figures of early Hollywood, while the world of blockbuster films that we know today was still in infancy. He performed, directed and wrote scripts and/or music for a variety of silent and sound feature films and shorts, for which he received national recognition. Chaplin is best known for his recurring figure “The Little Tramp,” a childish, bumbling vagrant usually attempting to pretend that he is a gentleman (think Mr. Bean). He was nominated for three Oscars, won two honorary awards, and ironically won one for Best Music, Original Dramatic Score, as well as earning a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In addition to the three films on the list, released in 1925, 1931 and 1936, respectively, Chaplin’s other major works include The Circus (1928), The Great Dictator (1940), Monsieur Verdoux (1947) and Limelight (1952). Photo: Chaplin in The Gold Rush (1925)
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11. George Stevens (1904-1975) Shane (69) Giant (82) A Place in the Sun (92) George (Cooper) Stevens was born in 1904 to acting parents, giving their young son an early insight into the dramatic world. His induction into the film world as a new talent was through his work as a cameraman for Laurel & Hardy, a silent and sound comedy team. As a director, he is known for his attention to meticulous detail, as well as the fact that his three most acclaimed films dealt with the theme of the outsider. Toward the end of his career, he made a couple of critical failures, The Greatest Story Ever Told and The Only Game in Town. He won an Oscar for Best Director for A Place in the Sun and Giant, and was nominated for the same award for Alan Ladd (as Shane), Jean Arthur (Marian Shane. Starrett) and Van Heflin (Joe Starrett) in George Stevens’ Shane (1953). The classic western won an Oscar for Best Color Cinematography.
10. William Wyler (1902-1981) The Best Years of our Lives (37) Ben-Hur (72) Wuthering Heights (73)
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William Wyler was born in 1902, and his directorial career spanned over forty-five years and through the silent film era. Although initially criticized for not being an auteur (author) of his films as a director, he became known for being incredibly harsh with his actors, eventually being called “40-take Wyler” for the amount of times needed to reshoot a scene that seemed unsatisfactory.On the set of 1959’s Ben-Hur, Charlton Heston was interrupted during his take, with the only advice from Wyler being “Be better”. These methods achieved results, despite the tedium of these efforts, seeing as more actors won Academy Awards for these performances than with any other director, with 14 out of 36 nominations. He himself won Oscars for Mrs. Miniver (1942), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) and Ben-Hur (1959). He was nominated nine more times. The nominated movies include Dodsworth (1936), Wuthering Heights (1939), The Little Foxes (1941), The Heiress (1949), Detective Story (1951), Roman Holiday (1953) and The Collector (1965).
Haya Harareet (as Esther), Martha Scott (Miriam) and Stephen Boyd (Messala) in William Wyler’s Ben-Hur (1959)
9. John Ford (1894-1973) The Grapes of Wrath (21) Stagecoach (63) The Searchers (96) A name that rings louder than several other classic directors, John Ford is often thought of as The Great American Director. He won the Best Director Oscar a record four times for The Informer (1935), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), How Green Was My Valley (1941) and The Quiet Man (1952). Ford also won the first Lifetime Achievement Award from the AFI in 1973, presented by President Richard Nixon. He handled several genres nicely, but saw the best success with his westerns, often shot in Monument Valley and frequently starring Harry Carey and/or John Wayne. His western masterpieces include The Iron Horse (1924), Stagecoach (1939), My Darling Clementine (1946), Fort Apache (1948), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), The Belgian poster for The Searchers Rio Grande (1950), The (1956), frequently referred to as the best Searchers (1956) and The Man western film ever made Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962).
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8. Francis Ford Coppola (1939-
)
The Godfather (3) Apocalypse Now (28) The Godfather Part II (32) Raised by an Italian-American family, this director is most famous for writing and directing The Godfather Trilogy, the first two being among the most acclaimed of American films. The Godfather (1972; based on Mario Puzo’s bestselling novel) became the highestgrossing film of the year and one of the most celebrated movies made. Only two years later, The Godfather Part II surpassed it in terms of Academy Awards nominated and won. Apocalypse Now (1979), a Vietnam War epic, was his Marlon Brando in the Oscarmost ambitious film, and it became winning role as Don Vito infamous for its protracted and Corleone in The Godfather painstaking filming period. It is also (1972), a film shot in color through his uncle Francis Ford’s effort that Nicholas Cage became a successful actor.
7. John Huston (1909-1987) The African Queen (17) The Maltese Falcon (23) The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (30)
After numerous performances on stage, starting in vaudeville at age 3, and after several screenwriting efforts, John Huston was finally hired as the
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writer and director of The Maltese Falcon (1941), which is considered one of the greatest detective films made. Following two marriages and the end of a war, Huston returned to Hollywood to write and direct The Treasure of the Sierra Madre in 1948. Remaining in Hollywood, he continued to contribute to the film world with works including Key Largo (1948), The African Queen (1951), The Asphalt Jungle (1950), The Red Badge of Courage (1951) and Moulin Rouge (1952). Each of Huston’s films inducted into the AFI list has featured superstar Humphrey Bogart (photo: Bogart in The Maltese Falcon). His films had not reached this particular level of reverence until the 1970s and ‘80s, with films such as Fat City (1972), The Man Who Would Be King (1975) and Prizzi’s Honor (1985, in which his daughter, Anjelica Huston, played one of the leading roles).
6. Frank Capra (1887-1991) It’s a Wonderful Life (11) Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (29) It Happened One Night (35) Frank Capra owes his fame and prestige to a series of socially-engaged comedies made in the 1930s and 1940s. He won three Academy Awards—for It Happened One Night (1934), Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936) and You Can’t Take It with You (1938). Furthermore, he was Oscar-nominated for Lady for a Day (1933), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). His other notable films include Lost Horizon (1947; from the famous science-fiction novel by James Hilton), Meet John Doe (1941) and Arsenic and Old Lace (1944). The actors that Capra chose to work with more than once included
Frank Capra’s most famous film, It’s a Wonderful Life
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Barbara Stanwyck, James Stewart, Jean Arthur, Gary Cooper and Edward Arnold. In 1982, the distinguished director was honored with the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award.
5. Stanley Kubrick (1928-1999) 2001: A Space Odyssey (22) Dr. Strangelove (26) A Clockwork Orange (46) Probably the most popular and recognized director of the 1960s and 1970s, Stanley Kubrick was a screenwriter and director. He was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Director four times—for Dr. Strangelove or: How I learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), A Clockwork Orange (1971; from the acclaimed novel by Anthony Burgess) and Barry Lyndon (1975). Other notable movies directed by Kubrick include Paths of Glory (1958), Spartacus (1960), The Shining (1980; based on the famous novel by Stephen King) and Full Metal Jacket (1987). In 1997, he was honored with the Directors Guild of America’s Life Achievement Award.
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A Clockwork Orange is often cited as one of the most violent and controversial movies ever made
4. Martin Scorsese (1942-
)
Raging Bull (24) Taxi Driver (47) GoodFellas (94) Martin Scorsese is unquestionably one of the most important American film directors of the second half of the 20th century. He was working in film for many years before he won the first Academy Award. It was for the crime drama The Departed (2006), starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon and Jack Nicholson. The movies that he was Oscar-nominated for as Best Director are Raging Bull (1980), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), GoodFellas (1990), The Gangs of New York (2002), The Aviator (2004) and Hugo (2011). His favorite actors include Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Joe Pesci and Leonardo DiCaprio. In 1997, Scorsese was honored with the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award.
Raging Bull was declared by the American Film Institute the greatest sports film of all time
3. Billy Wilder (1906-2002) Sunset Boulevard (12) Some Like It Hot (14) Double Indemnity (38) The Apartment (93)
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This Austrian-born filmmaker made his name first as a screenwriter and then as a director who still worked on the scripts of his own films. As a director he won two Academy Awards—for The Lost Weekend (1945) and The Apartment (1960—and was nominated for Sunset Boulevard (1950), Stalag 17 (1953), Sabrina (1954), Witness for the Prosecution (1957) and Some Like It Hot (1959). His favorite actors included William Holden, Shirley MacLaine, Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau. In 1986, Wilder, who is considered the master of comedy (even though some of his earlier films dealt with serious social, political and psychological problems), was honored with the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award.
Some Like It Hot earned the top spot in the AFI’s list of America’s best comedies
2. Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980) Psycho (18) North by Northwest (40) Rear Window (42) Vertigo (61) Alfred Hitchcock is probably the best known name among movie directors. He is regarded as the master of suspense. Hitchcock never won an Academy Award, even though he was nominated five times—for Rebecca (1940), Lifeboat (1944), Spellbound (1945), Rear Window (1954) and Psycho (1960). Among the director’s other famous films are Notorious (1946), Strangers on a Train (1951), To Catch a Thief (1955), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest Norman Bates’ house from the film Psycho, the setting of the movie’s unforgettable climax
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(1959) and The Birds (1963). Hitchcock’s frequent collaborators included Cary Grant, James Stewart and Grace Kelly. In 1979, the British-born director was honored with the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award.
1. Steven Spielberg (1946-
)
Schindler’s List (9) E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (25) Jaws (48) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (60) Close Encounters of the Third Kind (64) One of the most influential and wealthiest filmmakers to have lived, Steven Spielberg is renowned for his wide range of critically acclaimed films and his starting of the summer blockbuster tradition in 1975 with Jaws. He has seen success as both a director and producer, and has prospered with handling both live action, with every film on the list and several other unspecified ones, animation, with An American Tail (1986), and even the live action-animation hybrid Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). Six of his remarkable films—Jaws (1975), Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Indiana Jones and the Steven Spielberg in 1982, posing with E.T., the famed alien of the same year Temple of Doom (1984), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) and Jurassic Park (1993)—have been the highestgrossing productions of their years. Spielberg is one of the most recognized modern filmmakers of Hollywood, and his enormous influence on the film world cannot be denied.
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II. MOVIE REVIEWS Duck Soup (1933) by Colin Corcoran Not many films can make me laugh the same way that Duck Soup did the first time that I glimpsed its colorless comedic credit. The same was true the second time, as well as the third. This is truly one of the funniest films I have ever seen, a record that is certainly hard to be set by many contemporary standards. Only the Marx Brothers could create a masterpiece of this likeness.
Groucho in “...the famous mirror scene...” Many films that have lasted this long are memorable for themes so advanced and complex that our mind can barely comprehend them. A sigh of relief escapes when we learn that the film was meant to make us laugh, but the laughs from a classic film are generally thought of as cultured and sophisticated (harrumph, harrumph). The surprise comes from watching it and learning that not much has changed in the world of comedy. Duck Soup is about politics. Now, this fact might rouse several harrumphs once again, but only this film can make politics less like they are actually pictured, and more like a memorable snowball fight or a cartoon’s rendition of battle. The film takes place in the fictional countries of Freedonia and Sylvania, and each of the Marx Brothers stars as a variety of presidents, spies and sidekicks. There is not much to be said except that Duck Soup is funny. By ‘funny’, I mean FUNNY. I laugh genuine, hearty laughter when I see this film, as opposed to the forced laughter sounding like that which a parent might give while their children guffaw at poorly written comedies for which the parents are intended to pay. At every corner, the viewer is assaulted with a hilarious verbal pun, a bit of clever slapstick or a quirky visual gag, perfectly blending the silent era of films and the newer ‘talkies’ (sound films), which had been introduced six years prior. An example of a silent scene is the famous mirror scene, in which a spy trying to evade detection imitates his enemy’s increasingly bizarre movements on the other side of a broken mirror. This film is, as previously stated, FUNNY. Any film with this particular level of FUNNY deserves to be watched by any with slightly more than an hour of spare time. With every available minute of any one of the hilarious Marx Brothers, there is any number of the broad variety of formats of film comedy that have graced the silver screen since its dawning day.
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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2010-2011) by Kevin Li The Harry Potter series is known primarily as novels, but the films which were based on the novels are wonderful as well. There have been eight movies of the series of Harry Potter. The final movie of Harry Potter was released in July of 2011 and became the top grossing movie for the whole series. In the final two-part movie, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, each scene from the selected view to the composition are extremely impressive. Especially the landscapes, on which the protagonists are fleeing all over the world, are so beautiful that they make people ecstatic. The visual impact in the movie is also very impressive; while Professor Severus Snape flies as a black fog through the gothic iron gate and enters the gloomy meeting room, the special effects make this scene full of visual impact. The director of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows sets the movie in a kind of dark, depressed style. He uses low contrast images and special effects to emphasize the mood of the story. The special effects of the whole movie give us deep impressions, such as the scene in which a serpent appears to “bite” the audience. In this Harry Potter film, the story is restored well. The main story is presented clearly. The director shoots the story in a suitable speed and each individual plot is presented one by one. Some of dialogue in the film is the same as these in the novel. It is a film full of sincerity. Maybe the popular novel of Harry Potter makes a lot of audiences want to view the movie, but we have to admit that even without the novel, the mysterious music, the attractive plot and the gorgeous special effects also let the Harry Potter film be a nice movie. The Harry Potter film shows the personality of all the characters clearly and is one of the reasons that I like this movie. The main character, Harry James Potter, is portrayed by Daniel Radcliffe in a lively fashion. From the first movie to the last, we can see Daniel Radcliffe portray this character better and better. He perfectly shows the personality of Harry Potter: a brave, unremitting and quick-witted boy. As I first saw the movie, the magnificent castle and gorgeous magic let me remember it. The beautiful music and the attractive plot let me love it. That’s another reason to enjoy this movie. The screen Harry Potter has four directors and eight movies, but in my mind, the best film is the first movie, directed by Chris Columbus. Although the rest of the movies are not as good as the first one, they always give us something new in every movie, and it’s very amazing. The Harry Potter film completely shows the story of the novel and makes it even better. It’s a good movie for all people. All in all, it is a pity if you have not read any of the Harry Potter novels or watched the movies; they are great feasts for your soul and for your eyes.
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Back to the Future (1985) by Abi Rose-Craver Back to the Future is about Marty McFly, a typical American teenager of the 1980s, who goes back in time thirty years to 1955. He meets the high school versions of his surprisingly attractive mom and loser dad. He also finds his friend Doc Brown, the mad genius who would later invent time travel. Doc Brown warns Marty that he should not mess with history, for it can cause serious damage in the future. It is already too late for that piece of advice since he accidentally made his teenage mom fall in love with him rather than his real father. It is Marty’s job to play matchmaker so he can get back to the future and return to normal. The movie portrays ‘50s life well; the clothing styles, the youth culture, the music, and just the overall atmosphere. Even my parents who lived through this era nostalgically ooh-ed and ahh-ed as they watched memories of their youth flash before their eyes. People were completely unaware of the age of rock 'n' roll, black mayors, television reruns, and the future president, John F. Kennedy. During her childhood, Marty’s mom’s family was the stereotypical white middle-class “big, happy family,” consisting of multiple brothers and sisters, a housewife mom, and a dad who worked for the man. When Marty ate dinner with them the first night he was there, they were admiring their new television set, a luxury for most American families. In the schools, there were no non-whites to be seen, as the Civil Rights Acts had not yet been put into action. The only African Americans we see are the band members at the dance and the man who worked behind the counter at the diner. Scenes of the teens outside of school and in the diner and at the dance are evidence of the rebellious youth culture that made up this era of change. They drank, smoked, bullied, drove fast cars, and *GASP!* dated, showing off their independence as America’s youth. For the clothing styles, they had not yet evolved into Marty’s jeans, t-shirts, and “life-preserver” vests. Girls wore feminine, belowthe-knee skirts, sweater tops, and saddle shoes to school, and boys wore jackets, white socks, and dress shoes on an everyday basis. There was rarely conflict, except for a few fight scenes between Marty and his dad against some school bullies, showing that these truly were the “happy days” that the future generation of teens would resent for being ignorant and passive to issues regarding sexism, racism, and nuclear war. Back to the Future did not show anything unexpected about this time period, as this was one of the first times that teens today can somewhat relate to teens back then. Marty was surprised of his mother’s rebellious nature, as she was hypocritical in her overbearing parental ways. Since it only focused on the happy and easy parts of living in the ‘50s, it really only skimmed the surface. There were barely any examples of race issues or the submissive females that were rampant in this period, but I guess this was what the happy days were about.
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THREE COMENTARIES ON THE MOVIE LINCOLN (2012) No. 1 – by Jude An First of all, this movie is not focused on the fights that happened during the Civil War; this movie is for a different reason. This movie starts from the time when the 13th Amendment was just introduced to the Congress and contained the abolition of slavery. Most of the historical happenings are shown by either conversation or a speech, because this movie focuses not only on the attempt of Lincoln trying to persuade the assembly, but it also portrays Lincoln as a father of a family, not just a president of one’s country. As far as I remember, there was only one actual fighting scene in this movie. One single fight is apparently not enough to show the intensity of America’s most destructive war. However, there were plenty of scenes to promote tension of the war even when they were at the White House. There was a scene when Lincoln and his oldest son went to the
hospital together to visit the wounded soldiers, and while he was walking around the tent, he had to see the hands and legs cut off because of infection. The war scene in the film before didn’t portray so much details, but when his son saw this, they emphasized it with intent; I believe that these scenes have done a great job to make this movie more interesting, because when his son sees it, he finally decides to go to the army. And this does not represent just one person who wants to join the army, but this represents all the citizens who joined the army for the same purpose. It is true that the war didn’t start with the idea of abolition of the slavery, but these little things showed that how much the outcome of the war mattered to people. Just like this, the film makes us perceive the massive intensity by not just simply showing everything, but by implying things.
No. 2 – by Helena Nyanteh The film critics may say that the film’s natural ending should have been when he walks down the corridor. That is true if filmmakers usually told stories of history, especially of a civil war. The movie Lincoln is unusual, and that is why it is okay to have the movie end in an unexpected way. Not all viewers like suspense, and it is true that some people say suspense is what makes a movie intriguing and exciting. In my point of view, that reasoning is simply from people who do not know how to accept the truth, thus they would rather have some sort of control over the outcome of the whole movie. These are people that want to believe that they live in an “apple pie
world,” which, unfortunately, is not the truth. One could also argue that the producer would like to have continued the movie in a ‘part two’ or create a series of historical untold stories just to make more money, but only if the first part proves to be a success. Success is what people want, and in the movie industry, it does not belong to Hollywood, but the success is still going to be measured out of how much they make out of it. Experts could also say there still is no need for the extension. This is plainly because the longer the parts are, the sooner the majority of the people become tired of it. This is true for most movies, no matter how good it started out.
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However, this could also be an insight: although the amendment was passed, clearly not everyone is happy with the results. For these exact reasons, a member of the cabinet would ask what would become of them if they are freed. Yes, the answer to that question was that they became free, but we the people living in this generation now know the meaning of this freedom. Up until today, there still is some evidence of this fear. If a child of a young age with limited understanding had seen Lincoln simply walk out of the corridors right after a victory that seemed almost impossible to achieve, then they would not question how or when Lincoln died. They would simply jump to the conclusion that he died most likely of old age. Why would that be their conclusion? Simple; Lincoln seemed to be a man of great intelligence, so he would be careful and cautious, guaranteeing him a long life. He, after all, did indirectly say that his being the president of the United States of America, he should be able to get
whatever he wants. He could have possibly demanded full protection. The critics did not question why Lincoln had said he must leave, although he would rather stay when he was having a chat with his fellow men. That is right before he walks down into the corridor. That could be inferred as a foreshadowing that he was going to die. And for all the lovers of suspense. that was their catch, while for those who like to have things told to them in black and white, that it was their certainty. Both audiences get satisfied. This is why Lincoln still remains a brilliant story. This is history and must be told as it is; with no truths held back and no events buffered. Thus, it was necessary to include the final assassination montage; it is always a great story to know how a great man ends. A lot of lessons can be learned from that very brief scene. Lessons, like everyone has haters. There are certain adversities that one may not control. And last, but certainly not least, no one’s next step is ever safe for sure.
No. 3 – by Katrina Yan After watching the movie Lincoln, there were three questions that emerge in my mind, but at the end of the movie, I got the answers for them. First, is the abolition of slavery the real intention or the end of the war? Second, how can an American really accept those blacks sitting with them on a same table and have equal rights when they were slaves just yesterday? Third, is it right to use insidious methods to approach a good intention? The abolition of slavery was for both the war and the rights for blacks. Lincoln once said in the movie, “Abolishing slavery settles the fate of the millions now and bonded and unborn millions to come.” This quote showed that the abolition of slavery was an important thing to do. Compared to
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Stephens, Lincoln was not as aggressive in abolishing slavery. Actually, this action was not only for the freedom of millions of slaves. What Lincoln really wanted was to pass the 13th amendment which included the abolition of slavery, but he was actually holding another goal: “I can’t end this war, until we cure ourselves of slavery, this amendment, is! That! Cure!” Lincoln’s real goal was not only to free the slaves, but also to safeguard America’s national unity.
Also, Americans could not accept that the slaves became equal with them so quickly. Someone used to say to Lincoln, “Mr. Lincoln, I hate them all. I do. I am prejudiced.” This was not only a confession of oneself, but of all Americans. They believed that blacks could never be the same as whites. In the court, a politician said, “Congress must never declare equal those who God created unequal!” After this passionate speech, everyone in the court cheered for it. However, since Lincoln said that “slavery is done,” many whites could not accept it. So there was a new situation in the world. We were equal, but we were not together. This can even be seen nowadays. For example, blacks are always with blacks and whites are always with whites. Whites admit the equality with blacks in law, but they refuse to live with them. Even though this was getting better, there was still some after effect of it. For instance, in Perk, during lunch or dinner, blacks are always sitting with blacks, whites are always sitting with whites and Asians are always sitting with Asians. Generally we are good friends with each other; we study and work together, but we just do not sit or live together. It would be awkward if a black person sits at an “Asian table.” It is hard to accept that people are completely the same deep inside everyone’s mind (no offense, but I think that is the situation nowadays). Lincoln used questionable methods to achieve his goal, and he got his retribution at last. He once said in the movie, “I am the president of United States, clothed in immense power! You will procure me these votes. ” He tried many ways to get the votes, and he did so eventually. Some ways included dirty tricks such as buying votes and bribery. The passing of 13th Amendment was a result that was forcefully obtained with the control of Lincoln, rather than others’ influences. Many people could
accept the passing of the 13th Amendment. Lincoln’s assassin was the avenger of his forcing the act. Due to many people unable to live without slaves, they felt irritated and the assassin was their revenge against Lincoln. After all, my opinion is that Lincoln did not really have a lot of ideas of racism; his goal was to use the form of war to unite America. To fight for blacks’ freedom was his excuse for it; this excuse sounded like we were fighting for human equality, but it was just a happy side effect of his real goal. I did some research and I knew that it was actually not legal to have the war, because the war was fought for releasing blacks, while blacks were the private property of citizens from South. Lincoln made the blacks free as of the 13th amendment, so that his battle could be defined as “legal.” No matter what, Lincoln is one of the greatest leaders in United States, and he has contributed to not only America, but also the whole world.
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III. A MOVIE BUFF’S QUIZ The Reader stares at the screen, deep in thought, wondering desperately what the answers to the quiz could possibly be. READER (V.O.) Wait a minute...I actually have no clue what the answer is. In fact, I doubt that I’ve heard of any of these films. Perhaps I should consider watching some of these classic films in rewarded hope that my knowledge of a century of moving pictures will grow to perfection. Also, there are answers on page 76 of the magazine (no cheating!).
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1. Which comedy team wrote the films Airplane!, The Naked Gun, and Top Secret!? a) Monty Python b) The Marx Brothers c) Zucker-Abrams-Zucker d) The Smothers Brothers
3. Which of the following actors did not portray Abraham Lincoln? a) Walter Huston b) Gary Cooper c) Henry Fonda d) Daniel Day-Lewis
2. Which of the following film trilogies grossed the most money at the box office? a) The Dark Knight b) Toy Story c) The Lord of the Rings d) Transformers
4. Which film won the first Academy Award for Best Picture? a) Wings b) The Jazz Singer c) All Quiet on the Western Front d) Duck Soup
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5. Mel Brooks became a directing icon because of his contributions to: a) Spoofs b) Courtroom dramas c) Musicals d) Gangster film 6. Which film included the famous quote, “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn?” a) Casablanca b) The Godfather c) Some Like it Hot d) Gone with the Wind 7. The following movies all have something in common: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Silent Hill, and Resident Evil: Retribution. a) They are all directed by Mike Newell b) They are all based on an animated series c) They are all based on a video game series d) They are all direct-to-DVD releases 8. The quote, “Bond. James Bond,” was spoken first in which film? a) From Russia With Love b) Diamonds are Forever c) Dr. No d) You Only Live Twice 9. These films were all produced by which company: Grave of the Fireflies, Ponyo, and Spirited Away? a) Aardman b) Blue Sky Studios c) Pixar Animation Studios d) Studio Ghibli 10. This director wrote and directed the two highest grossing films of all time in 1997 and 2009. a) Michael Bay b) James Cameron c) Christopher Nolan d) Steven Spielberg
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Photographs by Tim Miller Courtesy of the Wetzel Family and the Turner Family
Theater Season 2012-2013 by Kate Wetzel Almost, Maine Almost, Maine consists of nine small vignettes that tell of love and heartbreak in the small town of Almost, Maine. The stories are filled with both humor and seriousness. The cast welcomed many new members: Bill Finnegan, Lauren Cola, Karl Schmidt, Serena Lawrence, Dan Lankry and Bella Lu; and the talent grew exponentially for the returning actors: Liz Burnett, Brad Heinzinger, Gillian Albanese, Hollie Force and Tim Turner. Because of some special demands in different scenes of the play, it was crucial for the cast to be a tight-knit family and all the actors definitely fulfilled that requirement. All of them put their best foot forward in rehearsals and their talent was radiant. I was very proud of the cast and thankful for the opportunity to be a part of a team that put on such an amazing show with such wonderful people. I regret to say that it was my very last non-musical play in my high school career.
Phoebe Tompkins, Sophie Lambert, Isabel Barone, Sydney Palmer, Sadie Butcher, Ella Albanese, Raizel Rosenberg, Ben Williams, Tom Reese and Duncan MacIntyre. The Upper School cast included Colin Corcoran, Brad Heinzinger, Tim Turner, Dylan Pine, Logan Burnett, Paul Csordas, Dan Lankry, Isabella San Miguel, Liz Burnett, Dagny Barone, Emma Longstreth, Gabrielle Molnar, Lauren Cola, Meghan MacIntyre and Serena Lawrence. The cast did a fantastic job pulling together such a large show. The pit band was small, yet adequate for the show. Stage crew did a fantastic job creating our largest set in many years. Overall, everyone did wonderfully. I am so proud of how well all the members of the cast and crew did and thankful for such a great last show and send off for me.
Oliver! “Oliver!” tells the tale of the young orphan boy, Oliver, who was originally created by Charles Dickens. The musical begins with Oliver asking his famous question, “Please sir, can I have some more?” and from there we follow him on his adventures in London until he finds a true home. The show moves the audience through a variety of reactions—from empathy to laughter to tears. This show was huge for our theater department. We combined the Middle School with the Upper School to have a complete cast of orphans, other children and adult characters. The Middle School cast included Abby Lambert,
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An interview with the Director, Mr. Jacob Hauser by Patrick Vetter “Hello, this is Mr. Jacob Hauser, Stage Director at the Perkiomen School.” “What were your thoughts going into tech week?” “AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH! No, seriously... uh kinda... ah. For Oliver, it was a large show. There were a lot of scene changes, there were a lot of costume changes, there were wigs, there were microphones, there were tons of props, and there were just tons of students involved. So whenever you are trying to put that many pieces together, in what's really a fairly short time, four days, it’s a little intense. It was a little bit nerve-racking, but I thought tech week came off very well. I was pleased by the second day in; I was not at all concerned, I thought we were on track.” “What would you have done differently for the entire show?” “I don’t know that there were a lot of things that I would've done differently. I wish that we had a little bit more time to pull together the lighting. Nick Force has been doing the lighting for several years, and he was with robotics most of the time. He came to help us during tech week. It meant we were rushed with what we did with lighting. I wish we’ve been able to [...] give him more time to polish everything, and make the looks
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just slightly different. Also, if we had a little bit more time with lighting, we might of added in spotlights, follow spots. So that’s one thing we probably would have changed. Otherwise, I was pretty happy with the way most things came off.” “Any thoughts for next year?” “Yeah, we’re probably going to do some plays... At this point I have some ideas. I always do. With our program, while we have certainly grown and have a number of students, it’s difficult to pick a play before I actually know who’s signed up for the activity. Because if I pick a play that has seven male roles and I only get three guys, it can be a little difficult. And we aren’t a three thousand person school, that’s going to have a hundred and fifty trying out for ten or fifteen roles. So I like to tailor each show more to the group we have. I think it allows us more flexibility and makes it easier for us to put on high quality productions. Having said that, I am having some students read several plays that I am considering and give me their feedback so that we can make a choice based in part on their selections.” “If you had an unlimited amount of people and skill, what would be your dream production?” “I’ve always loved, as far as musicals, Jesus Christ Superstar, which I think is a lot of fun. It has some amazing music, it’s very challenging. You need a whole lot of really talented male singers and dancers to pull off a show like that. Something that you can do if you are at a three-thousand-person
school and is much more challenging at a school just over three-hundred like we are. So that’s one that I’d like to do. As far as plays are concerned I love certain large cast plays that are just a little bit more difficult for a school of are size. I like to try to stick to ten people or so, but there are some great plays out there that have twenty-five twentyseven characters. Some of the roles are very small though, and it doesn’t really work with our structure of rehearsing. Everybody after school has an activity. We need to pick shows that are more ensemble-based, where everyone is getting equal time and everybody’s on stage. So there are some limiting factors other than size.” “How was it working with both upper schoolers and middle schoolers?” “Working with upper schoolers and middle schoolers had certain challenges and definitely benefits. For one thing, the middle schoolers for the most part in the rehearsal process get out a little earlier than the upper schoolers do, so you had to really plan and coordinate the schedules so that you were working on things that included both middle schoolers and upper schoolers as much as possible to maximize your time. Other things; middle schoolers have a ton of energy, but they are not always as focused and do not always have the same skill set or level of experience that the upper schoolers have. It was good for the upper schoolers to see the energy of the middle schoolers, but it was also good for the middle schoolers to learn from the upper school students’ experience, to pick up on their skills, notice the small things that they do that are difficult to explain, but you just sort of have to see and gather from having gone through the experience multiple times.”
“What are some thoughts on the Thespian festival?” “The Pennsylvania Thespian festival is an annual event. It brings in students from various schools all over the state, public and private, to come together for a few days, to watch plays that different schools have been working on: one-acts, showcase scenes. Basically, come together as a theater going and theater watching community. So that people can share, grow, learn. There are lots of workshops; students have the opportunity to work with directors from other schools, to work with specialist, colleges, universities and some working professionals. While I am amazing, I don't do everything perfectly. A student who wanted to learn more about costumes, makeup, about doing Shakespearean verse or things that I am not as versed in, has a great opportunity because the people who are putting on these workshops are experts in each one of those fields. It’s also just a chance to see what people at other schools are doing, and put your own program in perspective. Our students last year certainly came back very energized to be more dedicated and create more of a theater community on campus, and that was great to see. Each year we have built on that just a little bit, so this past year we actually presented some scenes and showcases. Our students did very well. You get ratings and our students got the second highest rating possible. For our first time out, I was very pleased with that.”
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Tunes and Lyrics Designed by Patrick Vetter and Joeson Zhao
We sent a survey out to the Perkiomen School student community, asking four questions: what is your favorite kind of music, who is your favorite band, who is your favorite male singer and who is your favorite female signer? We received answers from more than sixty students. The following pie charts represent the results from the survey. None of the categories had a winner with a clear majority. For the
favorite kind of music, there was one category that stood out. Pop had the largest percentage with thirty percent. Some people decided not to specify a certain choice either because (as they stated) they had no particular favorite, or we received the survey without a response in that particular area. The area “None Specified� accounts for the percentage of those responses.
Perkiomen Students' Favorite Kind of Music Showtunes 2%
None Specified Other Alternative 1% 5% 5% Classic Rock 4%
Reggae 1%
Rock 5%
Classical 10%
Rap 6%
Country 4% Electronic 4% Gospel 1% Hip Hop 5%
R&B 4% Punk 7%
Pop 30%
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Jazz 1% Lyric 1%
Indie 4%
Perkiomen Students' Favorite Bands Arashi 2%
Birthday Massacre Beyond 2% 3%
WestLife 2% Weezer 2%
Alt-J 2%
None 13%
Bright Eyes 2%
Coheed &Cambria 2% Counting Crows 2% F4 2%
Two Steps from Hell 2%
Fall Out Boy 2%
The Wanted 2% The Strokes 2%
Fahrenheit 2% Fun 2%
The Script 2%
Green Day 3%
Imagine Dragons 2%
The Brothers Four 2% Legend of Phoenix 3%
The Beatles 5%
Lifehouse 2%
Streetlight Manifesto 2%
Linkin Park 3%
Sodagreen (Su Da Lv) 3%
Maroon 5 8%
Rise Against 2% Red Hot Chili Peppers 2%
R.I.P. 2% Queen 2%
One Direction 5%
One Republic 2% No Doubt 2%
Mumfor d& Sons 3%
Mayday 2% MMG Monsters and Men 2% 2%
N2 2%
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Perkiomen Students' Favorite Male Singers
Adam Lambert 2%
None Specified 11%
Trey Songz 2% Usher 2%
The Boy Who Trapped the Sun 2%
Adam Levine 5%
Wubai 3%
Andy Grammar 2% Bob Dylan Big L 2% 2% Bobmarley 2% Bon Iver 2%
Bruno Mars 2% Chris Brown 2% Cody Simpson 2% Common 2%Devin
Tank 2%
Townsend 2% Drake 2% Dreis Allen 2%
Pitbull 2%
Philip Philipps 5% Paul McCartney 2%
Ed Sheeran 6%
Mike Bagger 2% Miguel 2%
Mackamore 3%
Justin Timberlake 2% Juliau Casablancas 2%
Jay-Z 2%
Jay Sean 2%
Jay Chou 8%
Jason Mraz 3%
Jacky Cheung 3% Jason Derulo 2%
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Henry Rollins 3% Hunter Hayes 2%
Elvis Presley 2% Fingazz 2% Flo Rida 2%
Perkiomen Students' Favorite Female Singers
Adele 5%
Alice Glass 2%
Alicia Keys 5%
None 23%
Barbra Streisand 2%
Birdy 2% Beyonce 8% Carly Rae Jepsen 2%
Carrie Underwood 2% Christina Perri 2%
Taylor Swift 11%
Dido 2% Florence Welch 5% Evanescence 2% Selena Gomez 2% Sara Bareilles 2% Rihanna 2%
Nicki Minaj 3% Lisa Ono 2% Laura Pausini 2%
Han Hong 2% Lana Del Rey 3% Laura Jane Grace 3% Kimberly Scott 2%
Hikaru Utada 2% Ke$ha 2% Keyisha Cole 2%
Idina Menzel 2% Katy Perry 2%
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II.
20 Questions about Music:
1. The song “Me and Bobby McGee” was written by a) Janis Joplin b) Bob Dylan c) Kris Kristofferson d) Johnny Cash 2. Which Beethoven’s Symphony was included in the sound track of such movies as Another Man, Another Chance and Saturday Night Fever a) No. 3 b) No. 5 c) No. 7 d) No. 9 3. Elvis Presley’s first movie was a) Jailhouse Rock b) Viva Las Vegas c) King Creole d) Love Me Tender 4. Chopin’s nationality was a) German b) German-Polish c) German-French d) Polish-French 5. The song “My Way” was written for Frank Sinatra by a) Paul Anka b) John Lennon c) Burt Bacharach d) John Williams 6. The hometown of The Beatles was a) London b) Liverpool c) Brighton d) Bath
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7. Which of the following films does not use any music by The Beatles: a) Help b) Saturday Night Fever c) Yellow Submarine d) A Hard Day’s Night
8. Bob Dylan appeared as an actor in a) Catch-22 b) M*A*S*H c) McCabe & Mrs. Miller d) Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid
9. Leonard Bernstein’s musical West Side Story was based on William Shakespeare’s a) A Midsummer Night’s Dream b) Romeo and Juliet c) Hamlet d) King Lear
10. The movie What’s Love Got to Do with It? (1993) depicts the life of a famous singer. Her name is a) Whitney Houston b) Tina Turner c) Madonna d) Britney Spears
11. How old was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart when he died? a) 21 b) 30 c) 35 d) 48
12. Which hip hop artist is the executive producer of the newest screen version of The Great Gatsby: a) Kanye West b) Rick Ross c) Jay-Z d) Sean Combs
17. Hungarian composer Rezso Seress’ song “Gloomy Sunday” is often referred to as “the Hungarian . . . a) love song” b) death song” c) suicide song” d) rain song”
13. The song “White Christmas” was written by a) Irving Berlin b) Cole Porter c) Rogers & Hammerstein d) George Gershwin
18. The very famous group known as The Beatles was disbanded in a) 1967 b) 1970 c) 1976 d) 1988
14. “Bolero” was composed by a) Mozart b) Dvorak c) Bach d) Ravel
19. The film Walk the Line is a biography of a) Waylon Jennings b) Hank Williams c) Johnny Cash d) Frankie Laine
15. “An American in Paris” was composed by a) Hoagy Carmichael b) George Gershwin c) Jerome Kern d) Marvin Hamlisch
20. In which of the following films ItalianAmerican singer-actor Dean Martin was not a member of the cast? a) It Started in Naples b) The Young Lions c) Rio Bravo d) Airport
16. The song “A Spoonful of Sugar” comes from a) The Sound of Music b) My Fair Lady c) Mary Poppins d) Hello, Dolly!
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Student Issues and Commentary Designed by Olivier Joseph
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Life Through the Lens by Abi Rose-Craver One of the greatest pleasures in life is viewing life through the Lens. Now, I’m not talking about your grandfather's bifocals or your grandmother’s reading glasses. I’m talking about a camera lens. Though a delicate object, the Lens has super powers that depict life in a way that the human eye would never be able to by itself. Why would anyone want to load a roll of old-fashioned 35mm black and white film, lift that chunky 35mm camera, pull it up to her face, turn the knobs, put it in focus, squint through the tiny peephole, risking eye strains, only to take in a lousy 1/60 of a second? Well, the moment its user snaps the shutter button, releasing the wonderful snap sound, that 1/60 of a second is captured forever. As with life, viewing the world through the Lens doesn’t always give you a straight-shot path. What you think you are taking a picture of isn’t necessarily what comes out in the final product. The image revealed when the film is developed could possibly be more interesting or less perfect than what you had originally expected. Other times, you will notice evidence that your camera wasn’t totally in focus, specks of dust, or scratches- all signs that your masterpiece is less than flawless. Although the exposure cannot be altered after being developed, you always have the choice to give up photography as a whole or try again at your next shoot, but maybe next time, clear your lens of any debris bit before taking the exposure. The Lens also tends to take one to places he or she would have never fathomed, literally and figuratively speaking. As the late photographer Diane Arbus once remarked, "I tend to think of the act of photographing, generally speaking, as an adventure. My favorite thing is to go where I’ve never been." One time I had one of those experiences, myself with photography. Fearful of creepycrawly bugs and stepping in animal scat, I am typically not a nature person. But just this once, I decided to take an expedition, leading me through Sylvia's world to spend an autumn afternoon partaking in my favorite type of hunting- that is hunting through the Lens. I entered the forest, the chirp-tweet-whistle bird music echoing everywhere. The crickle-crackle of leaves sounded beneath my feet. Greens and browns and oranges surrounded me, creating a perfect dome to host
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the hunt. Taking aim, I raised the camera. Stealing 1/60 of a second was just enough to secure a shot; a bird, leaves, decaying matter. That moment was like taking a screenshot of life and storing it in art’s eternal time machine. Upon viewing my newly developed photos for the first time, I came to realize that the images of the still-life, not the animal life, were the most thrilling. Look at the veins on that leaf. I thought to myself. Wow, that texture of the tree bark is so complex. The black and white contrast really brings out the different markings. How could this be? I guess the Lens has this magic ability to allow its user to zoom in on life and appreciate the subtle beauty in nature. Next time you’re craving a new view, why don’t you try life through the Lens?
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We all know that word. It’s that flowery, abstract, word which invokes images of perfection, serenity, and unity. That’s right. Utopia. That’s the word-courtesy of Sir Thomas More. Oxford Advanced (yup, that’s right; seems legit because it’s advanced, huh?) Learner’s Dictionary defines a “utopia” as being “an imaginary place or state in which everything is perfect.” As far as I’m concerned, every definition of utopia includes something along the lines of the word being “idealistic,” “imaginary,” “hypothetical” or something along these lines. Why must a utopia be only imaginary? To see a world where there are no destructive wars, social injustices or mundane controversies, well I’d like to think we as humans would like to reach that state. What if there were some other existence, one which was totally attainable, where the same conditions could be achieved, just not the imaginary utopia? Well, there is a paradise. Yes, a paradise. Our buddies at Oxford Press define this evocative word as “a place that is extremely beautiful and that seems perfect, like heaven.” Without the religious connotation, the prospect of creating our own paradises is a formidable one. Coming from a teenager, this might seem outlandish, more so naïve. This dream to be witness to a paradise doesn’t stem from childish naiveté—no, not at all. It stems from the fact that it is hard to ignore the senseless violence, discrimination, and inhumanity around me, and that, as a human with sense and sensibility, I am tired of it all, as should you. For those of you who do not believe in the prospect of a paradise, open your eyes and see that we all have the potential to bring about our own little change. If you think it’s impossible, then you haven’t been doing your part, quite frankly. When I read about people like Wes Moore, Zohra Sarwari and Rodney Glasgow, to name JUST A FEW, I refuse to believe that the prospect is totally out of question when there are people NOW pushing for it. This is not a dream, ladies and gentleman; it is our legacy. I know this reality of a paradise won’t happen soon, probably not even in my own lifetime, but that justifies nothing. We all have our roles to play; I ask you, again, to open your hearts and minds to things around you and just reach out. That’s all. Reach out and make a difference. Who cares what the status quo dictates? Who cares what every social construct dictates what you are SUPPOSED to do? “DO WHAT YOU NEED TO DO” (Thank you, Dr. Fowlin). So the next time you speak abstractly about some point, like “world peace,” “post-racism,” or the double whammy “liberty and equality,” speak of it not as a utopic pipe dream, but an attainable reality, a real paradise. The point is, we can do it. Look at where we have been. Countless wars? Yes. Bloody revolutions and political strife? You bet. Economic chaos? No doubt. Acts of pure hate? Don’t ever forget ‘em. However, great degrees of charity and virtue are easily discernible as well-Look up one of the three people I mentioned above. Do it right now!
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Tell me what is not to admire. Tell me that they are not making differences. The possibility of building a paradise is so possible. Now, look to the future at where we want to be. Don’t sit around and wait for the next guy or girl. Enough with the excuses. Go do something. In our current state of affairs, with nuclear warfare once again looming over our heads and a politically, socially, economically, and ideologically divided world, we need change. We need a paradise. Bring us a step closer to that ever so REAL paradise. I dare you.
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by Olivier Joseph It’s stressful. It’s money-oriented. It’s time-consuming. It’s never-ending. It’s full of deadlines. It’s the college process. “As a high school senior, you will be on the road to discovering your place in the world by selecting and applying to the college of your dreams and walking into the next chapter of your young life.” That’s what “they” want you to think. In reality, you’re put on a painfully tedious and arduous crash course the fall of your senior year, and you don’t finish until August of that summer. It’s hard. It sucks. Once again, it’s the college process. But don’t fear, my big-eyed, naïve underclassmen; here are a few tips to surviving your senior year and getting into college.
Riding Solo You have counselors, you have parents, and you have some teachers, but understand that for a considerable portion of this process, you will be on your own. Yup. Soak it all in. YOU need to get yourself into college. It’s up to you to carve a masterpiece out of the bold slab of marble we call life. It will be your choices, your shortcomings, your successes, and your drive that will define yourself, your future, and your happiness. There’s won’t be much room for the involvement others. Develop your independence so you won’t be at your counselor’s office every day like a chicken without a head. Your parents have already been to college, or not; your counselors help hundreds, maybe even gazillions every year: you’re just one. Assume the “lone-wolf” status, get your trusty hobo sack, and blaze your own trail.
Discipline - Get Some It will be hard. I know. Senior slide is going to be a killer. You have to mentally train yourself to be resilient and unwavering. Imagine the commitment that Schwarzenegger had. You think it easy getting that jacked and becoming Mr. Universe? That’s the level of commitment and discipline this process demands. Don’t say, “Well I’ll wake up early and finish it,” knowing full well that you stink at waking up early. You rub dirt on your knees (or eyes) and you get your work done completely by the reasonable hour-whatever your definition of reasonable is. You know yourself better than anyone else! OJ’s Stupendous Universal Impressively Scientific Law of SpongeBob dictates, “Deadlines tend to be fast-approaching when you push off the assignments and payments.” The only thing I can say is to get them over with; there’s no other way. The last thing you want to do is get stuck with four essays and a common app application for early decision the Saturday night before a deadline. Stay on top of it. Trust me. Just think of that episode of SpongeBob where the poor sponge had to write that 1000 word essay about “What Not to Do at a Red-light,” and a carnival appeared out of nowhere. Don’t be SpongeBob. Do your work, and then get to your carnival.
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The Prompts Depending on what kind of writer you are, you will experience the college essay differently from everyone else. I am the type who is so sure of an essay one moment, then after a long summer of work, meditating with Buddhist monks, achieving nirvana, combating hipsters and helping stop world hunger, figures out what is important and winds up scrapping the first draft and starting all over. To prevent you from writing 7 drafts of a college essay like as I did: Don’t write to impress. You will be one in thousands. A snotty, nose-in-the-air essay of your perceived greatness, GPA, athletic skills, or artistic vision will not impress them. Write as if you’re sending a message to the world, your own unique message which you have kept bottled up. Let that essay be the uncapping of that bottle. Passion - Write something for which you care about. You better! Your future might depend on it. Be unique - Don’t worry about what everyone else is writing about. If John Doe wants to write about how garbage cans changed his perspective on life, then write on, garbage man. It’s your essay. Write as you see fit (with some guidance from some stellar English teachers) When you have to write multiple essays (I wrote 27. Experiences will vary.) for colleges, the prompts will usually be very similar. To make the process easier, feel free to use the ideas of one of your previous essays into other ones. Word to the wise, if you do this, make sure you attach the correct college name with the essay. Admissions officers will immediately hate you and maliciously sabotage your hopes at getting into your dream college if they see a different college name on one of their essays. Think about it. If you got a birthday card with someone else’s name on it, you’d be out for blood too!
PSAT/SAT/AP/IB/ABCDEFG As a high school senior, you have already been exposed to some standardized tests. Yes, I agree, they are stupid, wastes of time, stupid, worthless, senseless, pointless and stupidwhatever synonymous adjectives you want to use on the early mornings when you wake up for them. They are, nonetheless, vital. Take some SAT classes; learn how to beat the test. Obviously they don’t test knowledge directly. APs are a different story; however, they can be just as subjective. The best advice I can give you here, my wayward senior, is to 1) go to bed early to prevent the barrage of gibberish you will spout upon waking up and to guarantee focus 2) a number is a number. If you have tried your best at improving your scores, don’t feel as though you are inferior. There is a greedy, evil, dark alleylurking villain called Collegeboard that makes it a life mission to ruin lives and prey upon young lives. Keep your head up, champ!
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It’s All about the Moolah It’s all about the money. If you are a dependent student, cooperation with your parents and their wallets is integral to getting your applications, CSS profile, and standardized test scores delivered. Don’t ask your dad the night before a deadline for his credit card information for a college whose fee is $75. Don’t be that kid. Make a list of estimated costs of everything you are anticipating to pay for. Let your parents know in advance. It will help down the line when they have one less example of “that time when you messed up” to complain about. It gets costly; in my experience, application fees range from $4580. The prices to send your SAT scores and subject scores to multiple colleges will get around $250. I mentioned CSS. Yeah, well, that’s sort of like the illegitimate child of FAFSA and the annoying spam surveys you get in your emails. You have to pay for that too. It totals around $1 million and 42 cents plus tax. Have a talk with your parents about the type of things you will be reaching into their wallets to pay for before you do so. Take advantage of fee waivers. In fact, before you move towards any step in the process, ask if there will be any fee waivers.
Financial Aid Note- you do not handle financial aid after you’ve been accepted. You handle it right after you've finished applying as you get into bed believing yourself to be finished, content at your hard work. Financial aid actually starts at the beginning of the year. Many scholarship programs open up in the fall. What’s even worse, a lot of the deadlines come by the time you are finished applying. So while you were trudging through all the logistics of your application in the fall, Johnny Two by Four was getting his essay done AND applying for some great scholarships. You don’t want to miss out on this stuff. These scholarships, which give you bits and pieces of good money under the conditions that you qualify and write tons of more essays and consequently win, are lifesavers. Depending on the organization and your grades in college, they will fund you all for years or for one year. You will be put at a great disadvantage if you lose out. I know the work will be piling up. Whether it be FAFSA, CSS, income tax returns, paycheck stubs, dependent students’ sheets, get them in through IDOCs or mail or how ever ASAP. Please, get started early. Once again, this is demanding. As a child-laboring sneaker conglomerate advertises, “Just Do It.” Depending on whether the colleges you are applying to are “need-based” or not, or give out merit scholarships or not, outside scholarships will be taken into account for your final financial aid package from the school, so be mindful of that. The school is not going to let you have a wonderful outside scholarship from Gates Millennium, or something, and give you as much money as you would have gotten if you didn’t have the scholarship. No. In most cases, they will deduct a proportional amount so that you would still be paying the same amount in either case, or that’s the theory, at least.
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Identity Crisis Know who you are, what you like, what things you are looking for in a school, and know them well. These identifications will be the lenses through which you judge each college on whether it is your fit or not. Don’t falter on your own views of what your ideal college is just because someone may think your idea is stupid. Tell them to go to…eh, let’s not digress. This is the perfect opportunity to take up your counselor’s constant badgering about college visits. They actually help. Go and see what you like and don’t like. Remember, it’s your future and your happiness for the next four years. Don’t mess up (no pressure).
OJ’s Number 1 Mandate: Maintain Your Precious Sanity For the love of baby Jane, maintain your sanity. Work hard and strive, but know your limits. It is absolutely okay to take breaks in moderation. This calls for your arsenal of closest friends, teachers, activities and family. They will remind you of what’s important after you’ve been brainwashed into believing that everything you’ve done in your life culminates in one final college process that reduces you to insignificant numbers and qualities. Laugh and smile every day. You will get through most trials just by keeping a positive outlook. So the next time a teacher trips in the hallway or acts out in class, or your friend makes a fool of himself in public, or you’re reminded of something embarrassing, you laugh your face off. It’s the best medicine to keeping your precious sanity amidst this chaotic process.
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Social Commentary: Can We Learn? by Emma Longstreth I go from beaming a smile down the hallways because someone had a fascinating and friendly discussion with me about some sort of intriguing social issue, to cringing with discomfort when I hear a jungle of obnoxious complaints about things that are really helping us all in the end. It is amazing how quickly the positive thoughts regarding a conversation about stopping racial, sexual or identity discrimination can dissipate once the tide of generalizations about race, sex, and identity floods out through that open door of a student area. Learning should not stop in the classroom. Your brain should not shut off once you are in an unmoderated setting. Can we all learn when to be quiet and when to be loud? It would really be great if class could be unmarred by loud screeches, and people could walk into lounges without wincing from the wall of sound. Can we all learn that it is actually vastly hypocritical to claim to respect women, and then tell a kitchen or rape joke? It is not funny, or “edgy.” It is actually rude and counterproductive. Can we all learn that everyone, including men, has struggles in society, and most people really do want some form of equality? Can we all learn that the way someone behaves does not determine their race? And viceversa. Can we all learn that most of the time, no one really cares if your hair is out of place, or if you may have done something that you think is “awkward”, so you did not offend anyone? Really, just own your actions. Can we all learn that teachers are people, too? They are giving us the tools to learn. They are giving you work, just as life will. Can we all learn that being a good person should be a major goal? Can we all learn to educate ourselves? These questions run through my mind on a daily basis. How can young people claim that adults unfairly judge them, then turn around and cast petty comments upon everyone around them? I really wish we could all just calm down and think every once and a while. Use your brain; it is there for a reason. In fact, dig deep into other people’s brains--they may be more insightful than you would believe.
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The German Culinary Experience of an Unsuspecting American by Olivier Joseph Aside from boasting a rich tapestry of history and traditions, German cuisine is a cuisine of genuine palpability and variety. During the stay with my host family, the Roessners, I was introduced to a wholesome view of German cuisine, from light breakfasts to hearty dinners. Not expecting the kinds of foods I would be exposed to, I told myself I would be ready for “whatever was thrown at my stomach.” I entered the country fighting off every misconception about German food. There’s no prevalence of sauerkraut, sausage, or beer. I learned that there is more to German food than that. Needless to say, I was entirely satisfied with my encounters with German food. Germany is a bread country (go figure). It is the cornerstone to every meal. My experiences with the breads of Germany were great. I consumed bread at every meal. I’ve found that American bread, ultimately, is pale in comparison to German bread. The notion of sliced bread is monstrous in Germany; for the most part, bread is made and sold in loaves. What also do not exist are the odd variations of bread which America has. In Germany, there is no Italian wheat, or potato bread, or swirl, per se. There is, however true variety. There is schwarzbrot, which is a dark rye-kind of soft sourdough bread, brotchen, a light brown, dry kind of bread and bauer baguette, my first bread love, is a golden brown bread with a coarse shell with spongy goodness on the inside. I never thought I would ever have bread so often. Mettbroetchen. Döner kebab. Schnitzel Weiner Art. Brezel. Pierogies. Berliners. Boulette. Flammekuchen. Pork fillets. Bratwurst. Currywurst. These are the most ethnically German foods I ate while overseas, all of them rich in taste and history. The Brezel, or pretzel as we know, was created in 1839 by accident by a wayward Bavarian baker, Anton Nepomuk Pfanenbrenner who accidentally used a salt solution to cover his bread rather than sugar for his guests at the Royal Café in Munich. Flammekuchen, a tart kind of food, which bears an uncanny resemblance to pizza (Germans do not appreciate that comparison), was created by Germanic farmers in the French region of Alsace. I would have to say, the most memorable meal was eating Mettbroetchen the day we left Hildesheim. Waiting at a station, I was getting very hungry. Brad Heinzinger and I were approached by Mr. Jason with a peculiar grin on his face. He pointed to a particular sandwich on display at a deli. Something about this sandwich struck us as being strange and very unsettling. I peered closer. What caught me off guard was the filling inside the bread: raw meat. “Is that raw meat?” Brad asked confusedly. “Oh yeah,” Mr. Jason continued to grin, “It’s Mettbroetchen. Raw meat and onions. It’s good. Try it. Your last time in Germany and you can’t get this anywhere else.”
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Apprehensive, yet curious, we conceded. The first bite into the Mettbroetchen was one to remember. I could not get out of my head the fact that I was eating raw meat. Raw meat. Growing up, I was always told that raw “almost anything” was bad for you, whether it be meat, cookie dough (much to every child’s chagrin), or eggs. Now I was being encouraged into eating it. I took the maiden bite. The chewy blob of Mettbroetchen was tossed around my mouth as I struggled to chew and consume. I struggled with the second bite. After a few more bites, I was able to focus on just the taste, rather than content and finish off my chewy adversary. I will not ever forget Mettbroetchen, especially after leaving that onion-esque after taste As an American, the food of this country was a great changeup from culturally popular American food. To eat the German cultural equivalents of macaroni and cheese, French fries, or apple pie was an experience which widened my perspective. The German culinary experience showed me that there is way more to this world. It showed me that there are other realms, on which, as a formerly grounded American, I have yet to tread. The trip to Germany and the acquiescence to its lifestyle have left this American curious of the rest of the world and hungry for more (no pun intended).
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A Crash Course on German (and Polish) Culture by Abi Rose-Craver Once upon a time, in a faraway land called Deutschland.... Actually, this story starts out during Christmas Break, a few days before my birthday when my cousin bought me a book called When in Germany, Do As the Germans Do. It was a guide giving readers the chance to learn a bit about German culture and prepare them before
embarking
on
their
great
adventure.
Unfortunately, I did not seize this wonderful opportunity, resulting in a few surprises upon my arrival.
On the first day of the trip, we landed in Berlin and ate breakfast at McDonald’s. After a forty-five minute drive when we reached Schloss Sanssouci in Potsdam, we all had to use the bathroom. Little did we know that you have to pay 1.50€ to use most public restroom facilities. As we dashed into the bathroom stalls, the woman sitting at a table in the entrance angrily started yelling something in German that none of us could comprehend. To our luck, the Hoffmanns had some spare change on them, and we were admitted to use their facilities. However, we still left the bathrooms feeling like dumme Amerikaner.
In Poland, we stayed in a mansion outside of Poznan. I took one look at the beds and noticed something different. To my surprise, instead of the traditional American way of having a fitted sheet, a bed sheet and a comforter on top, neatly tucked under the mattress, there’s a fitted sheet and one oversized
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comforter folded in half on top of the bed. I found myself thinking, “Wait... What? You expect me to sleep with that?!” After a few nights of test runs, turns out that those oversized blankets were actually quite comfy and warm.
A few days into the trip, I began to feel at ease with that whole European living thing. The food was wonderful, the accommodations were wonderful, ya know, Poland, was just wonderful. But it was time to move onto our next stop, Hildesheim, Germany. Many people who know of me think that I’m the quiet kid who only speaks when necessary. Those who truly know me see me as that same quiet kid, but with a bit of a crazy, loud alter ego. In the book When in Germany, Do As the Germans Do, it states that Germans (as well as many Europeans) think that a perpetual smile is materialistic, and they rarely engage in “idle chatter” unless they are well acquainted with each other. My friends and I were a bit shocked as we saw students at the Gymnasium staring at us as we laughed loudly and jumped around in the schoolyard. Back here at Perk, it would be perfectly normal to see a bunch of kids screaming and running around outside, but there, we seemed very strange to the Germans. If I felt that I was being incredibly obnoxious, then we must have been pretty obnoxious.
After two weeks of living in a foreign country, elements that were once huge culture shocks-- like European beds, paying to go to the bathroom, and bologna that resembled jello more than lunchmeat only became minor differences. However, the one thing that I never managed to become accustomed to was the local favorite, Mineralwasser (aka mineral water). Mineral water is the drink of choice for most Europeans, and they love it. But to us, consuming that bubbly beverage was like gulping down straight-up iron.
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Similarly, when I asked my German host, Hanna, what she thought about American water, she wrinkled her nose and replied that our water tastes like pool water. For the first few days of the trip, I feverishly searched grocery stores and restaurants for some good ol’ American spring water. Thankfully, on Day 5, Hanna took me to a grocery store, and I was able to track down some Vio, a brand of American-tasting water. When I got back home, I missed my host family and the freedom of living in Europe, but I was glad to be eating some greasy American food, drinking American spring water, and sleeping in my own American bed again. So, next time you’re in a faraway place like Europe, try embracing the culture rather than criticizing those minor differences. And please, make sure to do a bit of homework and read up on the culture of your destination before departing for your adventure.
An Outburst of a Linguistic Purist by Olivier Joseph As a linguistic purist in my own rite, I find it increasingly agonizing to watch as the English language takes a nose dive towards mediocrity. As such, I will attempt to now expand upon the qualms and woes of my fellow purists, Abi Rose-Craver (’14) and Rory Wetherill (’11). It is necessary to address two of the most detrimental lingual mutations of the English language. Those two mutations are the multiple use of the word “like” within single sentences (incorrectly, too) and the use of the word “literally” for anything but speaking in the literal. We are well into the 21st century. Let’s get with the program, people! Problem #1 “I was like ‘What’s differentiation?’ Like, I understand if you do not get this, but like you should try to, like, understand the basic concepts of differentiation. Think of it as something like manipulating numbers.” The word “like” is rather flexible; it may serve as a verb, adjective, conjunction, noun, adverb, or even a particle. It is not the type of word used to convey a certain feeling, nor is it the kind of word used as a transition or sentence breaker. It is not emphatic. In the sample above, out of the five times “like” is used, only two usages are correct. The first correct instance is when it is used as a quotative- a word used to introduce a quote. The second is when it is used to indicate a comparison between two things. This is its most common usage: to describe one thing to be the same or nearly the same in appearance, characteristic, or quality. The other three usages incorrectly express the word “like” as a word meant to emphasize what comes after, pause the flow of the sentence, or simply serve as a filler word in a sentence that would do best to be said without “like.” THIS IS NOT RIGHT. The villainy must be stopped.
Like, I understand if you do not understand this… The poor word is not being used as a noun, adjective, adverb, conjunction, preposition, or even a quotative. Scrap it …but like you should try to, like, understand the basic concepts of differentiation. Here, it is used as a useless filler word and as a vocal pause in the sentence. The sentence will function just fine without the infernal usage; in fact, the message would be conveyed more effectively if the word was omitted. Scrap it. Problem #2
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“I literally died when I watched Kevin Ware’s injury.” “I’ve literally been studying for this test for three years.” To be literal is to follow the nature of any given construction, following it true to the facts without any kind of exaggeration. This is exactly what is NOT being adhered to. The word “literally” is now used to mean anything but the literal; it is erroneously used as a hyperbole. Let’s take a look at the sample above: I literally died when I watched Kevin Ware’s injury. Though spine-tingling and suspenseful as the Louisville guard’s injury was, there is no need to use the term “literally” to express an emotive exaggeration. To say that one literally died after witnessing an event means that one ACTUALLY died witnessing an event. To mean otherwise is sin. I’ve literally been studying for this test for three years. Assuming this test has been assigned within the past week and a half, for one to say that he or she has been literally studying for it for three years is incorrect, even if it feels as though the duration of studying has been three years. Though figuratively effective, it is literally deficient. As such, it, too, is sin. I hope everyone can feel a little bit enlightened after reading this. You should at least heed the advice: speak well. But hey, should you choose to disregard the warnings, I’ll let the results of that important job interview, senior thesis project or public event speak for themselves.
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REFLECTIONS OF A GRATUATING “VETERAN” by Maggie Dougherty
As I look at the faces of our senior class, the first word that comes to mind is family—one big family, sometimes somewhat dysfunctional but always embracing and endearing, a family full of athletes, scholars, artists and friends. And someone once said “home is where the heart is,” and my heart is in this family. Many of us call Perk home, we have fallen in love with the community, the quote of the day, the life in the dorm and—dare I even say—the food. But I really call Perk home. Growing up on a boarding school campus sure made my childhood different. Not many kids were greeted by Mr. Manferdini at their bus stop every afternoon, and not many kids really thought that all meals were served on blue trays. Not many kids played house under basketball bleachers. Not many kids sat in on economic lectures on snow days, either. Not many kids learned how to ride a bike on the basketball court outside of Robbie’s. However, I was one of those “not so many” kids. And I consider myself very fortunate.
I call Perk my home because it is where I have learned a great deal about life and where I have grown into a capable scholar. From middle school with Mrs. Longstreth and her “Wordly Wise” to Ms. Lupo’s deathly AP, I can say that many classes here have pushed me out of my comfort zone and taught me to think. These classes have shaped me into a young woman. My family is in and on the field, and my heart is in the game. Every team here at Perk that I have been a part of has taught me compassion, passion, the importance of mutual trust and respect, the value of team work and communication—all these things that are by far more precious than just the glory of a great game, a championship or a win. The community that I call a family at Perk has led me to who I am. I can say I have made “bonds of union, bonds of friendship, and even bonds of love” . . . this alma mater is my family and my heart will forever lie “in the sunset blending purple and the gold.”
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Quiz Answers A Movie Buff’s Quiz 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
C C B B A D C A C D
Zucker-Abrams-Zucker The Lord of the Rings Gary Cooper James Cameron Wings Gone with the Wind They are all based on a video game series Spoofs Dr. No Studio Ghibli
A Bookworm’s Quiz 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
D A B A D A B C B B
Both B and C Back to the Future A Tale of Two Cities John Irving Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Capote) The Catcher in the Rye John Updike Charles “Dill” Baker Harris 1719 Robert Frost
Nancy Lin
20 Questions About Music 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
C B D D A B C A D B
11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.
B D B B C C C B C A
Elvis’ first movie Love Me Tender (1956)
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Class of 2013:
Class of 2015:
Maggie Dougherty, Jessica Jiang, Olivier Joseph, Emma
Jude An, Carly Johnson, Dan Lankry, Kevin Li,
Longstreth, Esteban Martinez-Francia, Linslet Oh, Eunice
Patrick Vetter
Tang, Yilin Tong, Kate Wetzel, Issac Yeung, Kitty Zhang, Joeson Zhao
Class of 2014:
Class of 2016: Daniel Che, Edison Yao
Dagny Barone, Elizabeth Burnett, Antonio Coleman, Jasmine Cora, Shawn Hang , Abdel Ibrahim, Hannie Le, Anthony Perdue, Kyle Shen, Abi Rose-Craver, Michelle Suh
Class of 2013: Olivier Joseph (Editor-in-Chief), Jessica Jiang, Eunice Tang, Kitty Zhang, Joeson Zhao Class of 2014: Dagny Barone, Shawn Hang, Nancy Lin, Abi Rose-Craver Class of 2015: Colin Corcoran, Kevin Li, Patrick Vetter Class of 2016: Daniel Che
Faculty Adviser: Henryk Hoffmann
PERK
SPECTIVES 77
Elizabeth B.