Journal #2: Thief of Time

Some humans would do anything to see if it was possible to do it. If you put a large switch in some cave somewhere, with a sign on it saying 'End-of-the-World Switch. PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH', the paint wouldn't even have time to dry.”
― Terry Pratchett, Thief of Time 

Grade 12's:  Do you think this quote is true?  What makes us human beings? What play/movie/book best explores the frailties of humanity?  (Maybe not "best" if it's too hard to choose.)  I think Shakespeare's tragedies attempt to address our frailties -- each of the big ones attack one aspect of human weakness; for example, "Othello" supposedly deals with our propensity for jealousy, but I think it looks at how our feelings of inadequacy can make us behave dangerously.  Othello lives in a society that makes use of his good qualities, but doesn't honour him as a man and this attitude has dire consequences for everyone around him.  It reminds me of what happened to Muhammed Ali.  He won the gold medal for boxing at the Olympics and then, when he returned to the United States, he discovered that he still had to deal with racism and that people didn't treat him as an equal.  "Romeo and Juliet", I think, addresses the danger of behaving impetuously ("Hamlet" does this, too, I think.)  Young people sometimes don't think about the consequences of their actions and that can also have dire consequences!

Grade 9's:  Why is it important for us to know about our history?  What does your heritage story tell us about how people lived in the past?

Grade 8's:  Are you good at working in groups?  Why or why not?  What qualities do you have that could make you a good team member?  Are you a good leader?  Why or why not?  Write about an experience you had working in a group (it could be in school or at camp or anywhere).  Was it a good experience or a bad one?  What did you learn from it? 

Remember, your journals are due on Tuesday.  Please try to stay on top of this.  It's nice to reflect on what's going on in the world and in class.