Final Essay

There were so many aspects of this class that I found engaging.  One of the things I enjoyed was the focus on symbolism.  The aspect about symbolism that sparked my interest was how one story can relate to another because of the symbols involved.  For example, when we read Goblin Market, we saw how fruit was a constant in the poem and it's purpose can relate to the story of Creation - as it was forbidden.  I also loved the story of Macbeth even though we did not read the whole play, it gave me a new found interest in Shakespeare that was not rattled in high school.  I liked finding an image and a video that related to Macbeth, and picking out the symbols there and breaking it down.  Professor X's lecture also was exceptional, and I would LOVE to take her class if I had the time.  She definitely had the wheels turning in my brain in explaining Macbeth to us.  I also enjoyed Coraline very much, and how the "Scottish Play" ended up being mentioned (whether that was intentional or not) made it fit nicely into this class.  The book was a fun read and only wish that Neil Gaiman could have made an adult version that could be scarier.... that would be great!  Every blog that I wrote for this class was something interesting that I wanted to write about, except for the "About Me," portion - only because I think it is a bit difficult for me to write about myself.

The blog entry that I enjoyed very much came from a student in another class:  Thibaut Black.  His video was funny, informative, and kept me interested the entire 7 minutes.  I think it took him a lot of work, but in the end he did a great job.  He probably blew all the students out of the water with his creativity - very cool.  In our class, my second choice of who did a great job would be Benjamin Chivas.  Because I watch reality TV shows like Ghost Adventures, and Paranormal State, I was excited to see what he had made for his presentation since I already knew what an EVP was.  I enjoyed the EVP explanation,as well as how you could do it yourself if you wanted to.  The scare element of the ghost sounds gave it a nice, chilling touch.  I think the class needed to be scared a little for it to live up to it's title!

Overall, I feel that this class was interesting the entire time.  I never got bored and I enjoyed blogging.  I feel like it is an innovative way to teach, and that more teachers should get with it!  I also think it would be especially helpful with younger students who relate to technology another level that older students do not.  Dr. Smith, you are very good at what you do!!! I will miss this class very much.  Thank you.  I had a great time being a part of it!