The induction, that is to be setted...

I have done my set induction that day, and I am glad that I got positive responses from the students – who are also my classmates. However, doing all these things with the videos, and games and stuff, just to get students to warm up with the upcoming lesson was – I should say – tedious. However, who am I to judge a thing that have been researched thoroughly and established by experts in teaching.

My set induction was a video, I spent more than three days to look for the video, download it, cut it to pieces that I think is appropriate for students to view it. After I had done showing students my set induction, then Mr Harold Pong commented, and my set induction was apparently not good enough, I am not questioning Mr Pong’s opinion, however, I wonder if I am doing the same thing when I am teaching real students, and Mr Pong is not there to tell me that my set induction is not good, then my effort for three days might result into nothing – so I am worried, even though I have still another year and a half to brush my skills up, but going into a class full of 46 14 year olds scares the hell out off me.

My two other micro teachings, all my set inductions were videos – and I got bad remarks for them, I even failed at one of the micro teachings. What baffled me was that, when I did my micro teaching for the reading class, the lecturer told me that I have teacher presence, and I am good in controlling my class, but when it comes to literature class, the lecturer said that I didn’t have teacher presence, and I don’t know how to control my class, and when it comes to drama class, my tutor said that my activity was weird. Was I good in a once-in-a-blue-moon basis, or was I having my bad day on the two other micros? I will never know.

All I know is now, I am buying a lot of books regarding teachings and how create activities, I hope I can be a good teacher, and I wish I could be my own critic, so I can better myself, not depending on lecturers to point out what I did wrong.

I too can command the wind sir!

Queen Elizabeth is famous for her long reign and an era that had (and still has) been called Elizabethan to this day. It was interesting the way I see the movie portray her life as a queen. The way they speak, they were arguing but still their language were like so decent. If it was us who were arguing, we are certainly going to throw abundance of vulgar words here and there. I remember how the Spanish ambassador accusing the queen of her adulterous behaviour with the English pirates, well they were shouting, but Queen Elizabeth still calls the accuser 'sir'. It was really interesting and it is etched in my mind...

I too can command the wind sir! I have a hurricane in
me that will strip Spain bare if you dare to try me!

And just before she shouted this to the Spanish ambassador, the ambassador actually bows as a mark of respect just after insulting her - Funny.

I dont know whether to say that they are truly being polite, or just hypocrites.

Also, i cant imagine the fact that in another few years time, Shakespeare will receive her patronage and she will make him famous. Because the Queen favours poetry and plays. I thought it was because she was bored of sexless life because she never marry - but then again she was the queen and she did have many favourites amongst the men of court and she was her mother's daughter (Not trying to point out that Anne Boleyn was actually a whore) - and then again - she was called the virgin queen. Well, putting the idea of her affairs with men to rest, she did exposed Shakespeare to the word, by giving him much encouragement.

It was interesting to see the life at English court operate and revolves around each other, it certainly was. I have clearer idea of the the courts of King Lear revolves - it was fun.

Melancholic Fool tried to be creative

I have written plays before, but after learning the language of drama, I wanted to write something that at least resembles the brechtian plays. However, i realized that to write a brechtian play, it requires more intellect than my small brain could muster. So after a few days of thinking and after being pushed by my group members, i resort to the usual plot structure.

The last play that i have written was staged in IPP Penang, it was an adaptation from the Hang Li Po's love affair with Hang Jebat. It was fun, with a lot of funny lines and dancings, the title was scandal in the palace. It was not brechtian either, but i think it was better than the one i have written for the assignment.

My group members, bored that they have to wait for me to get an inspiration, they came up with a plot, and all i had to do was to realize it in the form of a script. So my intention to write a brechtian cant be fulfilled. However, i learn how write so everyone can understand the story, since most of the time i write something to messy and people just cannot understand. So all the comments that i got from my friends have helped me level my writings to a more normal one.

The Weird Ancient Greek Life

The Teiresias that I know is only in the play Oedipus, and there he (who used to be a she, and also a mother) was treated like this all-knowing wise man, very mature and intelligent, but later when I goggled him, I was so shocked with his story, what with the stalking Athena and hitting a couple of snake who were having sex (and got transform into a girly girl – is it just me or everyone can't see the connection of how being transformed into a girl can be a retribution from hitting snakes having sex?)

The myth of ancient Greeks have this reputation, full of sex, lust, fools, over-achieving man, out-of-your-mind punishment. I think Teiresias is all reputations rolled into one. One big reason for this is that he came out in a number of different plays so probably he needs to develop his characters more. Probably, the ‘tukang karut’ of ancient Greek have ran out of ideas so they decided ‘hey, why don’t we make him blind and after a few more stories, we could change him into a woman and he could bore sons!’.

However, there could be a lot that we can learn from him, one of it being discreet on things that he 'sees'. I mean, when he sees something, he refuses to tell, i think he realized that by saying a prophecy out loud, people would tend to fulfill it. Maybe he had seen what would happen to macbeth in a few centuries time.

Prophecy is not a good thing, i think teiresias, ironically, being a prophet himself, sees the worst in saying about prophecies, that was why he decided to keep quiet of saying who is the murdered of Laius.

They Produce Offspring??

....

exactly what i was thinking when i've finished reading Oedipus Rex. I mean like, it could be exciting to stage a play with so many dramatic suspense on a stage, i would love to be the director, but i still cannot pass the fact that Oedipus produced sons and daughters through his mother...

I know i have to be professional and accept the storyline, however, i guessed i am too far traditional or maybe even close minded to actually wriggle in thoughts of vomit whenever i read about the character Jocasta. But i cannot deny that the suspense were fitted to the plot impeccably, i can imgaine if i actually attempt to stage it, i would have to muster a lot of energy to explain to my actors of how it should be acted, and it would take really good actors to act in this plays, preferably those who can get pass the fact that oedipus slept with his own mother - and produce offspring.

The language in the play was surprisingly easy to understand, so i think to actually teach using this play was not impposible, however, to expose students with