The Twilight Saga: "New Monologue"

        The monologues that worked the best during this week of presentations were the ones where the presenter could do more than just memorize, but they really  took on their chosen character to convice us. These presentations had the biggest impact on me.  Mi is a great example of a great presentation.  She had memorized her monologue early on, but that was not even close to the most impressive part. Mi had great pronunciation, she was able to amplify her voice to give us the words she was speaking very clearly.  Most of all though she took on her character perfectly and really made me see how crazy her girl was supposed to be.  I was engaged in her monologue because it felt as if she wasn't herself, but the character she was pretending to be.  She really had me scared for a little bit.  Mi made this monologue into a performance and not just a speech.  She did not lose the meaning either, making it an extremely impressive, well-done presentation.  

          I was extremely impressed with the outcome of my monologue as well.  I only had to do three takes and after the third one I had captured an extremely solid monologue from "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" spoken as the main character Bella.  The hardest part for me was remembering the sequences of my monologue but really taking on Bella's character while trying to also make it my own. The memorization wasn't as hard for me as for others because I had seen this movie many of times and loved it so I really knew the story and the characters well.  It was hard thought to get the proper lines in order though because my monologue was compiled of a series of different emails Bella sends to "Alice's email".  In order to capture the effect of writing to a person without expecting a response, but also keeping engaged with my audience, I decided to write letters instead for my monologue.  I also chose to write down the first line of every email to keep me on track.  Bella is both an easy yet hard character to portray.  In this monologue she is supposed to be going through the lowest point of depression, but at certain points better things happen than bad.  It was hard to maintain a tone of depression, but add variety while also ,asking it my own take on the character.  I felt that I also improved my volume, which was quiet on the first take, as I presented a couple times.  I feel like that is what I still need to work on going forward, really projecting my voice so everyone hears what I have to say clearly.

Spoken word poetry: Ed Sheeran "Take it Back"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zs_9S-213b0

The Twilight Saga: New Moon Monologue (as Bella)

http://youtu.be/PWS6BjvRnMc

Script: 

           Alice: you've disappeared like everything else.  Who else can I talk to, I'm lost.  When you left, and he left, you took everything with you.  But the absence of him is everywhere I look.  It's like a huge hole has been punched through my chest.  But in a way I'm glad...the pain is my only reminder that he was real...that you all were.

           Alice: I saw him.  Maybe I'm crazy now, I guess that's okay.  If a rush of danger is what it takes to see him, then that's what I'll find.

           Alice: I wish I had your real address.  I wish I could tell you about Jake.  He makes me feel better.  I mean...he makes me feel alive.  The hole in my chest...well when I'm with Jake, it's like it's almost healed...for awhile.  But even Jake can't keep the dreams away.

           Alice: Things are...things are bad again.  Without Jake, I...I can't stand it.  I don't see Edward anymore...will it ever feel like he never existed?  I will find a place where I can see him again.

           Alice: Is it possible that everything is true?  Fairy tales and horror stories?  Is it possible that there isn't anything sane or normal at all?

           Alice: I'm alright.  Until I'm alone.  And lately that's all the time.  Jacob's gone, he's hunting Victoria.  And Charlie's hunting Jacob.  And you're gone, and so is Edward.  And there's just nothing now.  But I realize where I have to go, what I have to do to see him again.

Andrew Fezza Art Gallery

After going to see Andrew Fezza and his gallery I learned a lot about the journey to being successful and how it happens.  Andrew went to school for a different major than fashion.  After a little while of college he switched his major and first focused on women's fashion while living in New York City.  This is something that reassured me because I am not one hundred percent positive of what I want to do and it is comforting to know that you don't have to carry out the profession you first decide when going to college for the rest or your life or if you end up discovering a different passion.  Andrew explained how he first started at the bottom of the food chain in a fashion company.  He told of how he watched as new designers would come in, design a line and then leave the company.m he was inspired by every different work and was able to see, being the lowest of the jobs, how the business worked from every aspect.  He explained that there was one woman who was of a high position in the company who he was especially afraid of.  Andrew said he learned the most about the business from this woman, especially from her intimidation.  She was actually an extremely good person who liked Andrew, wanting to help him be prepared to be successful in fashion in the future.  He then went on to explain how he really began creating his own fashion and lines.  It started with just a couple single pieces that soon people started to like and want more of.  Andrew explained the difficulty in realizing that creating your own fashion line entailed buying bulk of certain items in order to make multiple pieces not just one at a time.  It was necessary to get started by buying cheap materials in order to produce more clothes faster in a short period of time.  Mine of the major reasons he has been able to be so successful is because of a friend's mother who found out he was interested in his own fashion line.  She had promised him that if he were serious about starting his own line, she would start a partnership to help him out.  Andrew said that without this help, he would never have been able to get as far as he has.  It was interesting to see all of Mr. Fezza's pieces in the poster boards hanging around the gallery.  He has begun to focus on men's clothing and he has taken men's clothing from plain to fancy and fashionable.  His outfits are extremely professional but very stylish, there was so many people there looking at all of his designs.  This showed to me how important fashion is to everyone in their daily lives and it is important in this world to have talented designers like Andrew.  This inspired me because Andrew started off as a normal student at Cheshire Academy and is now an extremely noteworthy, designer.  I have faith now that it isn't impossible to follow your dreams even if they seem hard to reach.  It is important to go after what you love and in the end it may work out even better than you expect.

Having a way with words

Even at the very beginning of public speaking, we have learned about the importance of certain words when it comes to perfecting this skill and not just in this class, but also in the real world.  The first exercise of the class was practicing how to pronounce a certain phrase and the important terms we needed to focus on were articulation & diction, pacing, projection, and emphasis & delivery.  Articulation and diction are very similar in the fact that in order to give a speech, the words that are chosen need to be able to clearly convey the message the speech giver is trying to get across, but these words need to be chosen carefully for the appropriate audience.  Certain audiences will require different word choices or phrasing, like for example, if a student were giving a speech to their fellow classmates and teachers, the words and phrases chosen would need to be sophisticated enough for the speech giver to be taken seriously, but also not too advanced where they might be in danger of losing their audience's attention.  In order to give a great speech it is important to maintain a steady pace, which is the speed at which the speech is spoken.  It is habit for a speaker to begin to speak faster and faster as they get more nervous, and sometimes a speech can be too slow when the speaker is focusing too much on slowing down.  It is important to keep a steady pace that is not too fast or too slow, so your audience can understand what you are saying, but also aren't getting bored with a speech that seems to be in slow-mo.  Projection is the volume of which you give your speech.  It is important to be loud enough for the audience to be able to hear and understand the entire speech.  Lastly is emphasis and delivery.  It is important to stress the most important words in regards to the meaning of the speech in delivering it because it will help your audience to pick out those specific words giving them a clear depiction of the meaning being portrayed in that particular speech.  Another two important terms that need to be considered when giving a speech are audience and purpose.  Before giving any speech it is important to consider the group of people that will be on the receiving end of the speech.  Depending on any audience, the tone, language, style, topic and many other aspects will be affected by whoever will be listening to it.  It should be interesting to every member in attendance, but also as informative as need be to in order for it to be successful.  After audience is considered, the purpose comes next.  It is important to appeal and persuade the people to whom you are speaking, on whatever topic or opinion you wish to present.  The purpose needs to be clear to all members of the audience and should be performed in a way that everyone will understand, enjoy and later reflect on if given successfully.  After reviewing all of the important terms from this weeks class, I have been able to clearly plan out any speech I am thinking of giving and I think when taking all of this information into consideration, my speeches will gradually become better each time.  I also think this will help me to fulfill my goals for this class this year.  I wish to be more confident and to give a solid, informtative, presentation by the end, and all of these terms are just pieces of what it takes to achieve this goal.  

3 Sides to Every Story

1.) Saving Jane - Girl Next Door (song and lyrics) - YouTube

www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpqjC9Rz8Co

I chose this song because it is about being your own person even if it is out of the ordinary, staying true to who you are.  In this song though, a girl compares herself to another she will never live up to, and the person she holds herself to isn't the quality of person the singer is representing.  In my own life, I have always tried to be my own unique person, never wanting to follow the crowd and being true to my interests, style, choices, etc.  I may not fall into the stereotypical definition of a normal or perfect girl, but I stay true to myself and never compare myself to another who may seem or feel "higher" than me.  I am happy with who I am so this song inspires me to continue being the "girl next door" who can be a friend, girlfriend or good person to everyone I come to meet, and also taking risks to stay who I like to be.

2.) Justin Bieber - Turn To You (Lyrics) - YouTube

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gPUOFG7Uls

I chose this song because it pertains to a big, extremely important person in my life.  This song is about how much the singer loves his mother and how much of an impact she has on his life.  It describes how he appreciates all that his mother has ever done or given up for him, as well as how she still helps him get through life day to day.  This is true of my mother as well.  My mom is my best friend in this world, and I can't imagine life without her.  She helps me through every situation good or bad, and she has done more for me in life that without, I couldn't have gotten through or I wouldn't be the person I am today.  I am thankful for my mother everyday of my life and this song is a dedication to not just the singer's mother but also to my mother and it should be for every mother in the world.

3.) Maroon 5 - My Heart is Open (featuring Gwen Stefani) - V ... - YouTube

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvdMtm_sMa0

I chose this song because it pertains to me both in the literal meaning as well as a higher message.  This song is a duet about loving someone you can't let go of and vowing to care for that person forever, especially when they are ready to come back to you.  This song means something to me because it can be just about loving someone only in a relationship sense, but it can also apply to loving all of the important people in a person's life.  It can also be about how hard it is to let anyone go when you care too much and also about finally opening your heart to the world, awaiting and accepting love.  It is hard to open up to the world, but it is a great feeling when you finally do.  I have many people I care about in this world who I couldn't never let go of easily, and it's been hard to let go of the people I still care about that may or may not come back.  I am also opening up to accepting new friends, or any people,but am also ready to start a new chapter in my life, opening up my heart to the world.

Goals:

1.) One goal that I wish to achieve in this class is being able to speak confidentially in front of any number of people.  I am not the worst public speaker, but I am never really confident that what I am saying is important or if it is any good.  I want to learn how to be comfortable in front of a large group of people, or if I'm nervous (which it is normal to be), I want to learn techniques to present a calm front and be able to communicate my ideas or beliefs eloquently and confidently.

2.) Another goal I have for this class is to control my body language while speaking in order not to distract my listeners.  When I get nervous I tend to blush, play with my hands, rock back and forth or not make eye contact.  I wish to be able to control these habits so that the people listening will only be paying attention to the message I am presenting, rather than being distracted but my mannerisms instead.

3.) My final goal in this class is to be able to memorize a speech and deliver the message as if I am taking on the character I need to be to get the meaning across. I have always just read my speeches word for word, rarely making eye contact, and it seems robotic and not fluid.  I wish to be able to know what I want to say and have a general idea of what the speech will include, but to also take on my message personally, getting into the speech even if I need to improvise every once in awhile.

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The inspiration of song

"A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song"
                                                                             -Maya Angelou