Wednesday, November 7, 2012


      The song I chose is Through the Fire and the Flames made by Dragonforce. I chose this song because after listening to the lyrics multiple times, I saw a deeper meaning. Though the lyrics talk about hell a lot, what it is really saying is that, no matter how many problems one faces when trying to reach a goal they need to keep fighting. It also talks about fighting through life and the hardships that a person goes through. We can see that they are talking about fighting for their dreams in these lyrics:
On the wings of a DREAM so Far beyond reality
      They have dream, but the dream looks to be too far away, to the point it is beyond reality. However, they work hard in order to reach this goal. There is also some allusions in the song. In the beginning, they say:
On a cold winter of morning,
In the time before the light.
In flames of death's eternal reign,
We ride towards the fight
      This is an allusion to the Army and their saying that they run towards the fight and the terror, even though they know they are going into a place where many have passed away. They make another allusion, but to America and its military:
I'll break the seal of this curse if I possibly can,
For freedom of every man
      The seal represents the evil that is in the world. They want to break the curse because it will bring freedom to every man, or in other words, they want to defeat the evil in the world so everyone can have freedom.
      Like most songs, Through the Fire and the Flames has a chorus, which can be seen as Anaphora, since they say the same thing over and over again. The way it is preformed helps to since this band plays metal music. This type of music helps make the lyrics more intense and meaningful since metal music is usually dark. If someone were to just read the lyrics, without any music playing, it would not make a lot of sense. Thus, to fully understand the meaning of the lyrics, the song must be played in the background; otherwise it would not be the same.




Wednesday, October 31, 2012

22 May 1789,
      It is official now, the Revolution against our King has commenced. Even Father has taken arms with our friends and has gone off to fight against King Louis XIV. Mother and I wish Father comes home in one piece, for life without him would be very hard. I am not sure whether or not I should help the Revolutionaries. I feel an obligation of some sort due to the fact Father is participating. If I help, hopefully this war will end sooner. However, if I help, the patrols in the town would surely find out and have me executed. This truly is a time of hardships and difficult decisions. Next week I will be the age needed to fight in the war, which seems like the best option. Life in a country split in two would be very hard, so if I go and help Father, our friends, and the rest of the Revolutionaries, maybe life could go back to what is was like before Louis XIV had declared war. 
      Fighting seems like he best option for me. Currently, Mother and I have just enough food to care for both of us, yet I can see the prices going up more. If I were to fight, I would get a good pay for it as well as a decent amount of food. As good as all this seems, my life would be put on the line everyday. I am not even sure if we can win against a King, let alone against the nobles. Such talk like that would be considered treason. In fact, yesterday I saw someone killed on the street because of saying something similar. I have to go and eat dinner, but before I go, I must write down the major question which is:

Will I join the revolutionaries in hopes of defeating King Louis XIV?

      If anyone is to read this while I am away, ask yourself the same question and debate whether or not you will fight for your country. I think I have my answer, but I will still ponder it for a couple days since signups end in 3 days. Maybe, just maybe, when I go to fight, I will able to see Father, and he will be very proud of me, for fighting for my country.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Revised Hero Comparison of Odysseus

      Most modern heroes have very similar qualities or characteristics to each other; They are smart, strong, handsome, and rich among other things. Overall, they posses their society's perfect traits. The ideal traits of the Greeks can be seen easily in the character Odysseus. Odysseus is smart, and always debates with himself of what decision is best for the situation. He is strong because he has long endured pain, sorrow, and sadness. He is also very rich, because he sacked the city of Troy, even before he wen to war, he already held a lot of money. Lastly, he is handsome because even the Goddess Calypso wishes to marry him. Odysseus however has flaws too. Since Odysseus is very smart and strong, he becomes cocky. When he becomes cocky, he causes his own demise. All of these traits can also be seen in many recent heroes, like the Avengers.
      In The Avengers, the main heroes are the Hulk, Ironman, Captain America, and Thor. All four of these heroes have some, if not all, of the traits listed above. The Hulk is strong, smart, when he is not angry, and handsome. The Hulk however, is not rich. In fact, he runs away for most of his life, going to poorer countries, like India and South America. Ironman has all four traits listed, and as well as Thor. Captain America is smart, strong, and handsome. However, like the Hulk, he is not rich. These traits relate to society because most people wish to have these traits and so this is reflected into the heroes. Though these traits have stayed the same over many years, heroes are beginning to change. Now, heroes have superpowers or use technology to fight crime. The Greeks did not believe in fighting crimes but instead focused on adventures and how the Gods played important roles. Recent heroes fight crime with technology(Batman) or with superpowers and the reader cheers them on. In the Greek society, the reader, or in this case the listener, would cheer on the hero as the hero faces many trials and enemies.
      As one can see, overtime, the main traits of heroes and movies have changed. In this case, the traits might have changed due to the fact that in The Avengers, there are multiple heroes. In The Batman series, Bruce Wayne has all of these traits but that is because he is the only hero whereas in The Avengers, there are four heroes. The paths that heroes undergo have changed as well. In ancient history, heroes went through many strange adventures. Modern heroes go through adventures, but not the same way. Modern heroes usually have to fight the villain that has escaped from jail, like Batman fighting the Joker. The adventure is the hero fighting evil, losing at first, learning something new about themselves after they lost the battle, and then having a major battle which decides the fate of the hero and the villain.
      It is evident that the journeys heroes now and in the past take are quite similar. Th only difference is that the evil, the final battle, and the mind changing experience for the hero, are now much larger, and therefore much easier to identify them. Odysseues is fighting evil all the time, surving from the God's wrath and constantly at war to not give up and to keep fighting to see his family. In conclusion the traits and events that occur in the hero and their journey have become more emphasized.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

      Odysseus is portrayed by Homer to be a hero who is supposed to show the ideal characteristics of Homer's society. Odysseus shows that he is smart, sneaky, strong, and more through out his journey. However, he also shows his flaws when he barely escapes the cyclops. When they are sailing, Odysseus calls out to the cyclops and tells him Odysseus's true name, "Cyclops, if any mortal man ever asks you who it was that inflicted upon your eye this shameful blinding, tell him that you were blinded by Odysseus, sacker of cities(Homer 150). Here, Odysseus brought his own demise. When he told his true name to the cyclops, he became the only sailor/fighter left alive from his crew. With this, he also stalled his journey home by another eight to ten years.
      However, his other traits were able to keep him alive and help him get home. Through his strength, he was able to survive the attack done be Poseidon on his make-shift boat. He is smart because he always debates on which option is the best for that specific situation. he is sneaky because he was able to trick the cyclops and with that he was able to survive. I believe Odysseus is not an ideal hero because he gets many of his comrades killed on his trip from Troy. However, he can be seen as an ideal hero from the Greek perspective because of his traits, his hamartia, and him doing well in sports.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012


            Most modern heroes have very similar qualities or characteristics to each other. They are smart, strong, handsome, rich, and many more. Overall, they hold their societies perfect traits. These traits can be seen easily in the character Odysseus. Odysseus is smart by always debating with himself of what decision is best for the situation. He is strong because he has long endured pain, sorrow, and sadness. He is also very rich because he sacked Troy and even before he went to war, he already held a lot of money. Lastly, he is handsome because even the Goddess Calypso wishes to marry him. All of these traits can be seen in many recent movies, like the Avengers.
            In the Avengers, our main heroes are the Hulk, Ironman, Captain America, and Thor. All four of these heroes have some, if not all of the traits that were listed above. The hulk is strong, smart when not angry, and handsome. The Hulk however is not rich, in fact he runs away for most of his life, going to poorer countries, like India and South America. The Ironman has all four traits listed and Thor does as well. Captain America is smart, strong, and handsome. However, like the Hulk, he is not rich.
            As one can tell, overtime, the main traits of heroes in stories and in movies have changed. This, however, might just be that way because this movie has multiple heroes. A super hero who has all of these traits is Batman. Anyways, the paths heroes take have also taken a new form. Odysseus, from The Odyssey, goes on an adventure to find his way home. He leaves the island he was trapped on, makes it to shore, and begins his long journey home, making and staying at friends’ houses. Now, modern heroes always allow a villain to escape jail. The adventure is the hero fighting evil, losing at first, learning something new about themselves after they lost the battle, and then have a major battle that decides the fate of the villain and hero.
            In reality, we could see that the journeys our heroes take are quite similar. The only difference is that the evil, the final battle, and the mind changing experience for the hero, are now much larger, as in that it is much easier to identify them. Odysseus is fighting evil all the time, surviving from the God’s wrath and constantly at war to not give up and to keep fighting to see his family. So in total, heroes’ characteristics and traits have changed a little and the events in the journeys taken by them have become more emphasized.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

"Gods, we must have a council discussing Odysseus and his captivity on the island," said my father. Quickly  after the calling, the gods all assembled except for Poseidon, who was away to obtain his sacrifices. I started to speak first.
"We must let Odysseus leave the island, or at least we should try and help."
My father, brothers, and sisters all agreed with me except for my uncle, Poseidon. Since it was everyone versus one, I set off to find Telemachus. After I flew down and found Telemachus, I decided to transform into someone his father once new. As I entered his estate, he saw me and greeted me quickly.
"Come, come in stranger! You must have dinner with us before we talk!" said Telemachus.
"So be it," I said.
      After eating dinner, we discussed many issues, like why were there so many suitors in his estate, where did I come from, how did I know his father and many other subjects. In the end, before I took my leave, I said,
"Telemachus, if your father has not been seen and you have not heard if he has died, you must go and search for him."
"But there are so many suitors here, i am afraid that they will take my mother and everything that I own!"
"Well Telemachus, if you are half as good as your father was, you will go and search for him. Obtain a boat and a crew of twenty men. If you have gotten any courage or wisdom from me, you will go to Pylos and from there to Sparta. If you find out your father has died, return home and have a funeral. However, if he has not died, keep searching for him," I said.
      And with that, I left. As I flew back home, I knew I changed Telemachus. He is now smarter, stronger, and more courageous than ever before.
The Next Morning
"It is dawn and Telemachus has left already! It seems he has taken my words of wisdom to heart. I shall transform into the Mentor and go to him," I said.
      While Telemachus was in his council, I found a boat and crew that was perfect for our adventure to find his father, my friend.
"Mentor! The council has let me take the adventure to find my father, but they are not to fond of the idea," Telemachus said.
"No matter, let us get on the boat and take our leave," I said.
      After we got on the boat, I created a gust, which made our path to Pylos easier and quicker. The boat ride was long, but i was able to fly between Mt. Olympus and the boat. When we made it to Pylos, I mostly followed Telemachus because I did not want to inter fear that much. When we finally found Nestor, i did not speak much for most of this adventure, Telemachus would have to do most of the talking. I could only hope Telemachus knew what he was doing.

Wednesday, September 12, 2012


George and the Wolf

            One day, George was on an airplane that was headed for California. In this plane, there were very few people. After getting settled in, the airplane prepared to leave Texas. The airplane took with no problems and the pilot set to cruse. After a couple hours of flying, the pilot announced that they were over one of California’s large forests. Then, all of the sudden, one of the engines began to have a malfunction. George noticing the turbulence looked out of the window. When he looked, he saw that the engine was being jammed by something small because George was unable to see what it was. Before George could think about it, the airplane was going down. The oxygen masks fell right afterword, hitting George in the face. For some reason, George was still looking out the window to see what was jamming the engine. While looking out the window, he noticed the ground was coming closer to him at a fast rate. Knowing what was soon about to occur, George braced for impact. The next time George was awake, half the plane was gone.
            Waking up after the crash was hard for George. At first, George thought he was dreaming when he saw half of the plane gone. But after taking a good hard look at the scene, he realized part of the plane really was gone. Immediately, George got up and began looking for survivors. After searching the few parts left from the plane, George found out he was the only one left. Luck for George, surviving in the wilderness seemed easy because George back home loved to watch the Nature Channel as well as Survivor Man. Though injured in the arm from the impact, George began to scavenge for anything that could be useful to his survival. In the mists of his search, George heard nearby howls. From listening, it seemed like there were five or six. George took what he could grab and began to run knowing the wolves would be following him soon. After running for an hour, night fell upon him. Somehow surviving the night, George packed his few things and walked east, or at least the way he thought was east. After a couple days of walking, it seemed like George was going in circles, so he decided to stay where he was and set up camp. While out near a lake trying to find food, George spotted a wolf, maybe one of the ones he heard the day he crashed. This wolf, however, was very sneaky and tricky. Every time George caught a fish, the wolf managed to scare him, making him throw the fish, and thus letting the wolf eat it. Eventually, the wolf and George were able to get along and survive in the wilderness together. Then, about a month after the crash landing, George was able to use fire to signal a plane.
            Without George’s knowledge on living on nature and living with the wolf, George would not have been able to survive. After being rescued, George said good bye to the wolf, the wilderness, and most importantly, to California. George was able to get back home safe and sound. From that day forward, George has told his family and friends about his adventures with the wolf and how he survived. Though it was scary, George still sometimes goes to California and goes camping with friends, hoping he will be able to see his old, but good friend and companion, the wolf.

Thursday, September 6, 2012


                An archetype is a universal symbolic pattern and an archetypal myth explains the nature of the world and life. Archetypes and archetypal myths are seen every day on modern movies, in books, and in television shows. A good example is the Lord of the Rings series.
                The common archetype found in the Lord of the rings is the hero’s quest archetype. This archetype is shown throughout the series. The story of the hero’s quest (Frodo) begins in the hero’s ordinary world (The Shire). He then receives a call to adventure from a herald, which in this case would be Gandalf. At first, he refuses, but later he accepts the quest. Then, they begin on their quest meeting allies, enemies, they even faced death, and many other things. Eventually they complete their quest and head back home with their object of the quest.
                In the Lord of the Rings, Frodo is living in The Shire when he is confronted by Gandalf. Frodo then believes the life of adventure is not the life for him, but he later agrees to it. Frodo then makes some allies and enemies on his journey, completes his quest, and goes back home.
                Without the archetype, the book would not be the same because the archetype serves the purpose as being the structure of the story. If the archetype was not used, Frodo and The Fellowship of the Ring would not have even begun their quest. Overall, archetypes play important roles that can change everything in books, movies, and television shows.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012


       In the time of ancient Greece, Myths and Mythology played an important role in everyday life. However, in today’s society, myths and mythology do not play such an influential role now that books and technology are popular. It is not surprising that mythology and myths were very important in Greece. They served the purpose of teaching lessons, religion, and for entertainment, like Hercules. As time went on, the importance and everyday use of myths and mythology from ancient Greece has decreased due to books and technology of modern society.
      The roles of myths in ancient Greece play similar roles as books do in modern society. Both were used or told almost every day, and both teach mankind similar concepts. However, myths are not told as often in present time as they were in Greece. Mythology has been affected the same way. However, over the centuries, myths and mythology lost importance to society because of the mass production of books. Many of these books that were printed had the myths written inside them, so the tradition of passing these myths on orally was not as important.’
      In today’s society, myths and mythology are not used by everyone or every day, but there are many who find mythology fun, exciting, and interesting, like Ms. Sweezey. In ancient Greece, myths were told to everyone, every day. They taught religion and of the Gods and Goddesses of Mt. Olympus to show their importance in life. Myths were also practiced to teach important lessons on life, death, family, and many more. An example is the myth of Hercules and the life lesson is that if one is consistent and steadfast, even facing against the odds, you can succed. The most important thing about Myths and why they were so important was that they tried to explain the unknown, like how things worked, how the earth was created, why are we here, and many more. Today, books are used in the same sense too. So overtime, myths did not disappear, but transformed or changed into books so reality, myths are used in every day society as well.

Saturday, August 25, 2012

      Hello world!, I'm Bryan R. and this blog as officially been created! Everyone in the class knows almost everything about me, so their is not much to say. I'm 15 years old, part of a family of four and I have no pets. My favorite sport is Tennis and I like to mess around and have fun!