Gran Torino

Today in class, we saw a movie named Gran Torino. Gran Torino is an American drama film from 2008 directed and produced by Clint Eastwood. Clint Eastwood also plays the main part in the film, a lonely, bitter and depressed man named Walt Kowalski.

The story follows Walt and his life as a recently widowed Korean War veteran. He lives in Michigan, in a neighborhood filled with gang violence. Next to Walt lives a Hmong family of four. The Hmong people are an Asian ethnic group from the mountainous regions of Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and China. Walt dislikes his neighbors, their traditions and their culture, and wants nothing to do with them or any of the other Hmong people.

It all begins when Thao, one of his Hmong neighbors is forced by his cousin and his gang to steal Walt’s car, a 1972 Gran Torino. He gets caught and has to work for Walt as punishment for the crime. Through this period, Walt develops a relationship with Thao and his family. The Hmong family is being harassed by Thao’s cousin and his gang, and Walt does everything he can to help them. It’s dangerous and the consequences are obnoxious.

Immigrants do face challenges when starting a new life for themselves. The first challenge might be finding a place to live and securing a job. To get a job as an immigrant can be difficult, especially if they don’t speak the language. Finding educational recourses for their children might also be a challenge. In addition to this, cultural differences and new rules can be hard to get used to and accept. Gran Torino deals with cultural differences and focuses about the importance of helping others. It’s an excellent, powerful and emotional film worth seeing!





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To Kill a Mockingbird

We have a project in class where we are going to read a book of our own choice. I chose the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. It was published in 1960 and became a successful and requested book. It’s a classic of modern American literature, and has also been made into a movie with the same title as the book.

I’ve just finished the first four chapters, and can’t wait to read the rest. I’ve been introduced to Scout Finch, a six-year-old girl who lives in Maycomb with her father named Atticus and her brother, Jem. Her father is a lawyer with high moral standards. He loves his children and treats them with courteous detachment.

Scout and her brother meet a boy named Dill. He lives with his aunt for the summer, and they soon become friends. Scout and Jem tell him about their neighbor, Boo Radley. A legend says that Mr. Radley once stabbed his father in the leg with a scissor and became a dangerous man. Scout, Jem and Dill are curious, and want to know more about Mr. Radley. They often go by his house, a haunted house according to the rumors.

Early in September, Scout starts at school. It’s her first year and she is excited. Already before her first day is over, her teacher, Miss Caroline Fisher, hauls her up to the front of the room and hits her hands with a ruler and makes her stand in the corner of the classroom until noon. She doesn’t understand why she is punished and hates her teacher and everything about school.

This is what I’ve read so far. The book is written in a southern accent, which makes it more reliable. I’ve just read 4 chapters, but do already looking forward to read the rest. I’ve heard much about the book and its capturing gesture. I will continue writing when I’ve read some more.

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Urbanization

Today in class, we read a text concerning the increasing migration to megacities. It’s an urbanization process which has already taken place in most industrialized countries. In the US, for instance, as much as 80 % of the population already live in cities.

By 2050, approximately 6 billion people, who represent two-thirds of humanity, will be living in towns and cities. Never before has the world witnessed such a huge and rapid urbanization. People migrate to megacities in the hope of a better life, escaping from poverty, conflicts or human rights violations. Still, there is no guarantee for a better life. People’s lifestyle in the megacities is varied, and as much as one-thirds of urban dwellers live in slum areas.

I looked at three statistics from 2006 concerning megacities and its population, populations in regions of the world and percentage of the world population in urban areas.

The statistic concerning megacities and its population is from 2006 and shows that Tokyo is on the top with its 33.4 million inhabitants. Then comes New York with its 24.1 million, Mexico City with its 21.7 million and Seoul with its 20.2 million inhabitants.

The statistic concerning the population in regions of the world shows that the rural population in North America, South America and Europe will increase by 2015. It also illustrates the decline of the rural populations in these continents. The rural population in North America consisted of 67 million people in 1995, while the urban populations consisted of 231 million people. Research shows that the urban population will increase to 301 million people in 2015, while the rural population will be reduced to 59 million people. In South America, the urban population will increase from 535 million people in 1995, to 510 million people in 2015. Same as in North America, the rural population will be reduced from 129 million, to 123 million people. The results in Europe are similar. The urban population will increase within 2015 while the rural population will be reduced.

In Africa and Asia, the urban and rural population have a different development. While the rural population in other parts of the world is reduced and will continue reducing, the African and Asian rural population is increasing. The African urban population consisted of 247 million people in 1995, and will increase to approximately 637 million people. The urban population will also be increased. In 1995 the rural population consisted of 475 million people, and will increase to 637 million people within 2015.In Asia, the urban population in 1995 consisted of 1180 million people, while the rural population consisted of 2249 million people. By 2015, the urban population will increase to 1970 million people, and the rural population toward 3000 million people.

As you can see, the urban population is increasing all over the world. In 1800, the percentage of the world population living in urban areas consisted of 2 %. In 1950, it had increased to 30 percent. Research shows that in 2030, the world population living in urban areas will be approximately 60 %.

The huge and rapid urbanization is a global challenge resulting in social, environmental and economic changes.

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First Nelson Mandela interview

Nelson Mandela - one man can make a difference

Nelson Mandela was born 18 July 1918 in Transkei, South Africa. He was the son of Chief Henry Mandela of the Tembu Tribe, and was originally named Rolihlahla Mandela. When his father died, Mandela was sent to live with his uncle. During a break from college, he left his village in order to avoid a prearranged marriage. He began studying at the University College of Fort Hare, but was suspended in 1940 because of his participation in a student protest. In 1941, he earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Africa, and qualified in law in 1942. 10 years later, Mandela and Oliver Tambo opened the first black-owned law firm in South Africa. They wanted to serve the black population and defend black clients against the apartheid laws.

In 1944, Mandela became a member of a black-liberation organization called the African National Congress (ANC). Together with the other members, he fought for a democratic government. Mandela soon became one of the leaders in the organization, but was arrested and tried for treason in 1956 with 150 other activists. After a long trial he was acquitted.

In 1960, Mandela began to advocate acts of sabotage. He also helped found a military wing of the ANC. In 1962 he was caught and sentenced to five years in prison. A year later, he was tried for sabotage, treason and violent conspiracy as well, and was sentenced to lifetime in Prison. On 2 February 1990, the government declared the ANC legal and Mandela was released from prison.

Nelson Mandela was named ahead of the ANC, and his work to help bring an end to apartheid gave him the Nobel Peace prize in 1993. In 1994, for the first time in over 300 hundred years, blacks in South Africa had the opportunity to vote for their rulers. At the age of 75, in 1994, Mandela was elected president. He proved to be a great politician. Nelson Mandela is a symbol on how one man can truly make a difference in the world!

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Narnia

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a movie based on C.S Lewis’s series, The Chronicles of Narnia. It’s an epic fantasy adventure film and was released in 2005.

The movie is about four siblings; Edmund, Peter, Susan and Lucy. Because of the bombing of London during World War 2 they have to escape to live with a professor named Digory Kirk. While they are playing hide-and-seek, Lucy finds a wardrobe leading into a different world, a world called Narnia. Narnia is prevailed by the White Witch, a cruel woman with the aim to rule the world. Lucy leads her siblings into Narnia without knowing how dangerous their journey will be. Edmund, Peter, Susan and Lucy are Narnias hope to become a free world. They have to defeat the White Witch and release the creatures of Narnia, a dangerous but important mission.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is an amazing movie. The characters do their parts perfectly, and the animations are impressive. The movie leaves you hanging by the edge of your seat from the opening scene to the closing. It’s a movie worth seeing.

C.S. Lewis' and J. R. R. Tolkien


C.S Lewis and J.R.R Tolkien were close friends great parts of their lives. Tolkien helped convert Lewis to Christianity as we can see in some of his work like The Children of Húrin. Both Lewis and Tolkien were interested in literature and taught fictional writing at Oxford. They have also written fictional books with propagated basic Christian themes. At the same time they also had disagreements, like the books of Narnia. Tolkien didn’t approve the way Lewis used Christianity in the series.

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Japanese English

Today in class, we read three texts concerning Japanese English. Erle and I took notes from the texts and talked around the themes. I like working with tasks on my own or with classmates. Therefore, this was a terrific way to lean about the developing of Japanese English. If I could have done something differently, I would have discussed the themes even more.

The first text was about the developing of Japan. Japan surrendered after World War 2, and after six years of American occupation the Japanese society and culture were compared to “a boy of twelve”. Now, the Japanese have adapted to the western society, and have had a huge growth within comics and technology. They have actually gone by us when it comes to technology within computers and cars.

Japan is also big within Manga and Anime (Japanese comics and animated films). These days we can see Japanese cartoons on western television, like pokémon and digimon. Manga is copied and used in videogames, music videos and advertising agencies. Manga has dominated the 20th century. The fascination of Manga and Anime lies in the thought of the future and its technology. Manga and Anime are not only pure fun, but bring up important questions concerning the world today.

The second text was about the triumph of Japanese English. The Japanese study English grammar thoroughly and often understand it better than the native speakers. An example of this is the English native speakers’ problems choosing between “who” and “whom”. They don’t know which one to use, but the Japanese do.

The third text was about English in South-East Asia. India is one of the oldest civilizations in the world, and was a British colony until 1947. Hindu is the official language, but English is an “associate” official language. It’s an important language for the national, political and commercial communication. India has been exposed to English longer than any other countries where it is a second language, and 1/3 of the population can carry a conversation in English. Indian English has developed distinctive words, idioms, grammar, rhythms and is constantly changing. Mastering English has become a passport to success in India.

English does only have a short story in China. For a long time, China deliberately shunned contact with the west to minimize foreign influence on its people. After the establishment of new China in 1949, Russian was the only foreign language taught in the country. A national campaign against American imperialism and British colonialism branded English unpatriotic. In the 1970s, English became the main foreign language in Chinese schools. The Chinese now regard English primarily as a necessary tool that can facilitate access to modern scientific and technology advances to countries where English is the major language. Today, the number of people studying English in China is much larger than the combined population of all countries where English is the mother tongue.

Japan was never a British colony, but British engineers were involved in developing Japanese infrastructure in the 19th century. The borrowing of western words causes some pronunciation problems in Japan, as the Japanese language doesn’t have sounds like “f” and “v”, and doesn’t distinguish “I” and “r”.

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