Reflective Essay

                Last year, near the beginning of the summer break, our family flew to Hong Kong not for a family reunion with our grandparents, but for a grave situation that happened to my grandfather. A few months earlier, my mother went on an emergency flight because her father passed away, and with my grandma and uncle alone, my mother had to take care of them. But during the start of the vacation, we totally forgot about his death, but instead had a lot of fun.

            From beginning to end, it was horrible. Of course, everything else was fine, but the walking killed me. We would walk 4 miles throughout the city and take different trains mostly every day, and probably the buses. The walking kept my legs hurting every day. The walking made me go to sleep extra early. The walking anchored me down as I walk through the streets of Hong Kong. And mostly, the walking was my only exercise throughout my vacation.

            Meeting grandparents is nice, but meeting new friends is even better. Almost every other day we eat out and I meet new people. The last time I’ve gone to Hong Kong was when I was a little kid, and memories start flushing back. Plus, meeting new people was like eating more food! As my new friends increased, the pile of food in my stomach bulged, too. But after a few days, I felt homesick and actually wanted American food, not food eaten in Hong Kong.

            But worst of all, the heat was incredible. It would only take a few minutes to make me start steamy and sweaty. The only cool air we had when we left the apartment was the train station, which was apparently underground. And the only way we could cool off was to go in the public swimming pool, which we went a couple times. Otherwise, it was awful just walking in the streets and looking for shade.

            Throughout this two-week vacation I took with my family, I made new friends, hate a lot of food, and suffered through the harsh times. We explored throughout Hong Kong, seeing the big Buddha, to Ocean City, an amusement park. When I got back home, I was relieved, and sad. Although I was back at home, it was extremely fun back at Hong Kong, and I can’t wait going next time. 

Persuasive Argument

         Throughout history, we of citizens have never seen anything brutal as this. Mr. Hyde, known for assaulting a youngster a year ago, has again committed another crime. Brutally beaten and murdering Sir Danver Carew, Mr. Hyde mysteriously disappears, as everyone far knows that he is wanted. It was said by a maid looking out the window, as she experience the whole killing. Showing no emotion, Hyde beats Carew senselessly with his cane, and runs away, leaving the body and half of his cane, hoping no one would find him. As the police investigate, they already conclude that Hyde is the killer, yet they don't find him and put him under bars. This exactly happened with the little girl incident, as they don't arrest Hyde for his poor manners. That's why I, along with my supporters, are against this man.

Character/Theme

           In this mysterious book of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", the character I am most drawn to is Mr. Hyde, the antagonist in the book. Mostly I am drawn to him is because of his actions, as he manages to kill two men, yet escaping after the police arrives. It is also Dr. Jekyll that is partially in this, as he has made an affair with Mr. Hyde himself, which will later in the book tell us that they are actually the same person. With Mr. Utterson investigating, he describes, letting the reader know that Hyde is cunning, mysterious, and awkward.
  
          Stevenson is clearly showing us the theme within this character. The author describes Hyde for many things that he has undone, such as violence, science, and friendship. Violence in particular, is a major theme for Hyde, as he beats and is convicted of two murderers. Science is another one, as Mr. Hyde is himself in the book based on Dr. Jekyll's greediness. Friendship matters here, as Jekyll withdrew his friends for his career in science.

Response for "The Story of the Door" Reaction

          There were many moments in the story that were the most memorable but the one that stood out in front of all the other ones was the incident that Mr. Enfield witnessed. This moment in the story refers to the short man and the little girl bumping into each other, and then stepping over the screaming girl. To Mr. Enfield, he felt puzzled and very confused, but to the reader, they felt they didn't understand the text, and what was wrong with this situation the author gave to us.

           Referring to the passages, this situation in this chapter definitely contributes to  "Victorian Morals and Values", as in the beginning of the passage explains how it was to be respect towards woman and there would be severe punishments during this time period. This clearly explains why Mr. Enfield took this as an offense towards the little man, as it was disrespectful to pump into someone nor stepping on them. It was also surprisingly as how he calmly stepped over her and let her leaving screaming on the floor. Again, during this passage, some themes were implied during their explanation, due to its resemblance towards the passage. I believe the author is trying to tell us is "treat others the way you wanted to be treated", as it wasn't fair for the little girl to be stepped on.

Response to Jekyll & Hyde Pre Reading Assignment

         The article I chose to read about was the first one, talking about Mental Illness in the 19th century. This explores how these illnesses were treated and how they became more concern with people who have this syndrome. According to the passage, Dorothea Dix was the first one who brought up the idea of caring for these people, based on her reaction when she volunteered to teach women prisoners. Not only can mental illness be genetic, it can also be caused from alcoholism, masturbation, and even heredity. Earlier, the first colonists believed this insanity came from witchcraft, and these people were treated poorly as they were sent to alms homes, prisons, or even left alone untreated. I was shocked and surprised at how mental illness is seriously dangerous. It gave me a totally different view of these people. I was also surprised at in the earlier days, colonists wouldn't have care for them, but treat them like garbage. Now, I have a true understanding of mental illness.