Revision Two Proposal

I plan on revising my “Portrait of a Word” essay titled “Bacchanal”. My new topic that I plan on revising this with is the importance of basic education for young children. I want my essay to reach both students and parents. I watch a YouTube channel pretty frequently called “What Yuh Know?” where their motto is education through entertainment. All of the videos are shot around Trinidad. The host asks people young and old basic questions and if they get all of them right, they get a cash prize. I noticed that throughout these videos when the older generations are asked these basic questions, they don’t know the answer due to a lack of childhood education, but when they are asked about “bacchanal” or in other words about carnival and soca music they know the answer right away. On the other hand, the children that are asked questions get them right immediately because of their basic educations. I would like to analyze some of these videos and give them as examples to reinforce my claim which is, even the most basic education is important and comes with reward and opportunities.

unit 3 essay

Raymond Rambarose

Dr. Carrie Hall

Eng 1101

Goodbye Fear

It’s my first day back to college and I’m on my first of two trains. I am seated at the corner of the train looking at the dirty floor awkwardly trying not to make eye contact with anyone. I worry about class as bad outcomes rush through my head. I am afraid. Suddenly, the song changes in the random Spotify playlist that I am listening to. Through my headphones I hear a female voice sing powerfully to me “Fear you don’t own me…” It is the perfect and most comforting song during my situation. It is “The Breakup Song” by Francesca Battistelli. I find peace while listening and gain control of my situation as I command fear to leave.

When I tell people about “The Breakup Song” most people assume that it’s some sappy love song about a harsh breakup. I was kind of surprised myself when I first read the title. The song isn’t about breaking up with a loved one at all, but rather a hated one; fear. Fear is one of our worst enemies. It prevents us from meeting our full potential and gets in the way of success and happiness. Fear is also a great topic to write a song about and I am glad that Francesca Battistelli has chosen it. Everyone can relate to it and many can be encouraged to overcome their fears.

The first few encouraging words comes from the beginning three lines of the song. Francesca sings “Sick and tired of being sick and tired. Had as much of you as I can take. I’m so done, so over being afraid”. For those who regularly experience fear in their everyday lives fear tends to get a bit annoying. It feels like someone trying to stop you from doing what you want to do. When you try to get out of your comfort zone it pushes you back in. It controls your actions and limits what you can do. Francesca has most likely had an experience close to this. She got sick and tired of it and was strong enough to break free and write this song in order to help others break free as well.

The first line in the chorus also sets a powerful tone and encourages the listener to take control of their lives. “Fear you don’t own me” shows that Francesca is speaking to fear itself and is putting it in its place. I believe that she’s telling fear that it can no longer control her life. She sets a good example for her fans that follow in her footsteps. They too are encouraged by her words and strive to defeat fear. When I first heard the song myself it provided me with the strength that I needed to overcome my obstacles and do what I once was not able to do. I was afraid to go to college because of my fear of not being good enough due to my past school experiences. When I heard the powerful words “Fear you don’t own me” it provided me with a wider perspective. I am not alone; even very successful people experience fear sometimes. You shouldn’t allow it to control you and throw you around.

Towards the end of the song, Francesca asks the listener to “Sing along with me” and “Sing fear, you don’t own me”. She helps them to break up with fear by telling fear itself that it doesn’t own them. She sings “If you don’t know how to say it Sing along with me”. While we are distressed and don’t know what to say or do, she guides us to ending the unhealthy relationship that we have with fear.

A music video was created for “The Breakup Song”. While watching the video I noticed Francesca Battistelli writing a note in a brief clip. When I paused the video, I saw what was written on the note. She was writing the lyrics to the song. This leads me to believe that the song itself is a letter to fear. It is both a break up and goodbye letter to fear, hence the title of the song. Towards the end of the video, Francesca is seen packing a bag with a telephone, scale, top 100 list and a goodbye letter. I believe that she is packing fear’s bags and demanding it to leave. She is sending away all her personal fears that have troubled her throughout her life.

Like Francesca, we should send our fears out the door as well. If she didn’t get rid of fear it would have held her back from her goals. She might not have been able to perform in front of millions and would not have written this song. Many like me would not have heard “The Breakup Song” and built up the courage to disown fear and succeed. I would probably not have made it to class that day if I hadn’t heard this song.

 

Rough Draft

It’s my first day back to college and I’m on my first of two trains. I am seated at the corner of the train as usual looking at the dirty floor awkwardly trying not to make eye contact with anyone. I worry about class as bad outcomes rush through my head. I am afraid. Suddenly, the song changes in the random Spotify playlist that I am listening to. Through my headphones I hear a female voice sing powerfully to me “Fear you don’t own me…” It is the perfect and most comforting song during my situation. It is “The Breakup Song” by Francesca Battistelli. I find peace while listening and gain control of my situation as I command fear to leave.

When I tell people about “The Breakup Song” most people assume that it’s some sappy love song about a harsh breakup. I was kind of surprised myself when I first read the title. The song isn’t about breaking up with a loved one at all, but rather a hated one; fear. Fear is one of our worst enemies. It prevents us from meeting our full potential and gets in our way of success and happiness. Francesca Battistelli has picked a great topic to write a song about. Everyone can relate to it and many can be encouraged to overcome their fears.

The first line in the chorus on its own sets a powerful tone and encourages the listener to take control of their lives. “Fear you don’t own me” shows that Francesca is speaking to fear itself and is putting it in its place. I believe that she’s telling fear that it can no longer control her life. She sets a good example for her fans that follow in her footsteps. They too are encouraged by her words and strive to defeat fear. When I first heard the song myself it provided me with the strength that I needed to overcome my obstacles and do what I once was not able to do. I was afraid to go to college because of my fear of not being good enough due to my past school experiences. When I heard the powerful words “Fear you don’t own me” it provided me with a wider perspective. I am not alone; even very successful people experience fear sometimes. You shouldn’t allow it to control you and throw you around.

Towards the end of the song, Francesca asks the listener to “Sing along with me” and “Sing fear, you don’t own me”. She helps them to break up with fair by telling fear itself that it doesn’t own them. She sings “If you don’t know how to say it Sing along with me”. While we are distressed and don’t know what to say or do, she guides us to ending the unhealthy relationship that we have with fear.

A music video was created for “The Breakup Song”. While watching the video I noticed Francesca Battistelli writing a note in a brief clip. When I paused the video, I saw what was written on the note. She was writing the lyrics to the song. This leads me to believe that the song itself is a letter to fear. It is both a break up and goodbye letter to fear. Towards the end of the video, Francesca is seen packing a bag with a telephone, scale, top 100 list and a goodbye letter. I believe that she is packing fear’s bags and demanding it to leave. She is sending away all of her personal fears that have troubled her throughout her life.

Like Francesca, we should send our fears out the door as well. If she didn’t get rid of fear it would have held her back from her goals. She might not have been able to perform in front of millions and would not have written this song. Many like me would not have heard “The Breakup Song” and built up the courage to disown fear and succeed. I would probably not have made it to class that day if I hadn’t heard this song.

 

Song here

Quote Analysis

An online review of “The Breakup Song” by Francesca Battistelli states that it is “A song about identity and boldness in Jesus that produces the confidence to shine for Him, live for God, and tell the world the truth about the salvation that is available for all. This is a song with heart and strength”. Even though the song does not mention Jesus or God, I agree with the reviewer’s opinion because of the artist’s background and beliefs. Francesca Battistelli is a popular Christian pop artist who has written other songs such as “Lead Me To The Cross” and “Run To Jesus”. Almost all of her songs showcase her faith which is Christianity. This leads me to believe that even the songs that she doesn’t mention Jesus were inspired by her beliefs. “The Breakup Song” talks about breaking up with fear and fear not being welcome in our lives. In the Bible it states, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7, King James Version). This verse makes me think that the song was inspired by this. By getting rid of fear we are pleasing God which is a Christian’s main purpose in life. Francesca would most likely want to please God by breaking up with her fear and living her best life possible.

Revision Final Draft

Raymond Rambarose

Dr. Carrie Hall

Eng 1101

Publication: The New York Times Opinion Section

Just Try: College Isn’t too Hard For You

The statement that “the transition from high school to college might be difficult” is a huge understatement for me. It might be for you as well. I went from almost failing high school and thinking that college was going to be a breeze to dreading having to go to class every day. One day I decided to take a step out of my paranoid mind and saw things for how they really were. College wasn’t as bad as I had thought it was. I was risking more by not going. I had to at least try it before I judged it. Yes, college is hard, but it is not too hard for you.

When you hear the word “college” what do you think of? Some may think of college as being a gateway to many opportunities. Others may think that it is not worth the time, stress and effort. Based on my college experience I have held both views. In high school I didn’t take it very seriously. I was very laid back and procrastinated frequently. When I was at my final years of high school I rarely went to class and when I did it would only be for about a day or two a week. I didn’t understand the point of going to high school and learning all this useless stuff. I did not realize that high school was my preparation for college and school is what you make it. While reading the article “Learning (Your First Job)” I found that Robert Leamnson has some pretty good points about school and learning. He states that “…learning is not something that just happens to you, it is something that you do to yourself” (1). He also says that “…you do want to learn something while getting a diploma” (1). From this information I take away that you must be willing to learn in order to do so and you need to be engaged in the journey in order to get to the destination. Yes, we might not agree with all the things that you have to learn in school, but enjoy the things that you have been interested in while in school otherwise you will be stuck in the position of wondering what it is all for, like I and many others have done. High school isn’t there just for doing tasks and getting grades. It is to prepare you for college. It is there for you to learn how to learn.

So, what is learning how to learn and how does this have anything to do with college? Well, when I first entered college I was overwhelmed with work and would overthink the simplest tasks. This reflected my high school performance. Since I didn’t attend high school very often, I did not have the experience of a school environment. I didn’t have the drive or study practice that would transfer from grade to grade. I was so focused on the useless information being taught that I did not realize what mattered most. It may sound simple, but just practicing doing work in general is very important. When you don’t do your school work for a long while you start to get too comfortable. Everything is fine until you are presented with a task. You are very capable of doing that task, but are forced out of your comfort zone and into uncharted/abandoned territory. By simply going to school and getting into the habit of completing tasks you are more well off than someone who hasn’t. I know that I’ve been talking a lot about high school, but learning and practicing learning doesn’t stop with high school. It travels through college and life afterwards as well.

Image result for out of comfort zone

Speaking of learning, you don’t just learn your basic subjects in school. You learn, or in another word, gain certain important skills such as social skills. While in school you have to communicate with others frequently. Some people do not agree with this view that school can help build these skills. While reading the article “Against School” by John Taylor Gatto he makes a claim that accurately displays this view. He states that “… if children could be cloistered with other children, stripped of responsibility and independence, …they would grow older but never truly grow up” (5). In Gatto’s claim he talks about children being “cloistered” up with others and how this is bad. From my perspective, that “cloistering” is just students grouping up which is very beneficial. When children are put together, they share ideas from different perspectives, build communication and leadership skills. While in seventh grade I had to do a group project about volcanoes. I was always the quiet type and didn’t speak much out of my circle. As my classmates and I were doing the project we shared many different ideas from different perspectives. It was much more efficient than doing it alone and it helped me to practice talking to new people, just like you would as an adult in society. This experience also helped me with leadership skills at the time because everyone recruited me to lead the presentation, which I was very nervous about. I pushed myself through it and found out that it wasn’t so bad. I do not know where I would get this practice if I wasn’t in school at the time. So, it turns out that school is pretty beneficial, but why do we still not enjoy it?

Image result for college frustration

We might not enjoy something because it is outside of our normal routine. When we are not used to something, we might be uncomfortable. You can combat this through practice. Just attending class and doing your work increases how comfortable you are in a college environment. Robert Leamnson builds on a concept similar to this buy saying “In short, neural circuits that get used become stable, those that do not get used fall apart. …Without rehearsal, that fantastic circuitry that enabled our understanding will gradually disintegrate and we can no longer reconstruct what we once understood” (3). I believe that the same thing applies to college. When we haven’t consistently taken classes or done assignments, we might get used to not doing them. Afterwards, a task in school might seem more foreign to us that before. If you are uncomfortable switching environments don’t panic. Just try and through practice you will get use to it. That is one mistake that I made during college. I was so comfortable with the way things were at home and suddenly, I was ripped away from my relaxing life to go to school fulltime. I would worry about every aspect of class to the point that I wouldn’t go at all. Eventually I had taken too many days off and was afraid of my professor confronting me and the work that was piled up waiting for me. I ended up lying to my family that I was going to college, but instead I would go to the building and sit down trying to build up the courage to go to class. I did this for one semester and at the end I confessed to my parents what I had done. I then went for my second semester and did the same thing all over again. I tried to apply for jobs, but wasn’t accepted by any employers. I was on the verge of being kicked out of the house because I wasn’t going to school and didn’t have a job. Thankfully, my mother drove me to her friend’s house for her to talk to me. I’ll never forget the words that encouraged me. “Just try, don’t quit before you even try”. Those are the words that I have to say to you as well. Just try, and before you know it, that trying will become your normal and comfortable routine.

Also, don’t be afraid if you make mistakes. In college there is more room for error than outside of college life. It’s not the end of the world. Just learn from them. As I read the article “The Importance of Dumb Mistakes in College”, Jim Reische restated a quote that is very accurate to this. He says, “Miles Davis left behind a quote that I think captures the beauty of a world in which mistakes are natural or even valued: ‘It’s not the note that you play that’s the wrong note-it’s the note you play afterwards that makes it right or wrong.’ Our children deserve the opportunity to play the music for themselves” (3). Basically, don’t worry about the mistake or what’s in the past. Make the right decisions moving forward in both college and life.

Well, you’ve heard a small portion of my story. I’ve messed up and made the same mistakes repeatedly, but after I just tried and put a little effort into college everything has been running smoothly. I know that there will be bumps in the road, but I’ve been through a lot and it all shows me just how capable I really am. If I apply myself even more, I can be even better. The same goes for you. College and life as a whole may hold uncomfortable experiences, but if you don’t at least try you won’t know how amazing you are as well. Learn how to learn, practice and don’t quit before you try and you will succeed.

Image result for success student

 

Works Cited:

Reische, Jim. “The Importance of Dumb Mistakes in College.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 9 Dec. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/12/09/opinion/sunday/dumb-mistakes-college.html.

Against School – John Taylor Gatto, www.wesjones.com/gatto1.htm.

 

Revision Rough Draft

The statement that “the transition from high school to college might be difficult” is a huge understatement for me. It might be for you as well. I went from almost failing high school and thinking that college was going to be a breeze to dreading having to go to class every day. One day I decided to take a step out of my paranoid mind and saw things for how they really were. College wasn’t as bad as I had thought it was. I was risking more by not going. I had to at least try it before I judged it. Yes, college is hard, but it is not too hard for you.

When you hear the word “college” what do you think of? Some may think of college as being a gateway to many opportunities. Others may think that it is not worth the time, stress and effort. Based on my college experience I have held both views. In high school I didn’t take it very seriously. I was very laid back and procrastinated frequently. When I was at my final years of high school I rarely went to class and when I did it would only be for about a day or two a week. I didn’t understand the point of going to high school and learning all this useless stuff. I did not realize that high school was my preparation for college and school is what you make it. While reading the article “Learning (Your First Job)” I found that Robert Leamnson has some pretty good points about school and learning. He states that “…learning is not something that just happens to you, it is something that you do to yourself” (1). He also says that “…you do want to learn something while getting a diploma” (1). From this information I take away that you must be willing to learn in order to learn and you need to be engaged in the journey in order to get to the destination. Yes, we might not agree with all the things that you have to learn in school, but enjoy the things that you have been interested in while in school otherwise you will be stuck in the position of wondering what it is all for like I and many others have done. High school isn’t there just for doing tasks and getting grades. It is to prepare you for college. It is there for you to learn how to learn.

So, what is learning how to learn and how does this have anything to do with college? Well, when I first entered college I was overwhelmed with work and would overthink the simplest tasks. This reflected my high school performance. Since I didn’t attend high school very often, I did not have the experience of a school environment. I didn’t have the drive or study practice that would transfer from grade to grade. I was so focused on the useless information being taught that I did not realize what mattered most. It may sound simple, but just practicing doing work in general is very important. When you don’t do your school work for a long while you start to get too comfortable. Everything is fine until you are presented with a task. You are very capable of doing that task, but are forced out of your comfort zone and into uncharted/abandoned territory. By simply going to school and getting into the habit of completing tasks you are more well off than someone who hasn’t. I know that I’ve been talking a lot about high school, but learning and practicing learning doesn’t stop with high school. It travels through college and life afterwards as well.

Mentor Article

The mentor text that I chose for my first revision is “What is the importance of Education in One’s Life” by Nitish Soni on the “Inspire Advices” website. In the article there are a lot of scenarios presented where students would choose big paying majors instead of their passion. The writer states a list of what education is really about which is self improvement. They also state that education isn’t just in school, but within the world. Everyday is an education experience whether it is in or out of school. I like this article because it can help me reinforce my claim of education preparing students for the real world. There were some good examples of why education is important for doing so and does a good job of putting other claims to rest such as education being only for money when it is more about what you personally enjoy. The article basically states that education is determined based on how you view and use it, not what other people think who have not used it for self improvement. I believe that I can use a lot of good examples from this article in order to shape my own piece.

Bacchanal Final Draft

Raymond Rambarose

Professor Carrie Hall

ENG 1101

18 March 2019

 

Bacchanal

“Oh gosh! There is big bacchanal goin’ on in Trinidad” my grandmother says surprised and upset. I was in the living room sitting on the couch while she was sitting to my right. The room was dim with only the TV as lighting while playing the weekend news. My grandmother had just heard some frustrating news on the phone from my uncle in Trinidad. Not even a month has passed from the death of my grandmother’s sister and the other side of the family is already fighting for the property that my side was left with. This all sounds like the definition of bacchanal, but what is (a) bacchanal?

The Oxford English Dictionary defines bacchanal as “A wild and drunken celebration”. The word originates from the mid 16th century. It derives from the Latin word bacchanalis, but is most popularly known to come from the god Bacchus; the Roman God of wine. To me and the Trinidadian community the word bacchanal primarily means both drama and to party. It is rarely used outside of the Trini community, yet it is all around us. From the streets to the school to the workplace to the household people are either in conflict or having a good time.

Trinidad is a Caribbean island that is located in the West Indies. The accent and slang of the Trinidadian people is like a language of its own. It flows up and down beautifully, but can also get a little annoying. Trini language has an English base, but is also made up of words and phrases from African, East Indian, Amerindian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic and other languages. It is so complex to learn and sometimes understand for outsiders, but is very entertaining to search up the abundance of different words. One Trini word you should know is bacchanal because it is widely used throughout the country and among it’s people. So how does the Trini community use bacchanal?

Any drama or conflict in Trinidad is bacchanal. It is a fight between two or more people; either verbal, physical or even both. Picture two coolie guys drinking in a rum shop. One of them has a little too much to drink and confesses his love for the other guy’s sister. The guy gets mad and puts rell licks on the man. A Trini bystander will see this and go “wey, you see that bacchanal in di rum shop?”.

Bacchanal is used frequently with drama, but another substantial meaning is a big party, event or celebration. One specific bacchanal is the biggest celebration in Trinidad which is Carnival. Carnival is held on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. People travel from all across the globe to party during carnival for day on end. They wear colorful costumes and parade through the streets while music blares and entertains the masses. The music that is most popular during this event includes calypso and soca.

Carnival originated through slaves who worked in French plantations. Back in the 18th century French plantation owners threw masquerades and balls. Slaves were not allowed to participate so they created their own celebration called Canboulay. They would beat bamboo sticks together and later used frying pans, lids and oil barrels as drums in order to create what is now the popular music calypso which now uses steelpans. Canoublay has turned into Carnival over the years. The Spanish also celebrated Carnival while Trinidad was a Spanish colony. The Spanish thought of the word bacchanal as carnival, which they celebrated in Trinidad like the French. Carnival is known as the biggest Bacchanal in Trinidad up to today.

To sum it up, bacchanal is a significant word in Trinidad culture that has two big meanings. The meanings are both drama/conflict and events/celebrations. Bacchanal was originally a Latin word which originated from the Roman God of Wine; Bacchus. It is now regarded as a Trini word within the Caribbean. When people argue and fight there is big bacchanal going on. Carnival is one of the biggest bacchanals held annually. Bacchanal has two pretty opposing meanings yet they are used just as frequent.

 

Works Cited:

Meihy, José Carlos Sebe, and Jonathan Ritter. “Carnival.” Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture, edited by Jay Kinsbruner and Erick D. Langer, 2nd ed., vol. 2, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2008, pp. 130-132. Gale Virtual Reference Library, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX3078901175/GVRL?u=cuny_nytc&sid=GVRL&xid=f2a22da5.

“Bacchanal.” Urban Dictionary, www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Bacchanal.

“Trinidad Carnival: the Birth & Evolution.” Discover Trinidad & Tobago, 29 Apr. 2018, www.discovertnt.com/articles/Trinidad/The-Birth-Evolution-of-Trinidad-Carnival/109/3/32#axzz4ZRlw7vuI.

“Bacchanal | Definition of Bacchanal in English by Oxford Dictionaries.” Oxford Dictionaries | English, Oxford Dictionaries, en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/bacchanal.

 

Bacchanal

What is (a) bacchanal? The Oxford English Dictionary defines bacchanal as “A wild and drunken celebration”. The word originates from the mid 16th century. It derives from the Latin word bacchanalis, but is most popularly known to come from the god Bacchus; the Roman God of wine. To me and the Trinidadian community the word bacchanal primarily means both drama and to party. It is rarely used outside of the Trini community, yet it is all around us. From the streets to the school to the workplace to the household people are either in conflict or having a good time.

Trinidad is a Caribbean island that is located in the West Indies. The accent and slang of the Trinidadian people is like a language of its own. It flows up and down beautifully, but can also get a little annoying. Trini language has an English base, but is also made up of words and phrases from African, East Indian, Amerindian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic and other languages. It is so complex to learn and sometimes understand for outsiders, but is very entertaining to search up the abundance of different words. One Trini word you should know is bacchanal. It is widely used throughout he country and among it’s people.

So how does the Trini community use bacchanal? Any drama or conflict in Trinidad is bacchanal. It is a fight between two or more people; either verbal, physical or even both. Picture two sides of a family who recently lost their loved one. The deceased loved one has left a piece of property to one side of the family. The other side is jealous and feels like they deserve a share of the property because of the role that they played in their loved one’s life. They get into a huge argument and battle verbally and legally for the land. A Trini bystander will see this drama as a big bacchanal.

Bacchanal is used frequently with drama, but another substantial meaning is a big party, event or celebration. One specific bacchanal is the biggest celebration in Trinidad which is Carnival. Carnival is held on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. People travel from all across the globe to party during carnival for day on end. They wear colorful costumes and parade through the streets while music blares and entertains the masses. The music that is most popular during this event includes calypso and soca.

Carnival originated through slaves who worked in French plantations. Back in the 18th century French plantation owners threw masquerades and balls. Slaves were not allowed to participate so they created their own celebration called Canboulay. They would beat bamboo sticks together and later used frying pans, lids and oil barrels as drums in order to create what is now the popular music calypso which now uses steelpans. Canoublay has turned into Carnival over the years. The Spanish also celebrated Carnival while Trinidad was a Spanish colony. The Spanish thought of the word bacchanal as carnival, which they celebrated in Trinidad like the French. Carnival is known as the biggest Bacchanal in Trinidad up to today.

To sum it up, bacchanal is a significant word in Trinidad culture that has two big meanings. The meanings are both drama/conflict and events/celebrations. Bacchanal was originally a Latin word which originated from the Roman God of Wine; Bacchus. It is now regarded as a Trini word within the Caribbean. When people argue and fight there is big bacchanal going on. Carnival is one of the biggest bacchanals held annually. Bacchanal has two pretty opposing meanings yet they are used just as frequent.