Why Keep a Diary ?

Diary, according to a dictionary's definition, is a book of a person which keeps daily events and experiences. Hence, it could become a great memoir someday if I were trying to tell my grand children some stories when I was young. To me, a diary should be kept by a mighty person or a legend because he/she needs to give some evidence in order to prove something to other people. Therefore, I wonder if I kept one for myself, would I become a legend someday? ha...however, keeping a diary has still not become my habit because I don't want to be cautious all the time because people might unveil my personal experience or secret someday when I lose my diary.

What Is The Role of Death in Life?

Death is the destination for everyone. However, this destination, can either be fearful or peaceful for different people depending on their attitude. Some people, who have not yet accomplished their goal, fear that their life would be ended with  regrets. Some other, who have already had everything in their life, might think their life is complete. Death, is the path that everyone is going. The difference is that different people end their life differently based on their attitudes.

What Should We Expect from Our Leaders?

As we enter the 21^st century, we people are getting more and more civilized. We expect our leaders not to fool us by making any decisions just because of their personal penchant. In my opinion, I think that courage is the most important quality of a leader because it is the primary motivation to lead people to leap forward. Consequently, the leader should be a tough guy. In modern day’s society, I will nominate China’s new leader Xi JingPing to be a great leader who has the guts to fight for what his country needs from him in terms of being the leader. 

Sonnet Reflection

At first, I thought shorter would be better. However, things didn't turn out the way I expected. Unlike the content of Beowulf, which has a story-based plot, the sonnet makes me a more abstract remembrance that eventually troubled me a lot when memorizing. On the other hand, the quatrains do not always rhyme. Some of them are slant rhymes. Hence, abstract image and incomplete rhymes make me feel difficult to recite the entire poem well.

Can People Be Too Ambitious?

Although ambition often gives people motivation to strive for something, in my opinion, I do not think that being overly ambitious will give a positive result. When people tend to be too ambitious, they see nothing but only their goal. In this case, they might unintentionally ignore some critical drawbacks that could become a harm to themselves and eventually make them fail. Furthermore, when being ambitious, people often have a great chance to break relationships that they established. Macbeth, for instance, killed Banquo because he thought that Banquo might be an obstacle of this future of ascending to the throne, however, he eventually got troubled by the spirits and completely changed his destiny. In general, people are not supposed to be too ambitious in order to have a better future.

Can Lovers See Clearly?

In my opinion, lovers can see clearly, regardless of the vagueness of love. Love is just like a forest that is foggy where once lovers get into it, challenges will be faced everywhere. However, those lovers should be like the adventurers who have everything prepared such as a contact device that can contact the SOS from the sky. In this case, the SOS are the outsiders, usually the friends, sisters, buddies or mentors, in general, of those lovers. It is always easier for the look at a thing from the outside of "the box." Hence, lovers can be able to see clearly as long as they stay in contact with their SOS - their advisers - and ask for help from time to time.

Why Tell Stories in Songs?

Moon River will be a good example of a ballad. After watching Breakfast at Tiffany's, I am aware of the mood of the setting created in the movie. The melody and the lyrics give a sense of a harmony to the feeling of Tiffany who sings at the balcony. In my opinion, telling stories in songs helps create the mood for the background and the personal bubble for the listeners. 

LYRICS: 

Moon river, wider than a mile
I'm crossing you in style some day
Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way

Two drifters, off to see the world
There's such a lot of world to see
We're after the same rainbow's end, waitin' 'round the bend
My huckleberry friend, moon river, and me
[ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/a/andy_williams/moon_river.html ]
(Moon river, wider than a mile)
(I'm crossin' you in style some day)
Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way

Two drifters, off to see the world
There's such a lot of world to see
We're after that same rainbow's end, waitin' 'round the bend
My huckleberry friend, moon river, and me

(Moon river, moon river)

Examples of Chaucer demonstrating starting his own qualities when describing a character

From line 103~121 (Yeoman): describing only physical characteristics for Yeoman and ends up with  
                                                  "He was a proper forester, I guess."



(In general, Chaucer doesn't spend much time to describe the poorer Yeoman. In some ways, it's not really respectful. Chaucer seems to be like a person who looks up more to the highly noble people such as the Knight and the Squire. He is a little bit flattering.)

Is Honor Worth Dying For?

In my opinion, I think whether honor is worth dying for depends on different circumstances. It really depends on what the honor belongs to. To me, the honor based on ego is much more worthy for people for die for. To them, honor is not only a subjective and an abstract concept, but it is also a great self-representation that lasts forever in their lives. Let's assume that here is a zealous singer who has a lung cancer and he knows that his condition will absolutely get exacerbated if he sings more. He would rather die for his honor that helps shine his talent, which represents himself, than live longer and not sing. Although the spirit of dying for honor could be abstruse, or perhaps illogical, it is definitely a part of the reason that makes people believe in themselves, just as mentioned by the Greek philosophy - man is the measure of all thing.

Do Men Understand Women?

Men obviously do not understand women. This is why quarrels always occur between them. In fact, men and women are genetically different and think in different ways. For instance, men don't get why would women give up so much money for buying so many clothes, accessories or other bling-bling stuff and trouble themselves by not being able to decide on wearing and pairing different combinations of outfits. Furthermore, whenever an accident occurs, women are usually the ones who are not being calm. Men don't get why would women stay there and scream or whine instead of just do something reliable like calling 911. All in all, men just don't understand women. Perhaps, it's because of the genetic difference of the ways they think. Moreover, it will definitely be easier for men to chase after women if women just make themselves more intelligible.