Transcript Writing

Our task was for Liam to draw several abstract images and shapes. Me and him were back to back, Liam then had to describe to the best of his ability what he had drawn. He was directing me on what to draw, as I could not see what he had drawn, the objective of the task was to try and get identical pictures but more importantly to record what was said in order to practice transcript writing.

Here is an extract from mine and Liam's dialogue.

Liam: To the top left draw a diamond.

Me: (7) Yeah.

Liam: About the space of your little finger (.) on the (.) right edge of the diamond (.) stick your finger out and draw a snowman with a small head(.) but it's got to be joined.

Me: Small head.

Liam: Then a big body going down but don't separate the head (.) don't put a line (2) if you get where I'm coming from.

Dwayne: Yeah.

Liam. Um (3) below the diamond (.) probably a finger space below it do an equal sign.

From this extract you notice a lot (.)'s, these are pauses in Liam's speech. This was because Liam is thinking of the directions in his head before he tells me them. This prevents him from telling me the wrong thing. In this extract you also see a very long pause before I say yeah "Yeah". This is because I was processing in my head what Liam had told me then actually performing the act by drawing the object. After Liam gives me a set of directions, I repeat back to him a part of what he said by saying "Small head". This is a use of back channel agreement, doing this shows that I have heard and understood what he has said, he then also has the opportunity to correct as he has heard what is on my mind.

Coursework Part 2 - Travel Writing

New York, the city that never sleeps.

Finally, after several hours of exhausting trekking, I arrive in the center. Shivers run through my spine. I recognise my surroundings now, it’s exactly how I pictured it - only more perfect. With my coffee in one hand, and map in the other, I have all I need to continue my adventure.

As the snow continues to fall, the freezing icicles absorb into my furry hat. My gloves struggling to cope with protecting me from the raw cold that besieges me. With the flaming flask in my hand being my only form of warmth, I walk through and all I can see is gleaming lights of warmth, shelter and homeliness surrounding me. Businessmen zooming through the streets, taxis beeping their horns, groups of teenagers hurrying around, young men prancing around trying to earn money, old men on the sidewalk begging for that spare dollar. I am wary that I may accidentally walk into the rush.

As I advance further though my trip, I see fast white clouds emerge from the ground. Panic rushes through my head as I furiously ponder on what this may be. My head spins rapidly to see everyone else’s reaction to this, however everyone seems oblivious to it. Can they not see what I am seeing? Is this of the norm? I reach the conclusion of the latter.

It abruptly dawns on me that I have lost track of where I’m going - I am lost. But I don’t mind, is there really a better place in the world to be adrift?

As I continue walking through the city, I pass what two minutes ago looked like a insignificant, microscopic dot. To my surprise it has transformed to this sizable, substantial skyscraper that now alludes me instantly. My perception of where I am eventually returns.

Whether I am lost or found, there’s some things I can’t escape - McDonald’s, Starbucks, Burger King, Dunkin’ Donuts, Krispy Kreme.. The list goes on.

As the daylight begins to fade, snow continues falling from the sky but is now easing up. The day is getting later and the darkness is starting to spread, however the city is only getting brighter. As if a magician has cast a spell, the city transforms from a formidable fortress surrounded in slush to a gleaming mirage of shimmering wonder. I wouldn’t change this for the world.

The cold still smacks my face, with the wind whooshing through as if it is trying to knock me off my feet, the only thing that has any chance of doing that are these sparkling stars that follow me on my every move. I walk on and make it to my hotel, as I breeze through the security greets me with a ‘Good evening sir’, as I walk further in, a sudden rush of warmth flows through my body, the scent of homemade cooking runs through my nostrils, I feel at home. I’m at the right place.

Coursework Part 1 - Newspaper Article

Dear Britain, can we stop being so cheap for tourists?

Sickening figures show that tourists are costing the NHS £2bn. Someone call the doctor. 

Dwayne Jones
Thursday 24th  October 2013 16.34 BST


A breakdown of the freebees available to tourists.

We have an emergency.

Or perhaps, according to some of our leading politicians, there is no virus spreading at all.

On one side we have Sir David Nicholson, shrugging off all criticism towards him concerning funding, workers and numerous scandals. He insists that he has done a good job and will continue to do so.

“I am absolutely proud of my NHS record” he told BBC Radio 4’s today programme, however he did concede that there is room for improvement, saying “We could always do better”.

However on the other hand we have his to-be successor, Simon Stevens, who is adamant Nicholson is doing it all wrong. Mr Stevens has seems to have drastic plans to remedy the horrifying statistics that exist today. There has been suggestions of a paid for ‘American-activated’ healthcare.

To me, this radical scheme is just a desperate attempt to salvage pride after the department of health released some quite disturbing facts on how much tourism costs the NHS.

Reports show that Britain is now considered the country with ‘some of the most generous rules in the world’. Further statistics estimate that £388 million goes on tourists who are wrongly given free treatment, and a further £300 million is used on tourists who simply take advantage of Britain’s leniency on healthcare. All this contributes to the most frightening statistic of them all… The estimated £20 - £200 million spent on tourists has been increased up to 100 times more than that. An appalling £2 BILLION.

Soft. That’s what Britain has become, soft. Now, I am all for world equality and I appreciate that health is one of the most important things in life and some are not fortunate enough to not be able to afford the healthcare they need. But given our country’s financial state still being on the edge, we cant afford to give millions of people healthcare freebees.

Jeremy Hunt has said “It’s time for action to ensure the NHS is a national health service - not an international one”. I can only agree with him, if this situation continues, I can see it getting very, very difficult for the economy.

Britain have become the Shepard…With the tourists being the sheep… However our barn is not big enough to accommodate everyone (especially those who don’t need looking after.) So therefore we need a solution or this country may start facing some problems.

Big problems. New ideas need to be put in place to show the world that this is not a place where we hand out free operations to people who ‘just need to check they’re alright’ or free eye tests because they ‘saw two fingers instead of one’.

One idea that has been put into consideration is to charge foreign students £150 a year for healthcare and £200 a year to temporary migrants - this is anticipated to generate approximately £200 million and consequently be a form of recovering the money previously lost.

It looks like there is going to be a change, I like the sound of this change, we must have a change - so maybe let’s hold of dialling 999, for now anyway.











Bibliography

Sir David Nicholson quote “I am absolutely proud of my NHS record” - Interview with BBC Radio 4’s Today programme - The Telegraph, 11th July 2013

Facts

“£388 million goes on tourists who are wrongly given free treatment”
“£300 million is used on tourists who simply take advantage of Britain’s leniency on healthcare”
“£20 - £200 million spent on tourists has been increased up to 100 times more than that. An appalling £2 BILLION.”
“Charge foreign students £150 a year for healthcare and £200 a year to temporary migrants - this is anticipated to generate approximately £200 million”  - All from Daily Mail - The TRUE cost of health tourism, 22nd October 2013

theguardian

TECHNOLOGY BLOG 

Started from the bottom, now its here 

Twitter: What have they done to get to the top?

With now it being reported that there is over 100 million people using this, we look at some statistics on how this powerhouse of a Social network got to where it is now.

The sign we have all become so familiar to.

Waking up, eating your toast, brushing your teeth, having a shower, having 140 words to say what lies ahead of your day. The latter has become so much the norm to so many of us. The opportunity for anybody to share their life and whatever is going on in it which gives them the impression the whole world actually cares, is simply irresistible as it is believed that 50 percent of the 100 million users that exist log in and use the service everyday.

Twitter has triumphed over other social networking sites such as MySpace and Bebo and after defeating the powerhouse of social networks.. Facebook, Twitter can now call itself the leader of these other huge names. However the question I now believe we must ask ourselves is how much longer will the recognisable tweeting bird can stay 'top of the tree'?

Holiday Text

So after a two hour trip to the airport, a five to six hour plane flight and an hour long taxi journey, I finally make it to the place that everyone's talking about. Someone tell me of a place more talked about. I can now tell why. Is there anywhere more bright, lively and intriuging? It's electric atmosphere galvinates the people in the city, and can you blame them? The sparkling lights, the collosal buildings and the numerous food restaurants that surround this city makes it something for everyone. Being there on those February nights, you see the luminous lights contrast with the icy clutter beseiging the roads, is there anything better? It's no myth that it is "The city that never sleeps". It's a no brainer that you must go to this kewl city. You're guarenteed to have a blast!

Style Model - Extract from John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men

Monologue from Crooks, he is the only black person on the ranch and the only person there with a permanent job, he has been there for a very long time but has failed to form any type of relationship with anyone else. He believes this is because of his skin colour. When Lennie goes into his room, this is what Crooks says to him:

 "S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go into the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black. How'd you like that? S'pose you had to sit out here an' read books. Sure you could play horseshoes till it got dark, but then you got to read books. Books ain't no good. A guy needs somebody - to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you. I tell ya, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an' he gets sick."

My Version of this Monologue

"Put yourself in my shoes. No friends, no family, nothing. Imagine if you could not go into the bunk house and play chess, not because you are a bad person, not because you've done wrong, but because of the colour of your skin. You think about it.. fancy that? You would not want to be out here reading books day in, books are boring, I need someone, I need something. This is all making me crazy, I need someone, I do not care who but I need somebody. I'm lonely, help me. 

So much technology around; is it ever going to stop?

Technology has been improving relentlessly, but is it ever going to stagnate? How can the world deal with this?

Just a few of the technologies around in today's world to make life easier. (Playstation 4, iPhone 5S, Samsung 3D TV, Fujifilm camera.)

Playing your beloved game, calling your boss to tell them you are going to be late for work, and capturing your treasured moments.. this has all been made possible with the different forms of automation available to us in today's world. But the question I have is how much more of it can we take?

Necessity. Us humans have now been brain-washed to believe we NEED these appliances, and without them we are depriving ourselves of the easy lifestyle we can be giving ourselves.

Technology has been developing rapidly through currently, and the pace only seems to be getting faster. Computer-crazy people must be licking their lips with the accelerating amount of technology being produced in present times. Major shopping brands such as Argos, Curry's and John Lewis must also be rubbing their hands in delight, due to the major amounts of money they must be getting from selling these kind of devices. Supermarkets like Asda, Sainsbury's and Tesco are also getting in on the fun too, this kind of business gets a large percentage of these shops profit.

The question I have however is how much more can the world take? Major companies like Apple, Samsung and Sony surely cannot continue to keep producing top of the range devices that satisfy the world, they must reach a stage of stagnation. My concern then is how the world is going to respond to this, will humans be able to cope with keeping the same mobile phone for five years or more, or have to wait for a further ten or twenty years for the next PlayStation. Will the world be able to manage, I think not.

I anticipate sparks..

Analysis of Monologue

"But Romeo may not. He is banishèd.

Flies may do this, but I from this must fly.

They are free men, but I am banishèd.

And sayst thou yet that exile is not death?

Hadst thou no poison mixed, no sharp-ground knife,"

In extract of the play Romeo and Juliet, Romeo has just been banished from Verona, meaning he will never be able be able to see the love of his life, Juliet again. 

This extract shows an example of frozen register, this is shown with the use of the word 'tis', however in today's world we would say this is or it's. The use of this makes the reader aware of the time period that this play was set in.  The use of this archaic lexis also enables the audience to get an understanding of the the type of language that was used in the Shakespearean times and to explore other types of frozen register used in his work to further their vocabulary. Other examples of frozen register used in this are 'say'st', 'thou' and 'had'st'.

In this small extract, we also see a use discourse technique of the third person although Romeo is talking about himself and his experience. For example, instead of him saying 'I may not, I am banished' he instead says ' But Romeo may not. He is banished'. This is peculiar as it, custom that when you talk about yourself that you speak in first person. The use of the third person also creates the idea that he is furthering himself from the statement made, although there are no inverted speech marks to suggest this. Another way of looking at his is simply the fact that the use of third person when speaking about oneself is often used in Shakespeare's work. The use of the third person also allows the reader to get an idea of how Romeo is feeling about being banished, the use of this may also help the reader feel empathy towards Romeo.

Repetitive language is also used in this text, this is shown with the use of the word 'banished' occurring more than once. The use of the repetition of this word really expresses his disbelief in the fact that he has been banished from Verona and this also illustrates to the audience the misjustice he feels he's received from this punishment. This again enables to the reader to feel sorry for the character.

Homework Task - Blog Analysis

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/09/26/fifa-14-by-numbers_n_3998494.html?ir=UK+Sport

I chose this blog, firstly because Fifa 14 came out this week and I am a huge fan of the franchise.
As you can tell from the title, this blog is full of facts and statistics, these have been presented in the discourse form of bullet points and notes. Fifa is obviously about football, but for those who were not sure about this will know after reading things because of the numerous words that are in the lexical field of football, such as skill, finisher and passing. The blog is written in quite a formal register, this is shown in the use of low frequency lexis such as 'incarnation ' and 'endorsing'. This blog could also be seen as an advertisment to people who are not sure whether to buy the game or not. The use of this sophisticated language may come across to the reader that people who play this game are intellegent, which may turn out as a push factor of them purchasing the game.

Quote from Channel 4 comedy Phoneshop: 

"Too many man are chasing them Zara level chicks. Its crowded up there. swear down u gotta get academy on that shit. smart guys like me are scouting those lower league girls who are just about to step up to Zara level. Lower leagues is where its at trust me. I'm talking about Claire's Accessories, New Look, Barratts."


This quote plays alot with language. It is clearly written in a informal register, this is presented with the use of non standard English such as 'u' instead of you and 'gotta' instead of got to. Slang is also used in the form of the word 'chick' to display a female.What I also find interesting from this quote is the use of female shops to express their rankings, with Zara being the top of the tree and Claire's Accessories, New Look and Barratts being lower grades, I guess this can been seen as a use of sociolect as the different standards of clothing shops could be especially distinctive to women. This quote includes imperative language, the line "Lower leagues is where its at trust me". The use of the words trust me gives what is being said a sense of importance and therefore grips the viewer/reader to believe what is being said.
 

Blackadder - C is for Contrafibularity

In this clip, the writer uses language as a form of comedy. This is because when we see the clip we make pre judgements on the way we believe all the characters are going to speak. We think this as the clip comes across as old fashioned, this same idea is shown again with the clothing of the characters, we wouldn't see that in today's world. Due to this we expect to hear a high amount of frozen register and low frequency lexis, we hear this from two of the characters but however from one of them we hear language of todays world, this is a surprise to the viewer and may come across as comical.

With the character speaking in a more informal register to the other two characters, it gives us the idea of the 'old clashing with the new'. The surprise of the way a so called 'prince' is speaking also comes across as funny, as does the reactions of the two others around.  

Homework Task

Original text written in a Colloquial Register :

The very first iPhone introduced the world to the idea of touch as the most natural way to interact with a smartphone. Touch to hear a song. Touch to browse the web. Touch to take a picture. All of it began with something perfectly simple: your finger. And now we’ve taken touch to the next logical place with Touch ID, the fingerprint identity sensor. Your fingerprint is the perfect password. You always have it with you. And no one can ever guess what it is. But beyond that, it just made sense to us that your phone should recognise you. It should learn you, not require you to memorise and enter passwords in order to use it. We also knew the right place to locate the sensor was where you naturally touch your iPhone — on the Home button. But how could we fit all the technology that sensors require in such a small space?   

Same text written in an Intimate Register :

Do you remember that first iPhone we had? It was all so different us. To listen to your Beyonce album,to order that pair of shoes you always wanted, to take a picture on your nights out,all with just a touch. But I know you want even more, so now you can have Touch ID. One thing that makes you so special is your fingerprint,and you'll always have it with you. It's for you and no-one else. But I still demand more for you. Your phone should recognise that face, and learn your likes and dislikes. You don't deserve the trouble of memorising your password to use your phone. We thought we'd locate the sensor where it's easy for you,where you've always known it,the Home button. Is that enough for you honey?

The Story of Dwayne Jones : Volume 3

Same old guy, with a brand new story to keep you hooked..

Just when he thinks its all over with 18 GCSE exams now behind him, Dwayne now has the daunting task of leaving his beloved St  Bedes behind and moving on to St Brendans. Thus he has to face the four incredibly challenging AS subjects of English,Geography,Law and Psychology, he also has to adapt to a whole new environment with people he's never met before. After feeling he had just scraped his GCSE's even though his impressive results would suggest otherwise,would Dwayne have enough in his locker to achieve the high grades his family,friends and teachers expect of him?

New friends,strange surroundings and a massive workload.. college has always been the place where the men are separated from the boys. Well everyone knows its a huge step up from the school life anyway.

In a world where getting the top grades is seen as the only way of getting anywhere in life, getting yourself ready for the working world is essential and being the most popular person in town with the most friends is a must, it is not a surprise this film will grab the attention of many nationwide.

Based on the book,this film is fresh off the real life of Dwayne Jones. Up to this point in the series, he has mastered primary and secondary school, the struggle of managing both his social and academic life and recognising what he wants to do with his life. He's now ready for a new challenge and is confident that St Brendans is the right place to take him to the next level.

The same cast returns for a third time with the elder sister of Dwayne who's exceptional academic record he has to attempt to keep up with, along with his parents who makes sure their children are in the best position to achieve. 

People compare this franchise to the famous Harry Potter by JK Rowling, I believe this branding of the film flatters them abit. I do not believe this film is anywhere near top Harry Potter films, however I do believe this film is very successful due to how many people can relate to the situation Dwayne is in. 

 

This film is certainly not appropriate for young people as they would have no interest in the issues and relationships of young adults. However, for almost any other age group(possibly not the elderly) this is a film anyone could get 135 minutes worth of enjoyment. As you know from the second film, Dwayne is a party person, which is why this film has been given a 15 certificate due to their being scenes that may not be appropriate for anyone under that age. 

The film has a captivating storyline throughout and results in him getting what he's always wanted, to do well and make his family proud. He gets that top grade in English that he's worked incredibly hard for throughout the year.

On the whole, this film successfully portrays the struggles,pains and joys of being an adolescent about to enter the big wide world alone.

Rating:  3 out of 5