Log 3

 In Chapter 2 of Twilight, I found the relationship between Bella and Edward very interesting and mysterious. Bella is still trying to adjust to her new life in Forks, but her thoughts are mostly focused on Edward. In the first chapter, Edward acted very strangely towards Bella, which confused her. Now, in this chapter, Edward’s behavior changes again. He is suddenly friendly to Bella, even though he was so rude and distant before. This change made me curious about what Edward is hiding. One important part of this chapter is when Bella and Edward talk for the first time. Edward asks Bella personal questions, like why she moved to Forks. Even though the conversation seems simple, it feels like Edward is very curious about Bella for some secret reason. Bella notices that Edward’s eyes have changed color, which adds to the mystery. I think this small detail hints that Edward is not a normal human, but Bella does not understand this yet.

I also noticed how Bella feels out of place in Forks. She doesn’t really connect with most of the other students. Even though people like Mike and Jessica are friendly to her, Bella doesn’t seem very interested in making friends. She feels different from the people around her, and I think this is why she is so drawn to Edward. Edward is also different, but in a much more mysterious and secretive way. This connection between them makes me want to read more and find out what happens next.The title of the chapter, “Open Book,” is also interesting. It suggests that Bella is like an open book, meaning she is easy to read or understand. But it also makes me think about Edward. Even though he is acting nicer in this chapter, I feel like he is not an open book. He is still hiding something, and Bella is starting to notice this. This chapter makes me think that there is a lot more to Edward than what he shows on the surface. Overall, this chapter made me want to keep reading because it deepens the mystery around Edward and his family. I like how Bella is slowly starting to notice strange things about Edward, but she doesn’t fully understand them yet. The change in Edward’s behavior adds suspense, and I’m excited to see how their relationship will develop in the future. It feels like something big is going to happen soon, and this chapter sets the stage for that.

Log3

 

This week, I read the first few chapters of Tigers in the mud. In this part, Otto mainly described all the background when he was about to enlist. Nothing too dramatic, the motivation of Otto was just like anyone else: encouraged by peers, parents and country, and young men responded to their Fatherland’s calling( An interesting cultural difference: German tends to call it Fatherland instead of Motherland. Similarly, they use the male pronouns to call the ships in navy, when other countries usually use female pronouns in tradition). Otto mentioned a lot of details about what he and his peers felt about joining the army. Although he didn’t deliberately emphasize his positive feelings too much, I can still tell it by some descriptions, such as he felt a little bit cocky when he was able to join the Panzer(tank) Battalion because of his mechanical profession, wearing the iconic black tank crew uniforms. Also, when Otto was assigned to be a loader on a 38(t) light tank( t means Czechoslovakian instead of tons), he felt they were invincible and unstoppable with such a deadly killing machine. The way that Otto described how they are incited by nationalism and patriotism makes me recall a movie I quite enjoyed before: All Quiet on the Western Front in 2022. In both Otto's memory and this movie, young men believed that they were guardians of their homeland and the battlefield was the place that they could make a name for themself. Even if they ended up with an unfulfilled result, they can still die with honor. Such overconfidence, fanaticism and ambition ,would usually become a pathetic and ironic contrast with the pain, terror on the battlefield later. This kind of description often touched and impressed me a lot, because those people were just normal citizens before the war began. Then the war broke out, everyone just got drawn into the madness all sudden. These strong , uncontrolled emotions really scares me and reveals how war turns people into animals.

Log 3

 

What is this chapter about?

    Here we're moving on to the 2nd chapter of the book, it's called The Three Hardest Words in the English Language. It doesn't mean it literally, like the longest or the hardest words to pronounce, it's talking about the words that hardly come out of our mouths. Which are extremely simple: "I don't know." Humans hardly admit that they are incapable of something. We love to save faces and prove how good we are. No one likes to be thought lowly.

What is this section about?

    The author gave an example of a consultant analyzing the underlying operation problems in a company. The consultant found out that the advertisement the company has been doing was a total waste of money. They advertised during black Friday and holidays, which is not a good sample to test for the efficiency of the ads since people already buy a lot during that time. They have also been putting advertisements in the newspaper only on Sundays, there isn't enough diversity to tell the effects. They did miss for some weeks in the past but they didn't even bother to look at the numbers. Even if the consultant told them their critical problem, they are all too afraid to mention it, they worry that their boss will fire them.

My thoughts on this story:

    People follow tradition and do what previous decision-makers do. There is also a possibility that those people lack expertise and don't know what to do in this kind of situation. They don't want to admit that they don't know what would happen if they ran an experiment and made a change. The author encourages readers that if they think like a freak, think in another way, and admit they "don't know", they could solve problems that no one really looks into. I agree with the author, humans are afraid of the unknown, and we are all afraid of failing, but if we never step out of this comfort zone, we would just walk around in circles.

Log 3

 

Wilderness, is full of wonder and greatness. During the day, everything seems peaceful and joyful. However, in the night, it uncover its veil, dragging you into despair and darkness. The boat crushed, supplements scattered on the beach, and ravens cried out in the trees. 

I finished almost half of the book. I really hate the feeling when you think the light of hope lied before you and it turned out to be your illusion. The plots were really tense but emotional at the same time. I was thrilled to find out how the two protagonists were going to survive in the abandoned wasteland all the time, and I really liked the great numbers of details that were involved in this book. They helped me to catch the whole scene of the environment. Howling from the  fury wolves, rustling from the dark forests, roaring form the grizzly bears, the use of onomatopoeia always crept me out.

Honestly speaking. I scared of nature all the time. I hated unstable weathers. I hated furious beasts. I hated harsh environment. Every time you thought you were befriending with nature, it engulfed you without mercy. I could not even imagine how to survive in a world without gleam and light. I am always timid and skeptical. The two protagonists in the story, Chris and Frank, accepted the truth that they had no choice but to manage to be alive and to wait for rescue. They were so brave and calm, and I aspired that kind of personality so much. If I were the person to survive to that environment, I might be torn apart by a pack of wolves right away. Lacking bravery and confidence was always the factor that blocking on my way. I gave up so many precious opportunities in school. The chance to get higher education. The chance to have a memorable relationship. The chance to stand up against the bullies. There were the only chances, but I gave them up all. I wanted to be like Frank, to be that mature and independent, leading people to the right direction. I wanted to be like Chris, to be that creative and kind, figuring out the best way to benefit everyone. The plots impressed me and made me want to be braver than before. The reading journey for now was full of surprise and amaze. I could not wait to see the subsequent story at the land!

Log 3

I read Chapter 2, called “Bad Neighbours.” This chapter mainly describes the days that new neighbors moved next to Fugue's house. One day, Sam went to greet a boy named David, the same age as Sam. However, the conversation quickly turned hostile and ended on a sour note. Surprisingly, David said that Jason was transgender in front of the whole class, causing quite a stir. He was the first to reveal it to the world. This chapter also includes conflicts within Fugue's family. the mother, who worked in the Cabinet and faced social pressures, didn’t understand Jason’s coming out as transgender. She responded with strong denial and indifference. The father and Sam also didn’t understand why Jason believed he was a female, but the father sided with the mother, while Sam wanted to talk more with his elder brother and understand his thoughts

The most impressive part in this chapter was the mother, who wanted to protect the family, viewed this as something as serious as if Jason had committed murder, saying they must hide it forever. Jason asked, “Do you think being transgender is just as bad as being a murderer?” My heart tightened at that moment. I could feel how sad, disappointed, and angry Jason must have been hearing such words. It was as hurtful as when my mother once said to me, “I wish I had never given birth to you.” To hear such deeply wounding words from someone who was the closest to us, it felt like my heart was shattered, leaving me helpless. As for David revealing Jason’s transgender identity to the class, trying to humiliate Sam, David is depicted as a bully who maintained his status by exploiting others’ secrets to assert his superiority. This made it very relatable because everyone including me must have encountered someone like this during our school years.

Log 3

When reading Chapters 4 to 7, I noticed that the way the characters interact shows real-life social problems. Darcy’s pride comes from his high social status, and Elizabeth’s dislike of him reminds me how, even today, we often judge people by their background or money. This made me think that we shouldn’t judge others based only on how they look or their social position.

Also, the growing relationship between Jane and Bingley, and Charlotte’s practical view of marriage, made me realize that money still matters in relationships today. Even though we talk about love and freedom in marriage now, financial issues are still important, and this is something that I and my friends think about too.

I admire Elizabeth because she wants a relationship based on honesty and equality, instead of marrying just because society expects it. This makes me reflect on whether I can also stay true to my own beliefs and not let social pressures change my choices. 

Log 3

 

When I read the middle part of the book, about Annie and Buster’s daily lives and work were affected by their parents' strange performance art. In the end, they were forced to return home and reunite with their parents. Mr. and Mrs. Fang loved performing in public, blending reality with art to provoke reactions from onlookers. Sometimes, Annie and Buster were even forced to participate in their parents' performances.

What made me angry on behalf of Annie and Buster while reading was that I felt Mr. and Mrs. Fang did not fulfill their responsibilities as parents. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with them enjoying performance art, but forcing their children to do things they don’t like is really terrible. They never considered how much psychological harm or external impact this would have on Annie and Buster when they grew up. After all, from what I’ve read so far, I can already see that their jobs are completely affected and they are facing difficult situations.

I feel lucky to have great parents who never force me to do things I don’t like and always support what I enjoy and want to do. They always tell me, "As long as you're doing the right thing, be brave and do what you love!" Although I haven’t had the same experience as Annie and Buster, I can empathize and think from their perspective: How would I feel if I were them? What would my life be like when I grow up? I think my answers would be very negative. I’d probably grow up feeling very unhappy, unable to find a sense of security. Feelings of depression, fear, and anxiety would likely be constantly on my mind.

Actually, I often hear friends complain to me about being forced by their parents. For example, I have a friend who is always forced to learn many different things, like instruments, dancing, and languages. Every day, he is made to study things he doesn’t enjoy. My friend has told his parents many times that he doesn’t want to learn these things, but every time, his strict parents just suppress him. In the end, after a long time, he became sick…

From the whole situation, I believe his parents love him deep down and want the best for him, but they’re using the wrong approach, which has seriously affected him. No one likes being forced because it’s a really unpleasant feeling. Going back to the book, I feel that Mr. and Mrs. Fang, as parents, failed to fulfill their duties. They didn’t show care or empathy, and it made me feel uncomfortable even though it’s not happening to me.

Log 3

    

    

    This week I moved on to the next three chapters, which is about another concept, FOBO. FOBO, different from FOMO I mentioned in my first log, is about an anxiety-driven urge to hold out for something better based on the perception that a more favorable alternative or choice might exist. People with FOBO are likely to make delayed decisions, which may cause them to miss many opportunities they originally were able to grab. 

    As a person who is indecisive and ambitious, I’m the one who seriously suffers from FOBO. So when I read through the concept of FOBO and some behaviors of FOBO people, I somehow felt a little ashamed. I was like, “Oh, this is totally the same as my usual behavior.” Take my train ticket buying habit for example, whenever I look for the ticket on the app of Taiwan Railway, I always have a fluke mind, thinking that I will probably see a ticket with better times after a few days. Therefore, I won’t buy a train ticket immediately even though the time is still acceptable for me. While this bad habit usually makes me end up failing to buy any ticket on the day I want to return to my hometown. In addition to that, I once experienced the failure to get any jobs for which I felt like applying in the end due to my indecisiveness. It happened in the second semester of my freshman year. I still remember in the beginning of the second semester, I made up my mind to step out of my comfort zone to try things I never did before, such as doing a part-time job.Thus, I began searching for positions in many divisions in NTUST. Though I did find some vacancies, I constantly hesitated to submit the application forms, for I worried about too many things and thought perhaps I could find a better position. Not until I made sure this position was truly suitable for me did I submit my application forms. Sadly, when I submitted my application forms, there were no more vacancies. In spite of having found the part-time work position in one of the divisions in NTUST, now I’m still a little regretful for being so indecisive and FOBO that I missed lots of precious opportunities at that time.

    Sometimes it’s just pretty normal for human beings to be FOBO since we all have a desire to seek for better options out of our inner eagerness and greediness. However, it’s of paramount importance that you have to know the value of your time, money, and more importantly, the things you truly want. That is, you need to make decisions based on your real demand and reasonable expectation. Just like what the author said in the article, “If you keep searching for things according to the unreasonable expectation, then you’ll never get anything in the end.” With the previous negative experience, now I’ve learned to seize things I would like to pursue or things I don’t want to miss. l learned to limit my options, focusing on priorities, and embracing imperfection, etc. I always bear the sentence "The longer you delay your decisions, the greater the risk that some of your potential alternatives will simply fade away" in my mind, reminding myself not to care about too many things, just do it first until you give up. That doesn’t mean I’ll do anything appealing to me unconditionally; instead, I’ll first assess my abilities, time, what this thing can bring to me and then make a decision. In conclusion, we only live once, so just live in the present and bravely chase after something you like without any regret or hesitation !

Log 3

Log 3

2024.9.25_The Song of Archilles_Chapter4-6

Summary:

After Patroclus was exiled to Peleus's kingdom, he was haunted by nightmares and became more notorious after his sin was spread out. One day, during dinner, Achilles tossed him a fig when juggling, which seemed to be an invitation. From that moment on, they became closer. They had meals, played, chatted, and took class together—especially the class only for princes. Most importantly, Patroclus became Achilles's official companion, they called it “Therapon.”

Note:

I decided to dedicate a section at the start of the chapter to briefly record my thoughts on what I’ve read. In Log 2, I interwove the context with my reflections, which I consider too chaotic, so I’m trying this approach instead. Once again, I feel fortunate to have chosen this book. Unlike the short stories I’ve read on AO3 and Wattpad, I can truly appreciate the effort the author has put into crafting the characters’ emotions and carefully selecting the words to describe their appearances and behaviors.

Reflections:

In what I have read, I found that the author uses the writing technique of repetition to evoke the characters' emotions, which may be helpful for my writing.

“Do you want to be—  

“Do you want to be a god?”  

“Achilles.”  

“Do you want to be a god?”  

Achilles was asked by his mother to become a god, which means that he might not be able to live with mortals. However, Achilles and Patroclus had become  best friends. Through Patroclus's repeated words, I sensed his unease behind the comforting questioning. It seems that he hopes to hear Achilles say, “I don’t want to leave” or “I won’t leave.” Besides, these sentences reminded me of my favorite scene in the Pride and Prejudice:

"You have bewitched me body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you…"

I can still remember this scene in the movie, how Darcy’s face looked. His eyes seemed to be covered with a layer of water, the tail of his eyebrows dropped slightly, the facial expression was so affectionate that I could feel the weight of his love.

In terms of the plot, it’s clear that Patroclus’s feelings for Achilles had surpassed mere friendship. However, the author didn’t solely focus on their romantic relationship, it also highlighted the protagonist's inner growth. For example, through them getting along with each other day and night, Patroclus was gradually being extricated from the nightmare of killing people that bothered him every night, and he learned to care less about others' opinions, becoming more open with Achilles. 

One part that left a deep impression on me is “I stood, extended a hand for him, and he took it, pulling himself up.” This illustrated Patroclus's transformation from someone who is saved to someone who saves others.

Log 3_The Queen's Gambit

 

I watched the Netflix series of The Queen's Gambit before, and I found it intriguing, so I chose the book as the material for my logs. The story is basically about Beth, a girl who was sent to an orphanage, because her mother was dead due to an accident. The life in the orphanage was monotonous and boring, but Beth found something interesting when she went to the basement, and it was the chess. After visiting the basement several times, Beth started to learn how to play chess with the janitor in the basement.

I was wondering why Beth had to be sent to the orphanage when her mother was dead, while her father was still alive. I realized that the background of the story was in the USA in the mid 1950s to the late 1960s, when some social trends such as civil rights movement, anti-war movement, and the sexual liberation emerged. Economy was also affected, people's financial conditions were becoming better at that time. However, men were the main source of domestic economy back then, so women had to live under the shadow of their husbands, which was the reason why the divorce rate increased at that time. When Beth's mother died from the accident, Beth's father chose not to raise her, but sent her to the orphanage, which could be a nightmare to little Beth.

I could picture the scenes of the words when I was reading the articles, for the author was good at using descriptive language to narrate the story. For instance, "One day she was sent to the basement to clean the blackboard erasers by clomping them together, and she found him (the janitor) sitting on a metal stool near the furnace scowling over a green-and-white checkerboard in front of him. But where the checkers should be there were little plastic things in funny shapes. Some were larger than others. There were more of the small ones than any of the others. The janitor looked up at her. She left in silence." It was a short paragraph in Chapter 1. The author described the scene so clearly with details of the place, the stuff, and the person, that I could imaging the whole scene in my mind. I found that writing a descriptive essay is like shooting a video. You have to focus on the details you want your audience to see, hear, or smell. Moreover, with the desire to accurately describe the story will drive you to learn new words and phrases you didn't know.

When I am reading the story, I felt like I was learning how to play chess with Beth and the janitor. I learned some words that were used when playing chess, such as scholar’s mate (四回合將殺), checkmate (將殺；圍攻), rook (西洋棋的車), bishop（西洋棋的象，主教棋子), and pawn (西洋棋的兵). Though I didn't really knew how to play chess after learning these words, gaining knowledge from the field that I was not familiar with was challenging but interesting. That also made me recall something I heard in today's interpreting class. "No effort will be in vain." What I learn now may seem useless, but in someday in the future, the things I learn will jump out to my mind and help me when I need them.

Log 3

     

    In the third and fourth weeks, I read Chapter 3, titled Expectations and Reality. The author conveys a key truth: the first rule of happiness is to keep expectations low. It's a well-known fact that when we set high expectations—whether regarding our quality of life, income, or the outcome of various situations—and reality falls short, disappointment often follows. This disappointment can even lead to negative emotions. The underlying issue is that excessive expectations set us up for failure by creating an unrealistic standard.

    The author compares the 1950s with the present day. In the 1950s, a single salary earned by the breadwinner, typically the father, could support an entire family, including the spouse, three children, and a pet. However, compared to today, even with two incomes in a household, it is difficult to raise three children and one pet. Despite higher salaries than in the 1950s, our standard of living has not necessarily improved. Why? Today's economy excels at generating three things: wealth, the ability to show off wealth, and great envy for others' wealth. We often find ourselves thinking, "I want that. Why don't I have that? Why does he have it, but I don’t?" Although we may have higher incomes, more wealth, and bigger homes, these are quickly overshadowed by inflated expectations.

    From my perspective, while having higher expectations can motivate us to achieve more, unrealistic or overly ambitious expectations can lead to failure. This emphasizes the importance of managing expectations correctly to lead a happy life. We invest time and effort to improve our quality of life, income, and skills, but we must ensure that our efforts align with our expectations. Imagine longing for a life filled with money, fancy cars, and mansions, yet never feeling satisfied. This dissatisfaction often arises because our expectations increase as rapidly as our circumstances improve. As a result, we never feel content; we constantly want more to meet our rising expectations.

    However, starting with lower expectations doesn't mean giving up or limiting our potential. Instead, it means that when the outcome meets or exceeds our expectations, we feel happier. In my opinion, whether our life is happy or filled with dissatisfaction is entirely determined by whether our expectations are high or low. We alone manage and control our lives. Lowering expectations doesn't mean putting in less effort. To me, it's a step-by-step process: achieving a goal, feeling fulfilled, and gaining the confidence to set and accomplish the next one. Even if the outcome doesn't meet my expectations, I won’t feel upset or pessimistic.

    Some may argue that high expectations drive them to strive for their goals, and I agree. High expectations can indeed be motivating, but the mindset we have is crucial. If I fail, I should remain positive and accept reality. Overall, while the author doesn’t explicitly mention mindset in this chapter, I believe mindset is at the core of setting expectations and accepting outcomes. A positive mindset helps us handle any situation, regardless of whether the outcomes of our high or low expectations are successful or not.

The philosophy of water

 Just click the image, and it will lead you to the talk. Enjoy!

Log 3

 

This week, I keep reading “Diary of a Wimpy Kid-The Ugly Truth.”  I just happened to read a part that deeply moved me. The main character’s mother needed to leave home for a few days. At first, the main character was happy about his mother's departure, feeling that he could finally live without being controlled by her. However, things didn’t go as he imagined. Everything became a complete mess. This reminds me of a time when my mom was in the hospital to take care of my grandma for several days.  At that time, I truly realized how many things my mom still had to do after coming home from work. Without her, everything needed to be done by ourselves. During that time, I really hoped she could come back soon. 

Besides, it also made me think about the gender equality issues that everyone has been advocating for lately. Although everyone talks about gender equality, there are still some families where gender inequality exists, just like mine. My mom has to go out to work during the day and then come home at night to do a ton of housework. Instead, my dad only has to focus on his job. When I was young, I naturally thought that cooking and doing laundry were all my mom's responsibilities. Now that I’ve grown up, I realize how unreasonable all of this is. As a girl, I don’t want to find myself in the same situation as my mom in the future. My mom instilled the concept of gender equality in me and my brother from a young age, insisting that we take turns washing dishes and doing housework, so we wouldn't think of these tasks as only women's work. My mom also doesn't want us to have the same experiences as she did.

I believe not all children are as lucky as I am, so we still need to keep working on gender equality. I hope that one day our society can truly achieve gender equality.

Log 3

Managing interpersonal relationships might always be a topic worth pondering. It’s profound and philosophical, and this was my biggest takeaway after reading this book.

The main character, Greg, often focuses on his own needs, putting himself first and not considering his friends' feelings. At times, he feels jealous when his friends make new connections or receive lots of affection from their families, which makes him feel uneasy and left out. However, he doesn't self-reflect or try to improve. This reminds me of myself, but in the opposite way. I tend to care too much about others' feelings and constantly worry about how others perceive me or any situation. Sometimes, I might also feel jealous of my friends’ qualities and happiness. But after some self-reflection, I realize that I also have my own strengths and am surrounded by love and care. I have wonderful friends, and I feel lucky to have them. This process of self-reflection could be a way to heal myself.

Moreover, in the book, there’s a part where they try to work together to earn some extra money, but their cooperation fails due to uneven workload distribution. Collaboration is also a skill. In my current school and club activities, I deeply understand that good teamwork can make things much easier, while poor teamwork can make things much harder. I believe the main issue is communication. We need to communicate even more with those close to us. Often, we assume that those close to us understand our thoughts, but we forget that if we don’t express ourselves, no one will truly know what we think. Maybe in the book, Greg's friends could have tried discussing the division of work with him, helping Greg reflect on himself and allowing their collaboration to go more smoothly.

Although this friendship experienced many ups and downs, fortunately, both of them cherished their relationship. Greg's friend's kindness and tolerance kept him from giving up on their friendship. Perhaps this is the fascinating part of interpersonal relationships. After constant adjustments, the bond can become even stronger.

Log 3

As I continued reading 《Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hard Luck》, I deeply felt Greg’s loneliness and helplessness after losing his best friend Rowley. Watching him rely on the magic 8-ball to make decisions about every little thing in his life, I couldn’t help but reflect on similar situations I’ve faced growing up. Like Greg, there were moments when I felt lost, unsure of how to handle changes in friendships or challenges in life.

From my own experience, when a close friend finds new companions, that feeling of being ignored can be really disheartening. There was a time when I felt just as lonely and left out as Greg. In middle school, I had a close friend with whom I was almost inseparable. People always saw us as a duo, and we got along perfectly without any conflicts. However, when I left the place where we grew up together to move to Taiwan, he barely reacted and showed little interest in my new life. Our interactions gradually dwindled, and eventually, he became someone I no longer recognized. During that time, I tried to keep myself busy by joining activities and exploring new interests, but the sense of loss was still hard to shake off. Seeing Greg rely on the magic 8-ball in his struggle to find some help from “luck,” I realized it was his way of escaping from his troubles, a feeling I understood well. It reflected the sense of helplessness and confusion we often feel when facing setbacks in our relationships.

Looking at Greg’s story from an older perspective, I’ve come to understand that loneliness and change are inevitable parts of growing up. Instead of relying on external “luck” or hoping for someone else’s company, it’s more important to embrace these emotions and find strength within ourselves. There’s a part in the book where Greg uses the magic 8-ball to decide whether to make up with Rowley, which reminded me of how we often let seemingly random things like luck, others’ opinions, or our immediate feelings dictate our decisions, overlooking the need to face and resolve our inner emotions.

Neither friendship changes nor life’s setbacks are problems that luck can fix. What we ultimately need to learn is how to cope with change, adapt to solitude, and regain control over our lives. Through Greg’s journey, I’ve come to realize that while growing up can sometimes feel disappointing, it’s these very experiences that make us stronger and more mature. Behind the humorous writing of this book lie many truths about growing up, allowing me to reflect on my own life and gain a deeper understanding as I revisit these stories.

Log 3

 This chapter marks a turning point in the relationship between Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, as it dives deeper into the tension and dynamic that has been brewing between them. The chapter opens with Ana reflecting on her complex feelings toward Christian, torn between attraction and confusion over his mysterious behavior.

In this chapter, Ana and Christian continue to navigate the early stages of their relationship, with Ana becoming increasingly curious about Christian’s world. Christian’s protective and dominant tendencies become more apparent, especially when he buys her expensive gifts, like a new car, and insists on controlling various aspects of her life. This highlights Christian’s desire for control and introduces the central theme of power dynamics that will become even more pronounced as the story progresses.

Ana’s internal conflict is a major focus in this chapter. She is both intrigued by Christian’s intensity and wary of the boundaries he sets. Her reluctance to fully accept his world is evident, yet she is drawn to him, which sets up the emotional push-and-pull that defines their relationship. Ana’s naivety and Christian’s dominance are key elements of their character arcs, and this chapter explores the tension between their contrasting personalities.

The writing emphasizes the growing chemistry between the two, using physical and emotional tension to build anticipation. The chapter concludes with a sense of foreboding, as Ana is left to ponder whether she can handle the complexities of being involved with someone like Christian, who clearly has deep, undisclosed secrets and a controlling nature.

Log 3

 This chapter talks about the weird symptoms that happen to the cattle of Arendelle. This chapter describes exactly what happened and how Elsa and Anna tried to deal with it. In the past, I always think that the text can't show the image. However, after I read this chapter, I found that it can provoke my imagination, and can describe the scene vividly. Through this chapter, I can see Elsa’s calm attitude toward handling things and Anna’s positive attitude of wanting to help with things. I think the spirit of these two sisters is worth learning from. The content and details in this book are not only for children to read but also provide teenagers and people of all ages with many things worth learning and emulating.

Log 3

 

                    I continued to read the Boy in the Striped Pajamas in these two weeks. Bruno still tried to persuade his parents, older sister, even the servant around him to back to their home in Berlin. He did not want to stay there. However, no one agreed with him. 

                    The reason why I choose to post the picture is because I want to share a sentence that Bruno’s father said, “The past is the past. Here we have a fresh beginning.” Bruno was keeping old friendships in mind, so do I. I totally understood why he always mentioned his friends and wanted to back to Berlin in this book. In Berlin, there were his best friends who could play with him. As a child, no one wants to be lonely.

                    Actually, I still do not know how does the new house like from the author’s words. In my opinion, maybe I am not a person who lived in the World War II. I do not know the time and space background at that time. Therefore, it made me realize an important point of reading. That is I should have a deep and familiar background knowledge about the book. It will be easier to understand the plot. Therefore, I decided to watch the movie which was adapted to the book before I read the following chapters. I thought it will help me to understand the plot better.                   

Log 2

The book I just finished reading is The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I decided to read this book because I kept hearing about it from friends and online. It was also on my list for a long time, so I finally picked it up.

The story follows Hazel Grace Lancaster, a young girl with cancer, and her journey of meeting Augustus Waters, a boy she falls in love with. What stood out to me is how the book talks about life, death, and love in a very real way. Hazel and Augustus are not just teenagers dealing with cancer—they are thinking deeply about their lives, the people they love, and the legacy they leave behind.

One reason I liked the book was because it felt honest. The characters aren’t pretending to be strong all the time, and they show their fear and pain. At the same time, they find joy in small things, like reading a book together or traveling to Amsterdam. The relationship between Hazel and Augustus is touching and feels natural. Their conversations about the meaning of life and dealing with their illnesses made me think about how I would handle tough situations in my own life.

Even though some parts of the book made me sad, I’m glad I read it. It reminded me that even in hard times, people can find love and connection.

 

Week 4: A bit long! Please be patient and read to the end~

Dear all,

For tomorrow's class, I'll begin by sharing reading logs written by one of your seniors and some reflections written by adults who read children's books. I noticed that some are reading Wimpy Kids' Diary. From these reflections, we will see what intertextuality means and how reflections can be profound, insightful, and reflexive to not only you but also those who read your logs. 

Then, I'll continue discussing Descriptive writing using the materials I uploaded last week: Tree-climbing and two essays about writing your life. These are all different ways to describe yourself.

Please note that even a personal story needs a clear structure and thesis statement that directs your readers. In the last hour, you will have time to exchange your drafts and outlines again. Please record your friends' comments on your essay and try to integrate them into your revision (draft 2), highlighting in draft 2 the changes you make and making a table showing the comments you have followed and the ones you chose not to follow. An example will be provided in class.  

Besides bringing a hard copy of your outline and draft to class for discussion, you are also required to submit an unmarked e-version of your draft on Moodle tomorrow. So I hope that you bring your personal laptop to class. It'll also be easier for you to note down your friends' comments. Remember, I only collect your draft 1s on Moodle. 

One last note: I apologize for my forgetfulness about log 3. As I have shown on the gradesheet and syllabus, log 3 is actually due on 9/25. But I said no when some of you asked me in class. Please always refer to the syllabus for deadlines. For the rest of the semester, you will always have to submit at least 2 assignments every week. The easiest weeks (weeks 1 to 3) have passed. Sorry about that!

Oh, a couple of you even haven't submitted your logs 1 & 2! 

Log 1

Hi, I’m Lydia. I consider myself more of a reader than a writer, though my reading habits can sometimes be a bit chaotic. I love reading, but I often get distracted while doing so, which makes it hard for me to stay focused on a single book. Still, reading is something I’m naturally drawn to, and it has been a constant part of my life.

My love for reading came naturally, rather than being sparked by a specific book or person. As a child, I remember being surrounded by books, and I’d pick one up out of sheer curiosity. The stories would pull me in, and I’d find myself lost in different worlds for hours. Over time, reading became my favorite way to explore new ideas and experiences.

Though I enjoy reading immensely, writing has always been a challenge. I struggle to think straight when I try to write, often feeling like my thoughts are too scattered to make sense on paper. This is why I’ve never been as confident in writing as I am in reading. However, I hope to improve this and become more comfortable with expressing my ideas clearly.

In this course, I hope to find new ways to deepen my reading habits and perhaps even improve my writing. I want to be able to enjoy reading without getting distracted, and I hope to gain some insight into how to make my writing feel more organized and intentional. If I can achieve that, I’ll feel a real sense of accomplishment.

Log3

These two pages describe the mental pressure that children endure when facing domestic violence. Domestic violence is not limited to physical pain; it also includes psychological abuse. The reason abused children often cannot resist is not just because they are physically weak, but the pressure exerted on them by the abuser makes them feel powerless. A single glance or gesture from the abuser could be a sign of impending violence, leaving the child no time to react or avert it. Even if they want to seek help, they often suppress this desire due to the overwhelming, unexplainable pressure. Every day, they face unpredictable beatings and verbal abuse.

However, sometimes the victims are not only children; the mother or even pets can also become targets. When the abuser has no outlet for their anger, pets in the household are often the first to be harmed. In the first image, a child who survived domestic violence talks about how he had to witness his father beating his beloved pet but couldn’t stop it or speak up out of fear that he might be the next victim.

After reading these two pages, I could deeply understand the invisible yet heavy pressure that abusers impose on their victims. That atmosphere hangs over the entire family, and the fear of not knowing what will happen next is hard to erase. Learning to read subtle cues might be a survival skill that every child living under the shadow of domestic violence acquires.

 

Log 2

    The reasons why I chose this book were due to its cover and title. Since last winter, I have been reading and studying psychology on my own. After reading a book called Dig, which covered trauma and twisted stories, I began searching for a book that would explore trauma or behavior in depth. Fortunately, I found this book, which offers a wealth of information. The first day I saw it on the bookshelf, I was captivated by its cover. The cover design was by Emily O'Connor, an interdisciplinary artist from Flower Mound, Texas. She works in a variety of mediums and techniques, such as sculpture, fibers, film, painting, drawing, and installation.

    There was a sentence on the cover that said, "When will the hurt stop?" It gave me goosebumps because I felt not just the words but the emotional impact of the painting which touched me deeply. However, I didn't buy the book right away. I kept searching for other books that studied trauma as well. But the cover and that single sentence lingered in my mind. So on the second day, I finally bought it and immersed myself in it.

    Aside from being attracted by the book's cover, another motivation for wanting to read it comes from my own experiences. For those who have been through trauma, the search for a remedy is always compelling. To stop the pain brought by bad memories, finding a solution might be something they spend their whole lives looking for. The title of the book speaks clearly and directly about trauma and recovery. For someone like me, who has gone through unforgettable experiences, it feels somewhat like a cure, and I am also finding a way to ease the pain through this book.

 

Log2

 

The reason that I was reading this book recently is quite simple: I bought this book last month. Actually, I kept reminding myself to get this book since last year, but I just can’t find the English version of its physical book, they were either out of stock or located in other countries. I really wanted to collect this book on my bookshelf until five weeks ago, I gave up with no choice and got an ebook version of it. 

    Then why do I want this book so badly? Well first, as a WW2 history fan, it’s been a long time since I kept reading books, articles about technologies, fun facts or celebrities during this period. So I already know about the reputation of this book’s author: Otto Carius, who was one of the most successful tank commanders during WW2. It is said that he destroyed more than one hundred and fifty enemy tanks during his service. Indeed, it sounds really incredible. Those superficial elements like: legendary battles, brave soldiers and bizarre military weapons, they do make people feel curious and excited for that era. 

    But, I would like to know more than just mere physical sides. Besides the Eastern Front warfare and the dreaded, infamous war machine:  “Tiger” tank, I expect to see how a person like Otto Carius thinks in his identity and position. Which means, I want to find something about mental issues and philosophy. I  have huge curiosity toward those questions like how he thinks about war crimes, Nazi and his own behavior. Did he ever feel guilty or doubt his own motivations? I will take my time and read this biography from beginning to the end, to make sure my memory is still fresh. After all, I can only evaluate this book's main idea with the whole view of it.

Log1

Hi~ My name is Jessie. 

I'm an indigenous student from Pingtung and Nantou. Many people will think I’m a foreigner. In fact, I'm a native Taiwanese. My indigenous name is Sani Madiglaan Suqluman. My personality is actually quite changeable. Sometimes I can be very outgoing and talkative but most of the time I prefer spending time by myself. When I’m alone, my favorite things to do are listening to music and reading. I enjoy reading everything from novels to psychology theories.

Now, let me talk about my reading journey. I started enjoying Chinese essays and poetry collections in middle school. In high school, because my homeroom teacher was a Chinese literature teacher, I began reading a lot of classical Chinese poetry. It wasn't until I entered university that I seriously started reading English books. I remember the first English book I read seriously was a fiction I borrowed from Professor Wannie, called Dig. After that, I fell into the world of reading English books. Since that novel touched on psychological topics, I began borrowing books related to psychology. I enjoy reading everything from broad introductions to the history of psychology to books about specific psychological disorders. I’ve never really liked reading romance novels. Instead, I prefer mystery, suspense, and fantasy genres, as they give my mind more room for imagination. Besides psychology, I also read philosophy books to help me see the world from different perspectives.

In this class, I hope to maintain my habit of extensive reading and expand my vocabulary, so that I can become more proficient in both reading and writing.

 

Invitation to a speech event

 

This is an EMI speech event held by the GE Center. As an English major, you might be interested in such a topic.

By the way, please check if you have obtained some feedback on your logs. 

Also, you are strongly encouraged to give feedback to your friends' logs. 

Finally, please check the evaluation rubric I shared. 

Log 3

I finally started to read this book in a relatively low speed compared to others. But I somehow found myself attractive, cool, intelligent when reading, making me want to go as far as I can reach to see the resulf of being a reader. 

Basically, I read the first two chapters of this book while the first one took me nearly 4 days to finish. Chapter 1 talks about the background information of the story, written in very elegant and detailed way which I dislike so much. The author put a lot of effort on describing the scene of the shipwreck and the emotional state of the father, also the main character, Robinson, in the story. Later, in the second chapter, other characters appeared, including the main character's wife, 4 sons, animals they have found in the same ship.The author also wrote a lot of the methods Robinson used to save his family, which I didn't care at all. Besides, in the second chapter, the dialogues started to emerged, and the personalities of the characters came up more. I was impressed by the characteristics of  the wife, since she was the opposite to Robinson. Also, the part where Jack, the third son, found 2 dogs made me burst out laughing. 

In the last half part of the second chapter was about the father making some technologies, and I almost forgot what were they and their purposes. I also noticed that the religious features in this book, such as the line said "God may save us if it is His will." Maybe it showed the author's belief or the cultural background when this book was written. It is interesting to find the role of religious in literatures even though I am a Atheist. The book was first published in 1812, but the wife also did many jobs to help this family escape the hopelessness, showing no gender inequality.

 

Log 3

 

This week I read the second chapter and feel like the main part of the story is about to unfold. I think so because, in this chapter, Kino(main character) found the key element of the story—the pearl of the world. After finding the pearl, Kino and his wife were ecstatic because they finally had the money to save their dying son.

In this chapter, there’s not much progress except finding the Pearl. Instead, the author spent a considerable amount of time describing the scenery. And all those sentences were beautiful however hard for me to understand. Therefore, it took me a lot of time and effort to read just a single page. But after understanding those paragraphs, it was all worth it because those beautiful sentences were outstanding and inspiring.

The following are sentences I extracted from the book that amazed and impressed me:

“The uncertainty air that magnified some things and blotted out others hung over the whole Gulf so that all sights were unreal and vision could not be trusted;”

“…so that sea and land had the sharp clarities and the vagueness of a dream.”

Both these sentences use opposite words simultaneously, and this technique makes the sentences vivid and elegant.

“… the minds of people are as unsubstantial as the mirage of the Gulf.”

In this sentence, people’s minds were described as the mirage of the Gulf. The author concretizes abstract concepts, which makes it more vivid and easier to resonant.

Log 3

 

The reason I chose this book is because I loved reading fairy tales when I was a child. When I found this book in the library, I thought: "I've only ever read fairy tales in Chinese, never in English." So, I picked up Grimms' Fairy Tales. While reading it, I could also relive my childhood.

In this book, I came across "Snow White." When I was young, she was the dream of many girls. Every girl imagined themselves as a princess, and the story was adapted into movies and cartoons that most people have probably seen. But today, I'm not here to talk about "Snow White."

My favorite story in this book is "The White Snake." In the story, a king’s servant gains the ability to talk to animals after eating a bite of white snake. As a child, I often imagined myself having "superpowers" like him. Instead of using his powers for evil, the servant did many good deeds, such as helping people find lost items or rescuing injured animals. Each time, the animals would say to him, "We will remember you. Good deeds will be rewarded!" Later, when the servant needed to find a gold ring in the deep sea to marry the princess, the animals he had helped returned the favor by helping him find the ring.

After reading the story, I learned that being kind leads to good things happening to you. This story had a big impact on me when I was young, which is why I like it so much.

Log 3

 

I read through the classification and regression analysis part. It's fun! There's a difference between the method of analyzing data, one is classification, the other is regression. The concept is actually quite hard to understand since it involves some math concepts. I spent a lot of time trying to understand it. But after some time, I found it's actually not that hard to distinguish one from another. The classification is when you put the training dataset label A, B, C you would get a result that is either A, B or C. In other words, its results are in a fixed value, it wouldn't vary, classification just gives you the result, it just predicts one of the labels you put in, which is simply either A, B, or C. Examples are what allowed me to learn and understand the concept entirely. The example is, let's say you are filtering an email to see whether it's spam, as a result,  you put A(it's spam), B(it's not a spam), or C(unexpected error). Classification is to help you undestand whether is spam, so the result will only be one of the three result, or what we call labeled training data. You have these labels in the training data, it classifies the thing you want to analyze, and thus use the training data to give you a a result that you already told it. While regression is a whole different story. It's the prediction of continuous values, it doesn't give you a result like either A, B, or C, something you know, as in classification. On the other hand, it gives you result calculated by the regression formula which is determined by the traing data. The result is not fixed training data labels now, instead, training data now uses a formula to calculate values that can be anything, the result can be any value. The example that helped me to understand this is the stock and real estate price analysis. The price of these two are always changing, so you cannot use classification since the house price will not just jump from A price to B price then to C price, it's something that's continuing changing. Therefore, we need prediction of continuous values, we use the training data, for instance, the housing price in the past 10 years, we put it in the data, allowing he training data to come up with a formula to calculate the price of the housing data in the future 10 years. Then it will give you any value, predicted, calculated by it's formula based on it's data. Therefore, it gives you the value that's continuous, and a flexible any value, just like the stock and housing prices. There are two main variables the analysis focuses on, dependent variable and independent variable, independent variable in housing is like the location of your house, the transportation, area etc. While the dependent variable, what we want to predict, it's the price. So the relation between these two is the independent variables are things that affect the dependent variables, we input these data into our model, these features are the things we use to predict our labels, or dependent variables, so we can get the analysis on the result in the future. Another way I would like to explain the definition and relation is to assume we put in different features, such as different areas, locations, we use these features in the data to predict the price, because your housing price will definitely vary on these factors, so this is a good way to explain how independent variable can affect dependent variable in my opinion. These terms confused me a lot, because you can call independent variables as features, or predictors, and dependent variables as labels. I spent some time to finally get why the independent variable can have so many names. Firstly, just like I stated above, it has different features that cause impact to the dependent variable, which is also the way we predict things. The price is just the price, but we put in different features, or predictors, to understand how the price changes. In other words, we call it predictors because we put in different features to get the according results, we get different predictions based on our varying predictors. Predictors are the data we use to predict things, and taht thing we want to predict, is simply the dependent variable, aslo called as the result or label. Regression analysis is actually quite good for analyzing things that are continuous or fluctating since it has a habit of returning to the mean average, it returns to the average to give you a result that's more reliable and credible because it considers the general trend of the data. It will not keep growing after a rocket-like surge, instead it will consider the general trend, grows and declines of the data, to give you a result that's more reasonable and can apply to real situations, so it will be more possible and worthwhile to apply practically since it's more aligned with potential real-world outcomes, which is also why the reason is called a predictive model. These concept are really interesting after understanding it, I find it's actually a simple concept, but knowing how it can be applied and the different terms, and to know what they do in the data and in the regression analysis can be challenging.

Log 2

I couldn't find the cover of this version online, and this edition was published in 1993. This is a very old book that I don't even know any information on the Internet, so I have to face my weakness - reading the whole book. This is what I've borrowed from the NTUST library:

 

The title of this book is The Swiss Family Robinson, written by Johann David Wyss, adapted by his son Rudolf in 1812. I searched the book online to gain background information of it, and I started to regret choosing this book not gonna lie. When first time seeing the book cover and the title, in fact, I was not facinated by it. The only reason why I chose it is the subtitle - Children's classic. As I mentioned before, I am not a reader, and I am so so so afraid of the pure text on the pile of paper. You know what? If people like me are forced to write reading reference, they will also select the book that seems to aim at "children". Well, I was wrong. The book is about adventures and the story of surviving in wildlife, leading by a family of parents, 4 children, 2 pet dogs and other animals. (I haven't read too many pages yet, thank you Wikipedia.)
The cover of the book looks like La Liberte Guidant Le Peuple, a paint of The French Revolution. Not really, just the vibe though. The man in the middle seems to be the oldest one, maybe their father due to the white hair. He waved kind of fur? bird? I guess. The man in the right side tried to exert force on a sort of tools, and I think it was related to cart. The man laying on the ground was searching for something, hunting, and so on. However, when I first grabbed the book, I thought they were farmers who were 

fighting for their right. In fact, I could never read the book that was too realistic or emotional since I am into fantasy or sci-fi as I mentioned in the first log. I am still afraid of flipping the book open. The undercover of it simply talks about the overall contents, and I was not suprised. Till now, I still regret that I borrowed this book, but it would be a great chance for me to step into a brand new journey of reading.