Origin of some customs of Halloween

Jack ‘O Lanterns

The traditions of carving jack 'o lanterns originates with the Celts. A miserable man named Jack, tricked the devil. Unable to enter heaven or hell after his death, he was destined to roam the earth listlessly. Jack placed a piece of coal into a carved-out turnip and used it as a lantern to keep the evil spirits away. Today, pumpkins (which are easier to cut) are carved into jack-o-lanterns, lit and placed outside of doorways for the same purpose.

Trick or Treating

The custom of trick or treating evolved in Ireland, centuries ago. In preparation for All Hollow's Eve, the poor would call upon the rich folks and request money, gifts and food. The food was gathered for a huge feast and celebration.

Bonfires

In Northern Ireland, it was a custom of Druids to perform ritualistic ceremonies and make sacrifices to pacify their gods. The Celts would bring wood and start their Samhain bonfire or, fire festival, on the hilltop. They would often throw the bones of slaughtered cattle into the flames. The word "bonfire" is said to be derived from such "bone fires". Bonfires and sacrifices guaranteed that the sun would burn brightly after a long winter. It's common to see hundreds of traditional bonfires in Ireland every year on Halloween Night.

Man of the edge ending

The man does not give up in his intent of jumping off the edge, and people keep crowding at the street. The police psychologist tries to divert the man attention by asking him some questions about several topics. The conversation keeps going for about three hours, and the psychologist’s personal problems start to flourish. He did not have a better life than the jumper. His wife had cheated on him with his best friend and he had a big debt with the bank because of an unlucky investment that turned out to be a scam. Both men on the edge start to empathize with each other to the point that they both decide to jump holding hands to escape together of such a miserable life. As they are falling and feeling the air on their faces, they realize that it is not the concrete what will stop their fall. Poetically maybe, a garbage truck is passing by, and both men, who tried to leave their problems behind, find themselves surrounded by rotten fish and smelly food. They were now truly sunk in the shit. 

Problem and solution by Mario Costa

Global warming (Problem)

One of the most important global issues nowadays is the climate change and consequently, global warming. Due to the use of oil-derived carburant, an insane amount of toxic gases from factories and cars are thrown to the atmosphere every day. That contamination is causing a hole in the ozone layer, letting the most dangerous radiation from the sun hit the Earth surface, and so rising the temperature of the whole world, which leads into problems like ice melting at the poles and danger to some animal species.

Response from Mario Costa (Solution)

To start with, people should begin doing things like using less CFC’s sprays, taking more public transports or recycling everything they throw to the bin. Cars should be changed for bicycles, and governments should encourage young people to investigate about renewable energy sources, apart from investing in this issue.

Comparison paragraph (Block organisation) - Punk vs Classical music

We could say that punk and classical music are near antagonistic styles. Punk has its origins in the seventies in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia. It has some aggressive styles like hardcore, and that is why you will not listen to it if you want to relax. In addition, the visual aspect related to punk is also provocative, with combat boots and spiked hair. Punk music is usually listened by young people. However, classical music has its origins 500 years from now. You normally listen to classical music when you want to chill or study. Classical music is usually listened by people of any age, from children to elderly people, and doesn’t have any special clothing style or fashion. In short, they are both music styles that have many differences, but at the same time anyone can like both of them, it only depends on your mood or what you are doing at a specific moment.

My favourite movie scenes

In this post I will show you the film scenes I like the most and why:

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

In my opinion, one of the greatest speeches of cinema history, because of the topic and the date.

The Great Dictator (1940)

Another speech. Charlie Chaplin very ahead of its time here.

The Godfather

The illumination, the face expressions of Brando… just a lesson of how to film.

The Sting

I really like this scene: the acting, expressions, but mainly the fact that Newman is cheating the cheater.

Taxi Driver - You Talkin' to Me? scene (1976)

I like this scene because is unscripted. De Niro proving that is one of the greatest.

A place I'd like to go

I have always wanted to visit Japan for so many reasons. It is an Asian country so the cultural difference attracts me so much, and so does the language.

I would like to go sightseeing and visit the beautiful mountain areas where most of the temples are found. I have seen many pictures on the Internet and there are plenty breath-taking sceneries. I want to visit the major cities too, and go to the commercial areas to see all the neon flashing lights from advertisements everywhere. I would also like to get on the Shinkansen, the famous high speed train.

I am in love with Japanese food, sushi, ramen, etc. so it would be amazing to taste it from their original creators. Japan is also the birthplace of the manga and anime culture, and I am looking forward to seeing how it has influenced people there, because we only know some stereotypes and don’t really know if they are as it seems from outside. 

The only problem is the price to get there, because of the high cost of the flight, and the fact that it wouldn’t be a day trip, so it is time to do my best saving money to afford it!

Opinion paragraph: Zoos

I am totally against the existence of zoos. The zoo owners take advantage of the lack of knowledge of the general public of how animals are treated for economic benefits. Animals are kept in small cages almost all day, deprived of their freedom, basic hygiene and solar light. They are brutally separated from their family, missing the freedom they would have enjoyed, and changing their behaviour because of this trauma.When people go to a zoo, they see animals in a large place, but they don’t know that this is only for a few hours to make money, then they are returned to their small cold wet cages. Animals go through significant stress due to people taking photos and hitting the glass where they are kept. They end with severe psychological problems that lead to weird behaviours. And not only psychological problems, you can sometimes see some painfully thin lions or tigers that are not being well fed. A zoo has nothing to do with an animal reserve or protection centre, where owners only look for donations to treat animals in the best way and give them all the cares they need, trying to actually conserve endangered species and protect them. A zoo is only for making money out of animal abuse, and I hope people change their mind about this. If zoos did what was best for animals, they would be quite different places.

Description paragraph: My younger brother. Peer response by Mario Costa

(That's actually me and my brother :D)

My description paragraph (modified after reading the peer response)

When I was eight years old I thought that I would never have a brother, but after some months he was born. My little brother. He was as tiny as a peanut, in fact, he was born prematurely. He was always smiling and dancing, and we both played and laughed a lot together, as we do now. He is fourteen years old and almost as tall as me, these new generation kids will all be basketball players with that height. His name is Moisés, and even though he sometimes gets angry when he loses to me playing FIFA at the computer (what can I do, I am so good at that game), he is a very optimistic and happy person I enjoy being with. I am very grateful for having a younger brother because of every good moment we had and will have, and because I know I will never be alone and will always have not only a brother but a friend to rely on.

Peer response by Mario Costa Gálvez for Alejandro Maximiliano Cano:

Dear Alejandro, I found your paragraph inspiriting and very interesting. Apart from that, it is written properly. It has its topic sentence very defined, and that is something that makes the paragraph more attractive to read. I can’t really find any mistakes, because you used the example giving and the description to define physically and mentally your brother, and your relationship with him. If I were you, I would try to connect the information to make longer phrases, as you do at the final part of your paragraph. That allows the reader to make a clearer image of the described person, what is not very important, but can make a difference. I would make the concluding sentence a bit longer, because you have the perfect space to write a final sentence that explains how your brother has changed you, for example: “and he has made my life more exciting and now I feel I have a supporting person near me” more or less.

Guernica feelings

The Guernica mural shows the anguish and despair that people suffered during the Civil War of Spain and more specifically during the bombing of Guernica. It makes me feel sad and angry at the same time, because you realize what the human being is capable to do to reach the power. There is no reason to cause this horror and death among innocent people, and what this amazing picture makes me feel is nothing but a deep sense of powerlessness and frustration. Picasso’s work is a claim against war, and the worst thing is that nowadays there are plenty of “Guernica scenes” all around the world because we have not learnt anything from the past. I would show this mural to every single leader of a country immersed on a war and make them reflect on the causes and impact on the population that they are supposed to protect.