#IBTHEBOSS

Now that you have finished your first official year of IB, reflect back on what you have learned; not only academically but as a person as well. What is your favorite part of IB? Your least favorite? How do feel the program is making you a better person and preparing you for the future? Your thoughts.

"We veneer civilization by doing unkind things in a kind way."-George Bernard Shaw

Another theme of Titus Andronicus is the idea of civilization vs. barbarism. The Romans see themselves as civilized while viewing the Goths and everyone else as barbarians. In modern times, we too, consider ourselves to be civilized. Are we? What does being civilized really mean? How can a society define itself as civilized? And, if  we are living in a civilized society, what constitutes a barbaric one?

“I am the punishment of God...If you had not committed great sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you.”-Genghis Khan

Titus Andronicus is Shakespeare's bloodiest and most misunderstood play. It is a tale of revenge. Everyone is seeking revenge against someone else. What do you think of revenge? Is it ever justified? Why do you think we are obsessed with revenge stories? What does that say about our culture? Ourselves? Explain.

There was never a death more foretold...

By the end of Marquez' Chronicle of a Death Foretold, we realize everyone knew about the murder plot of Santiago Nasar and did nothing to stop it. During the murder, no one lifted a finger to stop it or help out Santiago. Why? What does it say about the town, the people in it and Santiago himself that no one stopped his brutal murder? What commentary about society in general was Marquez trying to make?

"We dance round in a ring and suppose, while the secret sits in the middle and knows..." -Robert Frost

All throughout Marquez's Chronicle of a Death Foretold, secrets abound. The catalytic moment of the novel, the death of Santiago Nasar, is caused by Angela Vicario allegedly revealing the secret identity of the man who took her virginity. However, this information was never, ever confirmed. Everyone in the novel possesses secrets; some minor and silly others extremely important that have far reaching effects on the people and actions of the novel. Can secrets still do damage if no one knows them? Do secrets always come out eventually? Talk about how secrets affect the people and the action in the novel, but also discuss whether secrets even exist in our modern world.

"trying to piece together the memory from so many broken shards..."

The narrator of A Chronicle of A Death Foretold returns to the scene of Santiago Nasar's murder many years later to piece together clues. The villagers rely on their memories of the day's tragic events and of the many himself. What happens to memories as we age? Are memories ever reliable? How might memories distort reality, much like a mirror would do? Use examples from real life as well as from the novel.

"We must cultivate our gardens"

The last words of Candide are him stating: "We must cultivate our gardens". What is Candide's meaning behind his statement? What does the garden symbolize? How might you apply Candide's philosophy to your own life?