Five years from now I will definitely remember AP English 11. In five years, I will look back at the daunting task of writing a speech and present it to the class. The final speech was a task that required me to leave my comfort zone: I had to share the reason why I dedicated a large portion of my time to practicing. In addition, It was an assignment that I have never done before. When I look back, I will be grateful for the opportunity to overcome one of my fears-public speaking. In AP English, I learned several useful lessons. First, I learned that time management is crucial. The time given to complete an essay must be used effectively. Many times I found myself waiting till the last minute to complete an assignment. Through many “all-nighters”, I was able to finally change my work ethic towards the end of the year. Next, I have learned how to identify many literary devices and implement them into my writing. In …show more content…
In the short essay, Orwell depicts a flaw in human nature-the disability to overcome peer pressure. Peer pressure causes people to follow the majority. Decisions caused by peer pressure may not end well. For the police officer, peer pressure caused him to inflict suffering upon the elephant. Personally, the short essay caused me to reflect on many decisions I have made. Furthermore, I now feel able to make decisions without caring about conforming to the norm. Ultimately, “Shooting an Elephant” has helped me understand that I should make my decisions without the influence of peer pressure. I think my main contribution to the class was a different perspective. In class, I was able to offer a different view of an argument. Although it was not always easy to clarify and defend my point of view, I was able to make the class think about another side of an argument. As a result, the class became more eclectic. In conclusion, my uncommon stance helped elicit