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HARLINGTON CHRONICLE
ISSUE 3 DECEMBER 2017
The Harlington Chronicle
December 2017
Hello Everyone!
Welcome to the third issue of The Harlington Chronicle, a Sixth Form student-run magazine for Harlington Upper School!
As usual, we have aimed to include something useful or intellectually engaging for everyone, so a variety of topics have been covered in this issue, including film, sports, wellbeing, and more.
We’d love to welcome new students into our writing team, so if you’d be interested feel free to contact us at [email protected], or tweet us @harlchronicle. A big thank you to everyone on the team who spent time and effort to make a contribution towards this fantastic third issue. Another thank you goes out to our readers who make the hard work so much more rewarding and worthwhile!
Editor: Helena Platt
Design: Cherie Cheung
Photography: Naomi Smith
Contributors: Cherie Cheung Abi Denman Georgina Halford Luke Payne Jack Sheppard Octavia Spyrou Faye Tolliday
Thank you to Mr Craze for helping to organise everything!
Enjoy! Helena and Cherie
contents
The Importance of Performing Arts Subjects within Education
Faye Tolliday
Monthly Film Recommendation: Elephant
Jack Sheppard
From Pridelands to Playbill
Octavia Spyrou
What Happened to Amelia Earhart?
Abigail Denman
White Silence = Violence
Georgina Halford
Game, Set and Match?
Luke Payne
Why You Need To Get More Sleep
Cherie Cheung
3
4
6
8
10
12
13
‘The world is a complicated place, and there’s a lot of division between people. The performing arts tend to unify people in a way nothing else does.’ - David Rubinstein (social historian). Why are performing arts important? Performing arts are essential as they help students to use their creativity and imagination as well as providing them with invaluable opportunities to learn new skills away from the traditional classroom environment. Most importantly they give students a chance to express themselves in a way other subjects don’t; they get a chance to be whoever they want to be whilst having fun. Students get time away from their desk allowing them to develop their confidence and communication skills through practical learning and team work. This is a unique learning experience which combines the use of students’ imagination and critical thinking, and the refreshing contrast from conventional classroom activities allows them to engage more fully with that they are doing. These lessons in subjects such as Music, Dance and Drama become memorable and enjoyable for students. With many subjects becoming increasingly focused on essay writing and analysis, time away from this even more valuable. Their creativity has a chance to flourish in performing arts lessons when so many other subjects diminish this. The skills that can be gained from interacting in performing arts subjects are transferable life skills which play a critical part in adult life. For example, performing arts encourages the more obvious skills
such as confidence, communication and public
speaking but also develops others such as
memory, through activities like lyric or script
learning; the ability to problems solve; and being
able to work in a team with a variety of people.
Students also have to experience receiving and
acting on constructive criticism from both their
peers and teachers, allowing them to expand on
and improve their work. Furthermore, it also
helps students develop their empathy as they
have the opportunity to play a range of different
characters, all of whom will have very different
backgrounds and experiences. This increases
students’ social awareness of important issues
in modern society and allows them to explore
their beliefs in depth in an engaging manner.
Additionally, consider how much Music and
Drama influence people in their everyday life:
music is used in almost everything from radio to
TV and it often even defines the pop culture of
the time. Drama is also used just as frequently
as music in entertainment, but also in peoples’
daily lives. People are constantly acting, every
day when they speak to others and interact in
society. As Shakespeare said, ‘All the world’s a
stage’. Performing arts subjects are an
immensely powerful creation as they have the
ability to make us feel certain emotions and
influence the way we think and feel. This is an
ability that not many other subjects have and
one that must not be reduced or distracted
from.
Faye Tolliday
MONTHLY FILM RECOMMENDATION:
ELEPHANT
Gus Van Sant is a very interesting filmmaker.
Whether it’s his crowd pleasing efforts in the
classic Good Will Hunting, or the soaring story of
gay politician Harvey Milk- his stories vary from
accessible to art-house to experimental. Notable
entries to his filmography include: his much-
debated remake of Hitchcock’s Psycho that was
precisely shot-for-shot; his Matt Damon and
Casey Affleck art film Gerry, about two men
called Gerry silently wandering through the
desert; and of course, the seminal My Own
Private Idaho that rocketed the late River
Phoenix to stardom and legitimacy in the story
of two male prostitutes. While he may not retain
the batting average of some of Hollywood’s
current greats- with more than a few films either
slipping off the radar or completely crashing into
it- I believe the work of Van Sant is something
immensely admirable. Not many filmmakers
offer such a prolific and wide array of subject
matters and approaches, and any filmmaker who
can make the popcorn cheese-fest that is Good
Will Hunting in the same career as the almost
dialogue-less Gerry is a filmmaker who deserves
credit where credit is due.
Of all these films, Elephant is my favourite.
Based on a short story by Harmony Korine (who
later went on to direct the audacious Spring
Breakers), Elephant is the story of a group of
teenagers, connected by nothing but casual
pleasantries or exchanges, who make their way
around their American high school on what
seems like any normal day. Except, this is the
day during which two disgruntled pupils have
decided to carry out a mass shooting. Now, this
may seem like a spoiler since the film has had
time to ferment (released in 2003), but at the
time of release the subject matter was a widely
discussed controversy. Inspired by the
Columbine shootings, the subject matter was
seen as a sore, exploitative topic, and the film’s
choice to not only portray the shooters but to do
so sympathetically, was divisive. Therefore, this
context, as well as a very obvious and
foreboding sense of dread from the outset,
means it hardly takes away from the experience-
although a lot can be said for seeing this film
with no prior knowledge. Casting mostly non-
acting teenagers and creating their characters
around them (using their real names and
mostly improvisation) the film offers a tactile,
realistic look into the school experience, and
the realism meets perfectly with the dream-
like nature of Van Sant’s wandering camera.
The film is comprised mostly of long,
wandering shots, following characters as they
walk with or without purpose around the
school, sometimes accompanied by music
and sometimes not. This choice is jarring- the
film often tries the patience of the viewer,
filling the frame with sometimes frustratingly
little in the form of content- with many of the
tracking shots clocking up several minutes in
length and offering nothing but the transition
from one environment to another. But this
choice serves a purpose. Not only does the
empty school through the eyes of the
omniscient camera transport the viewer into
its very halls, it also embodies the hollow,
drifting nature of adolescence, of the school,
and of the American lifestyle. The film
critiques the insidious, often violent nature of
American culture- whether it be the shooters
ordering semi-automatic weapons with the
same ease as an online clothes shop, or three
teen girls eating lunch and then forcibly
vomiting it up again in one long, unflinching
shot.
The story often stares the devil in the face, and
the extensive, persistent scenes force the viewer
to keep watching and to assess the meaning
behind what they are seeing. Adolescence is
portrayed so superbly as a baron, sprawling,
nightmarish landscape, where the teens wander
in desperate search of some meaning, or of
anything at all. The portrayal of the shooters as
talented, piano-playing, eloquent individuals is
the epitome of showing how misguided
Americans often go to unexplainable ends to find
that meaning.
The film follows an array of teenagers- from the
jocks, to the mean girls, to the nerds. And despite
the different ways they navigate their
environment, they are all viewed in equal light by
the doom that faces them. One thing Van Sant
does immensely well is play with time- the film is
not linear, and often hops backwards and
forwards without warning. These many threads
and stories are seen to intertwine at subtle and
heartbreaking moments- for example, some
teachers sing happy birthday to a colleague, and
later in the film their singing can be heard in the
background of a conversation held by a couple. A
young girl runs through the background of a
conversation, seen from each participants’ point
of view, before finally (and crushingly) her own.
It’s a choice that for some mystical reason, packs
a deafening punch, as the almost mythical nature
of the way the story moves seems to offer some
light note of hope, underlined by the horror of the
events about to take place. Essentially, it feels like
the agony of what happens is undermined by how
distant yet present all the characters are in each
other’s lives.
MONTHLY FILM RECOMMENDATION:
Elephant won the Palme D’Or at Cannes
Film Festival, as well as Van Sant taking
home Best Director. And while not deemed
as mainstream or widely acclaimed cinema,
this accolade is considered by me to be the
very highest obtainable. Not just the best of
American cinema, but world cinema, and
not just film to entertain, but to say
something rich and deeply meaningful.
Whilst he acknowledges the ability of
cinema to entertain, Gus Van Sant knows
that in this instance, an unflinching
portrayal of the agony of this meaningless
and evil act of murder at the hands of
strangers is one to be endured rather than
enjoyed. But it’s an endurance test I find
immensely enjoyable. Figure that one out.
Jack Sheppard
What do you think? Let us know at [email protected] or tweet us @harlchronicle.
What Happened to Amelia Earhart? Amelia Earhart was born in Atchison, Kansas
on July 24th 1897, had her first aeroplane ride
in 1920 and was the sixteenth woman in
history to receive a pilot’s license. In 1921,
she bought her own plane, a Kinner Airster
Biplane in bright yellow which she nicknamed
“The Canary”. Earhart became incredibly
famous and inspired many women to become
pilots. She was also a published author and
worked at Purdue University.
June 1st 1937, Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan set off from Oakland, California in the Lockheed Electra; they planned to fly around the world in one trip, a total of 29,000 miles which would have been the longest trip ever made at the time. They made it to New Guinea in 21 days, despite Earhart falling ill.
The next part of their trip began in New Guinea and was destined for Howland Island. During this flight
Earhart was unable to make a sufficient connection with the Island or the coast guard cutter Itasca, which
was anchored just off Howland. Her last communications were at 7:42 am: “we must be on you but we
cannot see you, but gas is running low, have been unable to reach you by radio, we are flying at least 1000
ft”, and another at 8:43 am: “We are running north and south.”, and finally “we are on the line 157337, we
will repeat this message, we will repeat this on 6210 kilocycles”. The problem was that she was able to send
communications but couldn’t receive any which would have made her think she wasn’t getting through to
anyone; it is thought that the antenna could have been ripped off on take-off. Though the Itasca began a
rescue attempt immediately after they lost contact and the search continued for weeks, no evidence of a
wreckage was found. On January 5th 1939, Earhart was declared legally dead.
One theory about what happened to Amelia Earhart
and Fred Noonan was that the whole flight was a
secret mission and Earhart was a spy, used by FDR to
spy on the Japanese, but that when they landed on
Saipan they were captured. Similarly, some people
think that they crash-landed after running out of
fuel, were captured on Jaluit Island and killed. This
theory is supported by eye-witness statements from
many US military veterans. One veteran stated that
when he spoke to villagers on Jaluit about Amelia
Earhart they said they saw her aeroplane and that it
was there until it was destroyed by the US army. One
islander claimed to have transported the Electra
from Mili Island on a barge to Koshu and docked it in
Jaluit in 1937 but that he did not see Earhart or
Noonan.
A US soldier claimed to have seen Earhart’s briefcase
in a safe on the island (you can hear the veterans’
statements in this video if you are reading online:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyED99gnxy4)
There are several more conflicting statements from people living in the area claiming they saw Earhart and Noonan: during an interview in 1980 Bilimon Amaron, a Japanese medical worker serving in Jaluit in 1937, said he was called to Koshu to check Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan’s wounds. Ms. Blas, a Saipanese villager was said to have seen a white female prisoner being driven in a motorcycle sidecar to a nearby tree after refusing a blindfold. She was allegedly forced to kneel and was shot in the chest, falling back into a pre-dug grave. Thomas E Devine, from the US army in Saipan at the time said he “saw her plane and markings on a Japanese jail cell indicating her presence”. He was shown a grave by villagers (many people pointed out the grave as “two white fliers”).
Until recently, no one had been able to prove that Amelia Earhart was ever on these Islands; yet now a possible piece of evidence has been found misfiled in the US national archives.
Abi Denman
Some people think that misfile was intentional so that no one would find out where she went, or it could have been an accident.
In the photo (pictured right) there are two Caucasian people who look very much like Fred Noonan and Amelia Earhart; behind the ship you can make out their plane being towed into the docks. The photo is not dated.
This event is cemented in the history of the
Marshall Islands and is supposedly even taught
in schools. Their stamps have an image of a
plane flying and crashing, as well as one with
two people standing on the wing in the sea.
Another theory is that they landed on Nikumaroro after having missed Howland Island, where they could have lived for a while until they died. People claim that Earhart was sending out distress signals and talking about New York the day after they went missing. This leads some to believe that she may have landed the plane and tried to get help.
This theory started a search of the island that continued even 80 years after she went missing; some items were found on the island which could have belonged to Earhart, such as a “feminine” looking jar said to contain freckle cream (not confirmed), found in five pieces. She often carried beauty products on the plane so that she could look nice for the pictures being taken when she landed. There was also a piece of plexiglass found which matched materials used on the Electra and an aluminium plate that was used as a repair for the plane. The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery is still searching on the island to this day.
Another theory is that Earhart survived, was found by U.S military, taken back to America and given a new identity in New Jersey. People claim she is now a woman named Irene Bolam, who strongly denies this (and ended up suing the author of the book on this theory for 1.5 million dollars). It is theorised that she took on a new life and became a banker while living under this false identity.
Finally the last, and possibly the most realistic, theory is simply that Earhart and Noonan into crashed the Pacific Ocean, were unable to contact anyone for help and so were lost at sea. Whilst it is interesting to consider their possibilities, the fates of Amelia Earhart and Fred Noon may forever remain unknown.
What do you think? Let us know at [email protected] or tweet us @harlchronicle.
WHITE SILENCE =
VIOLENCE Trayvon Martin was shot and killed at age 17 in
the February of 2012. George Zimmerman,
volunteer member of his neighbourhood watch
and Martin's killer, was later acquitted for the
murder by a jury, of which 5 out of 6 were white.
It is precisely this that resulted in the hashtag
#BlackLivesMatter emerging in the summer of
2013. What began as a simple online campaign in
response to the unlawful killing of an innocent
black teenager and the ensuing miscarriage of
justice, has grown into something far more than
anyone could have anticipated. Now Black Lives
Matter is an international movement, one that
protests against anything from systematic racism
to police brutality, calling for justice as it spreads
across the globe. Perhaps the tipping point for the
movement was the cascade of tragedy in 2014:
this seems to be when it gained momentum and
became common knowledge. Most notable were
the deaths of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and
Tamir Rice, leading to protests and rioting in
Ferguson with the outcry of 'hands up don't
shoot' and 'I can't breathe', apparent last words
of the former two men before they were
murdered. Even at the peaceful protests, police
were deployed in riot gear, throwing tear gas.
In 2015 the bloodshed only increased, and the
lives of Sandra Bland, Freddie Gray and many
others were lost. An unforgettable event
amongst this violence was that of Dylann Roof's
shooting in South Carolina which resulted in the
deaths of 9 innocent churchgoers. In 2016 it was
Alton Sterling and Philando Castile. In 2017 it
was Jocques Clemmons, and a march for white
supremacy in Charlottesville. There are too many
names to list, and the list goes on. Data has
shown that 99% of the 1,134 police killings of
black people in 2015 resulted in no conviction.
13 of the 100 largest US city police departments
kill black men at higher rates than the US murder
rate. Despite these statistics, deaths have
continued, with no punishment for the
policemen responsible.
Of course, the answering cry to this campaign
was that of #AllLivesMatter. This statement
seems to lack any understanding for the roots
and intentions of the Black Lives Matter
movement, which are to draw attention to
incidents of racially motivated police brutality,
a cause that has been sorely needed for the
last century. In fact, this call for the respect of
'all lives' seems to be an echo of what white
people always do: we change the narrative.
Instead of outrage about the deaths of people
at police hands, it is now an argument of
phrasing, as if declaring that certain lives
matter mean that other lives don't. Then, it is
about us, crying 'racism' as though we are
systematically murdered at the same rate as
unarmed black people, our families denied the
justice of seeing our killers endure what the
law promises its citizens. Grieving mothers
and vulnerable communities are not even
allowed the publicity they so rightfully
deserve, and are drowned out by shouts of
how everyone matters, and 'a few bad apples
don't spoil the bunch', while institutionalised
racism seems to pervade every ruling of the
American justice system. Is this dismissal what
supporters of All Lives Matter want? What do
they think they are achieving? Surely if all lives
really do matter, then so do black lives? If so,
why stand by and not protest their unjust
killings? The answer: all lives don't matter; not
in their opinion. Their cause isn't to stand up
for everyone else, it's to silence and dismiss
black voices that are only shouting so loud
because their families are dying. Maybe those
who support the importance of 'all lives'
should simply give up and join 'White Lives
Matter' instead- for that is more or less what
they are arguing.
Police brutality is arguably one of humanity's
lowest points: murder, abuse of authority,
racism. Black Lives Matter was created to
combat this, to keep the spirits of all those
lost to it alive, and most importantly, to
prevent this from happening to anybody else.
As killer after killer is acquitted, it is
important for the public to remember: those
in positions of authority are not automatically
correct. The law itself is a construct of the
powerful, not of right and wrong. Right is
being lucky enough to see a murderer
amongst the police force be convicted of
their crimes, and for the rate of unarmed
black men killed each year to decrease.
Wrong is going on as we are, silent and
ignorant while prejudice runs rampant under
a President who doesn't seem to care.
Wrong is white people not understanding:
this isn't about us.
Georgina Halford
What do you think? Let us know at [email protected] or tweet us @harlchronicle.
The world of tennis is changing. For many years,
the grand slam tournaments have been won
repeatedly by the same names, names which are
now getting older and more injury-prone. The
players I am of course talking about are Roger
Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Britain’s
own Andy Murray. Mention any of these names in
public, and more often than not, people will know
whom you are talking about, which just shows how
iconic they are to the sport. However, their reign
over the grand slam tournaments is nearing its end.
All four of these players are now aged thirty or
over. This gives a huge opportunity for some of the
younger, less-experienced players to battle it out
for the top spot in the Men’s Singles Tennis
Rankings.
(Current Wimbledon Champion, Roger Federer)
In the last fourteen years, there have only been
nine grand slam tournaments winners. These are:
Roger Federer (36), Gaston Gaudio (38 – retired),
Marat Safin (37 – Retired), Rafael Nadal (31), Novak
Djokovic (30), Juan Martin Del Potro (28), Andy
Murray (30), Stan Wawrinka (32) and Marin Cilic
(28). None of these players/ ex-players are getting
any younger. How many of them will be playing in
five years’ time? And who could take their places?
Perhaps the most obvious choices would be
Alexander Zverev, Dominic Thiem, Milos
Raonic and David Goffin. All of these are
younger players in and around the top ten
spots in the Men’s Singles Tennis Rankings,
the youngest being Alexander Zverev at age
20. Milos Raonic is the name which stands out
here, having come close to winning some
grand slam tournaments in recent years
already. On the other hand, it is very difficult
to pinpoint a player who could stand out
above the rest once the veterans of the game
have retired. This makes for some really
entertaining competitive tennis where no-one
can predict the winner.
Overall, the possibilities are endless for these
younger players. They need to get their heads
down, work hard and maybe one day create a
legacy like some of these tennis legends have
done, because soon for these legends’ careers
it’ll be game, set and match!
Alexander Zverev Dominic Thiem Milos Raonic David Goffin
Luke Payne
What do you think? Let us know at [email protected] or tweet us @harlchronicle.
Why You Need To
Get More Sleep
As teenage students who have to balance studying, social lives, and for some, even work, it’s not a surprise that many of us find ourselves sleeping less than six or seven hours per night, when studies suggest that we actually need at least nine. Although it should be painfully obvious, many of us seem to ignore or forget about the basic importance of sleep. Just like food and water, sleep is a necessity, one that is fulfilled only when we get enough of it. Other than stress, detrimental effects stemming from a lack of sleep include poor memory, increased irritability, and possibly even the raised risk of serious health conditions such as heart disease and diabetes, as described by the NHS.
The American Psychological Association reported that 53% of teens stated that they felt sluggish and lazy when sleep was insufficient, and that 32% were unable to concentrate, while 23% noted that they did not feel motivated to deal with their responsibilities. This hindering of our capabilities is quite disastrous, especially as students, for we are at the age where we begin shaping the future with our own hands.
So does the amount of sleep directly affect the amount of stress we are feeling? It would seem so, as the APA also reported the statistic that teenage students with lower amounts of stress slept more hours on average (7.8 hours) than those with higher stress levels, who slept for on average 6.9 hours. Symptoms of stress, such as anxiety and feeling sad or overwhelmed are also more often experienced by teens who sleep fewer than eight hours on a school night. There are many more supportive statistics to be found throughout the APA’s report on stress and sleep.
Not only do your sleeping habits affect your
stress levels, it works exactly the same the other
way around. Feeling stressed naturally inhibits
your ability to sleep; the anxiety and worrying
and bombarding thoughts are hard to escape
even when you’re lying in bed, exhausted. The
APA supports this by analysing survey results to
find that “adults with high stress are more likely
to say they are not getting enough sleep because
their minds race (49 percent vs. 10 percent of
adults with low stress)”. It’s rather clear now that
a lack of sleep and high levels of stress run in a
circle, creating a cycle of exhaustion, anxiety, and
an inability to cope with the onset of these
negative symptoms. It’s also quite clear that no
one wants that.
If you’re experiencing the effects of sleep deprivation, here are some of the NHS’ tips on how to fix this:
Sleep an hour earlier on weekends, when you don’t have to wake up early, so your body clock can get used to more sleep, and allow you to achieve that on school days where you do have to wake up early.
Depending on how much sleep you’ve missed out on, the amount of time needed to make up for it may be quite long, so have patience.
Caffeine and energy drinks can further ruin your sleeping patterns, despite giving you a short energy boost.
Cherie Cheung
If you’re wondering how to handle your current stress, here are some of the APA’s tips on how to cope:
Exercise. It doesn’t have to be extreme, even a 20 minute walk can be beneficial and provide relief for your troubled mind.
Taking a break from the stressor. Step away from whatever is causing your stress and know that having time to yourself is valid and important.
Get social support from friends and family. Sharing your feelings can help relieve stress, so long as you trust the person you speak to.
Meditate. Meditating has been proven to help people relax and focus, even if it is done only for brief periods of time.
To find out more, please visit the APA and NHS websites.