My Dearest Iago,

It's difficult to recall my previous year of AP English, when I was a young and naive Junior. I have come to question my reasons for choosing to go into AP English from the beginning. Why this inquiry came to mind, I'm not entirely sure, but it still deserves an answer. Oddly enough, I think it's the constant talk about it amongst my Junior friends while I was a Sophomore. Every day I was forced to listen about "Ms. Serensky this" and "Ms. Serensky that." I also consider myself a relatively intelligent individual, so I thought that it might be time to push myself even further with a more difficult class and teacher. Now, I already know your famous saying, so don't repeat it in your reply after receiving this letter. You'll plainly state, "We cannot all be masters, nor all masters/Cannot be truly followed" (1.1.38-39).  I understand your train of thought, but that's not the case here. It's true that there are incapable "masters," (although I think a better word would be leader) but Ms. Serensky proved herself to be an outstanding teacher, without even knowing her. How? I had heard about the tremendous passing rate for the AP test. My friends' talk of Ms. Serensky wasn't the only reason I decided to take the class though. My main reason for taking the class was because I wished to better myself. This goes hand-in-hand with competition among my other peers as well, which isn't surprising. (Most) Everyone strives to be the best they possibly can, and it can cause people to fight over a lot of things. Oh how you'd laugh if you could have seen us, so timid first semester, then yelling over one another second semester as we tried to not fail in-class discussions: "He'll be as full of quarrel and offense/As my young mistress' dog" (2.3.48-49). Remember that quote, you dastardly fellow? Well, it's true that we made ourselves like crazed dogs, but it was strangely fun as people competed for the simple prize of being able to talk.

As I said earlier though, I simply wanted to better myself through intensive writing. I've known I want to be a writer since the beginning of Freshman year, so I figured AP English would help my future career in writing. What occupation I would be was unknown, but it would involve writing, that's for sure. Although I do wonder how alike we are, Iago. I despise you for your evil actions, but also understand your mind (which slightly scares me). I do not think that I am a selfish man, but couldn't taking AP English be considered an act of selfishness? For what reason did I start taking the class? Well, for myself, of course! It's a plain way to think, but also has a bit of truth. We do differ in one way, however, and that's shown through your silly comment about "following" Othello: "In following him, I follow but myself" (1.1.55). Yes, I did decide to take AP English and learn from Ms. Serensky for selfish reasons, but I don't do it solely to help myself. I hope to improve the lives of other people with my writing, to inspire others into following their ambitions, and to show how dedication can lead to success.