Fahrenheit 451

     Fahrenheit 451 was a very interesting and confusing book for me. The concept of burning books was so evil and I didn't understand why? I also got lost easy while reading because it didn't always completely explain things.


     I wonder if Ray Bradbury wrote this book just out of a thought or a prediction of the future? If you think about it he was headed in the right direction..... Books now days are not nearly as popular as they use to be because of new technology, like television(families). I don't think our world will ever come to burning book because we cherish our history greatly and their will always be someone who loves to barry their face in a book and get lost in that fantasy world. I am not a reader and don't voluntarily pick up books for fun, but I would never want to burn books. They are so much work and contain so much information! Books are great and definitely not for burning!


     I thought it was kinda funny reading that Clarisse and her family were outcasts in their society. To me they seemed like great normal people and like I would fit in with them. She was definitely my favorite character! Personally without her talking to Montag he never would have questioned the system. Without questioning the system he wouldn't have met up with the professors who were going to rebuild things after the war. I really enjoyed the ending of this book! Great job Ray Bradbury!

Ray Bradbury

     Ray Bradbury is an amazing writer in my opinion. Some writers will take an already thought up idea and make a novel or short story on it but Bradbury did the opposite. He took ideas that had not yet planted themselves in Americas mind and wrote Fahrenheit 451. I think Ray Bradbury had an idea of where the world was headed and almost wanted to warn us. Like for instance the "families". The family in Fahrenheit 451 is the television. He did help predict this technology but also he predicted the affects of it. The television in the book and today takes the place of real family and books. We might not burn books like in Fahrenheit 451, but do we read them as often as we should? No, we rely on television for information and stories.
     Fahrenheit 451 was published in 1953 and his predictions were very accurate so far. We now have televisions as big as a wall and small devices like ipods. Things we don't have that are in the book, are the mile long billboards so drivers can see them, no speed limit, laws against pedestrians or burning of books. I don't think our world will ever result in burning books or laws against pedestrians, but the long billboards could be in our future because of the high speed of cars.
     I don't think his fiction was made reality because of his writing but because it was ment to be. Televisions don't take away from our family and books because Ray Bradbury said they would, but because they would no matter what. If Bradbury didn't write Fahrenheit 451 i don't know if we'd be where we are today, but if we were I think our technology would have the same effect on us with or without Ray Bradbury saying so.

Star Trek

     This episode was aired on television in 1966 and yet it was filled with present day technology. The setting for Star Trek is in outer space... In 1966 we hadn't even been to the moon yet. Roddenberry was thinking ahead in all his work and probably gave scientists the ideas of some of today's technology. In Star Trek they use small communication devices to talk to one another no matter how far away the person is. This is allot like our blue tooth and cell phones today. Without Roddenberry's extravagant imagination who knows how long it would have taken to think up the idea of cell phones. I wonder if Roddenberry knew his TV show was predicting the future or if it was just a crazy idea that just so happened to spark a world of high end technology.
     Another thing that stood out to me in the episode was the city that lived on the clouds. The people in the city were save but the people on the ground were being greatly effected by the gas in the air (today known as pollution) Someone should have taken this idea and thought ahead to completely eliminate pollution. You never know maybe this is in our future... I believe Roddenberry's creativity has a heavy effect on our world and has assisted in making it what it is today.

A Separate Peace

             A Separate Peace for me was a fairly enjoyable book, that was relateable to our age group. We all have that person who just always comes out ahead. Whether it be in sports, academics or other activities. As humans we can't help but have a jealous fire inside us. Where Gene goes wrong is how he handles this burning feeling inside. Instead of trying harder to be better than Finny, he overreacts and shakes the tree branch that Finny was about to jump from. The result from this is a shattered leg. Earlier in the book it tells us that Gene took a wrong step and fell from the tree, but Finny caught him. Why did Finny save Gene?
 Gene didn't save him but was the reason Finny fell and can know longer play sports... Later in the book Finny dies from bone marrow. Would this have happened in the tree branch was left alone? No! Not only did Gene keep Finny from being superior in sports but ended his life all because of a simple concept called JEALOUSY.

           Finny on the other hand had a completely different take on life. Through out the book he never shows jealousy let alone angry. He is always calm about every situation. Finny goes through life happy and friendly always able to hold a conversation. Even when Gene comes to Finny's house and tells him your injury is my fault he denies it. I wonder if Finny truthfully didn't think Gene had anything to do with it? Or was just saving Gene the guilt trip?

        

Jealous: feeling resentment against someone because of that person's rivalry, success, or advantages

The Crucible

       The Crucible was actually a very interesting book that I enjoyed reading. One small accusation spirrolled out of control and friends could no longer be trusted in Salem, Massachusetts. Friends turned on each other, and neighbors accused neighbors of horrible crimes. Witchcraft is what spread through Salem and made everyone panic and crazy. Witchcraft was something that was strongly looked down upon and those who were said to practice this were punished severely sometimes ending in death.
      My opinion is that people wanted answers to some of the strange happenings in their lives. They didn't really believe all these people used witchcraft but blamed in on this for lack of a reason why weird things were happening. Salem was a fairly small town and the people knew each other well, panic struck so people blamed it on others just so they were not to blame. This is very wrong, if everyone would have been calm and not pointed fingers at others, lives would have been saved. For example when Rebecca is accused of using witchcraft to kill Ann's babies I don't think this is true. I think that Ann simply wanted answers to why her babies always died within their first days of life therefore she blamed Rebecca for some kind of peace knowing it wasn't her own fault.
         "A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything, I know it now. I beg you, sir, i beg you - see her what what she is. My wife, my dear good wife, took this girl soon after, sir, and put her out on the highroad. And being what she is, a lump of vanity, sir -. Excellency, forgive me, forgive me. She thinks to dance with me on my wife's grave! And well she might, for I thought of her softly. God help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweat. But it is a whore's vengeance, and you must see it; I set myself entirely in your hands. I know you must see it now."
     All of this confusion in Salem is hysteria. The town panicked and therefore people were punished for things they never did.

The Scarlet Letter

        I had mixed feeling about The Scarlet Letter part of me enjoyed the book and part didn't.  It was a
 difficult book to fully comprehend and at times hard to keep up with everything going on within it.
           My favorite character of the book was definitely Hester. As I was reading I couldn't imagine having all eyes on me all the time and never getting a break from their sharp stares. Toward the beginning of the book
when Hester and Pearl were placed in the public eye on the stand for hours on end it made me mad. Hester  did make a mistake but it was not all her fault... The other men definitely had a role in this and should have
been punished. Instead Hester took all the blame and punishment. She seems so tough and brave and I
never once remember her complaining, but took on the challenge and raised her baby Pearl. I respect her for her bravery and never giving up even though times were often rough for her and Pear.
           Pearl's character I felt sorry for... She was punished into a life of living in a spotlight and never had a
say in any of it. Towns people made rumors that her father was the devil. This poor little girl was hated and
made fun of over something she had no control over. Another part of me was glad Pearl was mixed up in all
the drama. Without her I think Hester would have gone crazy not knowing what to do with herself. Pearl was
what got her mind off of the fact the her chest was glowing with a bright "A" that she could never escape
from.
         I think Dimmesdale should have confessed his sin. This would have made him happy inside even though
he would be looked down upon in the public eye. Also I think Hester would have been able to live a happier
life if Demmesdale would have confessed because not all the pressure would be on her.

The Great Gatsby

            The Great Gatsby took place in the 1920’s and mostly focused on the upper class or “East Egg.” There were mainly two large categories of class, the poor community West Egg and the wealthy community East Egg, most of the characters in this book are from East Egg and lives consisted of expensive parties. The 1920’s were full of parties and alot changed in that time. They show this in the novel with Gatsby’s extravagant parties with all the new styles, music, alcohol and dancing. Some didn’t approve of this new fashion but this trend caught on fast. This time was full of parties and fun! Gatsby, the main character in this book was very wealthy and hosted lots of these parties at his huge house.

    The Great Gasby was a very good book. Sometimes it got alittle confusing, at the begining of the book I was confused by west and east egg, but i know understand. The book was sometimes boring but it also had its interesting parts. The fact that Tom used Myrtle Wilson for basically sex was always interesting. I didnt like Tom's character because of the fact that he treated Mytle horrible and acasionally rewarded her with a gift, and that he was doing all of this behind poor Daisy's back. I was furious when Tom broke Myrtle's nose when she only said Daisy's name. I wish she had gotten out of that relationship but I think she loved Tom and he only thought of their relationship as something physical.

page 37 "Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!" Shouted Mrs. Wilson. "I'll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai......."

Tom hit Daisy so hard he broke her nose!

      I was shocked when Wilson shot Daisy and didn't really like the ending of this book. I was sad Gatsby never got what he truely wanted... which was Daisy. All of Gatsby's wealth didn't give him happyness and the one thing that could he didn't get.

Part 1 of To Kill a Mockingbird

                 I'm not much of a reader but a few chapters into To Kill A Mockingbird I was interested and hooked. During this time period a lady was supposed to act like a lady, always  perfect mannered and dressed. Scout (Jean Louise) seems like the complete opposite. Early on in part 1 you could tell she didn't like acting like a lady. Her older brother Jem and her seem very close and she participates in all of the boy activities. The only time she played with other girls in the neighborhood was when Jem was mad at her. Other than that she was always apart of Jem and Dills skits and adventures, mostly dealing with Boo. Also Scout never wore a dress and always overalls, like the boys. In my opinion, the reason she acts like a boy is because of the lack of a motherly or womanly influence on Scout. Her father has not taught her how to act like a woman and is ok with the way she acts. The only time he corrects her about not acting like a lady is when she begins to cuss. She used the words like hell and damn often, Atticus (her father) does not like this and tells her so. Scout uses her new skill on page 79 when she ways "pass the damn ham, please." Uncle Jack was shocked and had a talk with her that night after dinner. On Christmas, when the family meets up it's obvious that Aunt Alexandra and the Grandma did not approve of the ways Scout acted, not only blaming her but also Atticus. She once again displays her boyish behavior when she punches Francis in the face, although he deserved every bit of it.

                     The reason I focus some much on Scout's behavior is because that day in age disapproved of her kind but its those girls and women who helped make today as versatile as it is. Today women aren't forced to fit in a certain image, but back then it was looked down upon if they didn't. I respect and love Scout's character because of her strong personality and the fact that she doesn't care what people think of her and continues to be "Scout."

                Jem, Dill and Scout are all very interested in the Radley's, especially Boo Radley. While reading the book I'm equally interested in what goes on inside the house and Boo. The house seems very mysterious and scary. The part where Boo Radley puts a blanket around Scout's shoulder gave me the chills. I could only imagine how Scout felt. I'm assuming that Boo is going to be a very kind character later in the book, but we will see... I also like how Jem and Scout find random items inside the tree...I'm interested to see how that turns out.

             So far I'm enjoying this book and can't wait to read on.

Ellen Skay

The Grapes of Wrath

I found The Grapes of Wrath a very heart wrenching story. While reading I could only imagin life being like

 that.

 I think that the character Al is strong and helps the family during their journey.  Al takes care of the car and keeps it running during the long dragged on journey to California. “I ain’t tired,” said Al. pg. 132. Even though he is very tired he stays strong and lets other members of the family rest while he drives and looks after the car. Al explained, “I don’t know what made her go out. I give her plenty of oil.” Al knew the blame was on him.pg 166.   This is another time he shows strength and takes reasonability for the misfortune of the family. Al is very knowledgeable about cars and when it breaks down he fixes it and keeps the family moving along. I believe if he didn’t keep the family moving everyone would start to loose hope and interest on the great future they long for. Therefor he keeps the family strong and together, without Al the family would fall apart. The Joad family is without money, without food, and without work. The lack of food makes them all weak and tired but they must keep moving.  Al took a paper bag from the seat. “This here’s some bread an’ meat Ma sent, an’ I got a jug of water here.”  Al at the wheel, his face purposeful, his whole body listening to the car, his restless eye jumping from the road to the instrument panel.pg 123.  I think this sentence is perfect for Al because it shows how much he cares about the Joad family and their future.

I focused my blog on Al because i thought many of the characters throughout the novel slowly lost hope but Al never did. He kept the familly one strong unit. At times I thought the book got alittle boring but it told a great story. I could not relate to this novel but imagined their life and was touched by the families bravery.

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

    Huckleberry Finn is a very relatable and understandable character. Out of the Great Gatsby, Grapes of Wrath and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huckleberry Finn was my favorite book and overall favorite character! I think that Mark Twain did a fantastic job at making this character seem real and like i could be him going on his adventures. During the entire book i was interested at what would happen next. When i would stop reading i would actually look forward to the next time I read, to find out what would happen. Another thing I liked was that i could predict something and not always be right so it gave the book a twist.
   When the widow took Huck in and tried to reform him I felt sorry for Huck. He had always lived on the crazy side haveing amazing adventures with Tom. In the Adventures of Tom Sawyer their crazy attitude on life ended up making both the boys rich by finding the money the robbers left in the cave. Now the widow took Huck in and trys to change him, reluctant at first Huck hates his new lifestyle but slowly gets use to some of the things. For example the widow made him wear proper clothes, shoes and go to school. Huck feels lonely but Tom is still a good friend and one night they sneak out together. This leads to another adventure and Tom's plan to have his own gang. The gang members where a small group of boys that Tom said would go around murdering people but the gang never did anything that bad.
   Tom and Huck are great friends throughout the Adventures of Tom Sawyer and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In Tom Sawyer they spend most of the book together and in the end they are payed off with a large amount of money. In Huck Finn they spend most of the book apart but their friendship is reunited at the end.

Ellen Skay