Is this novel still relevant to the growing up experience of teens today? Do the themes and experiences portrayed in this novel relate to you as a teen going through the process of "growing up"? Why or why not?
This response should be at least 12 sentences in length, with 2 references to the text for support of your opinion.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Blog #5
Choose 3 of the following quotes to analyze in 3-4 sentences each.
In your analysis, respond to how you would feel if you were in Finny, Gene and the other Devon boys' positions.
Chapter 1: "The class above, seniors, draft-bait, practically soldiers, rushed ahead of us toward the war. They were caught up in accelerated courses and first-aid programs and a physical hardening regimen, which included jumping from this tree" p. 15
Chapter 2: "Bombs in Central Europe were completely unreal to us here, not because we couldn't imagine it […] but because our place here was too fair for us to accept something like that. We spent that summer in complete selfishness, I'm happy to say. The people in the world who could be selfish in the summer of 1942 were a small band, and I'm glad we took advantage of it" p. 30
Chapter 3: "The war was and is reality for me. I still instinctively live and think in its atmosphere..." p.40
Chapter 9:"In the silences between jokes about Leper's glories we wondered whether we ourselves would measure up to the humblest minimum standard of the army. I did not know everything there was to know about myself, and knew that I did not know it; I wondered in the silences between jokes about Leper whether the still hidden parts of myself might contain the Sad Sack, the outcast, or the coward. We were all at our funniest about Leper, and we all secretly hoped that Leper, that incompetent, was as heroic as we said "p.127
In your analysis, respond to how you would feel if you were in Finny, Gene and the other Devon boys' positions.
Chapter 1: "The class above, seniors, draft-bait, practically soldiers, rushed ahead of us toward the war. They were caught up in accelerated courses and first-aid programs and a physical hardening regimen, which included jumping from this tree" p. 15
Chapter 2: "Bombs in Central Europe were completely unreal to us here, not because we couldn't imagine it […] but because our place here was too fair for us to accept something like that. We spent that summer in complete selfishness, I'm happy to say. The people in the world who could be selfish in the summer of 1942 were a small band, and I'm glad we took advantage of it" p. 30
Chapter 3: "The war was and is reality for me. I still instinctively live and think in its atmosphere..." p.40
Chapter 9:"In the silences between jokes about Leper's glories we wondered whether we ourselves would measure up to the humblest minimum standard of the army. I did not know everything there was to know about myself, and knew that I did not know it; I wondered in the silences between jokes about Leper whether the still hidden parts of myself might contain the Sad Sack, the outcast, or the coward. We were all at our funniest about Leper, and we all secretly hoped that Leper, that incompetent, was as heroic as we said "p.127
Chapter 12: "I'll hate it everywhere if I am not in this war!..." p. 190
Blog #4
"What themes are most
clear in the novel? Which theme from the novel is most significant? Which theme
makes you connect to the novel the most? Why?"
Your response should be at least 12 sentences and should make 2 references to the text demonstrating a theme.
Your response should be at least 12 sentences and should make 2 references to the text demonstrating a theme.
Blog #3
Chapter 1: "What was I doing up here anyway? Why did I let Finny talk me into stupid things like this? Was he getting some kind of hold over me?" p. 17
Chapter 4: "Any fear I had ever had of the tree was nothing beside this. It wasn't my neck, but my understanding which was menaced. He had never been jealous of me for a second. Now I knew that there never was and never could have been any rivalry between us. I was not of the same quality as he" p. 59
Chapter 12: "I did not cry then or ever about Finny. I did not cry even when I stood watching him being lowered into his family's strait-laced burial ground outside of Boston. I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case" p. 194
Analyze these three quotes in 2-3 sentences each.
Use this as an opportunity to brainstorm your thoughts about Gene, including the following ideas:
is he a moral/good person?
is he an honest narrator?
is he a good friend?
can you relate to him?
Chapter 4: "Any fear I had ever had of the tree was nothing beside this. It wasn't my neck, but my understanding which was menaced. He had never been jealous of me for a second. Now I knew that there never was and never could have been any rivalry between us. I was not of the same quality as he" p. 59
Chapter 12: "I did not cry then or ever about Finny. I did not cry even when I stood watching him being lowered into his family's strait-laced burial ground outside of Boston. I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case" p. 194
Analyze these three quotes in 2-3 sentences each.
Use this as an opportunity to brainstorm your thoughts about Gene, including the following ideas:
is he a moral/good person?
is he an honest narrator?
is he a good friend?
can you relate to him?
Blog #2
"Do any of your
friendships have power struggles, jealousy, and secrets, the way that the
friendship between Gene and Finny does? Why or why not?"
This post should be at least 10 sentences. This post does not require any direct references to the text, but the characters' traits, interactions and personal events should be mentioned in your post.
This post should be at least 10 sentences. This post does not require any direct references to the text, but the characters' traits, interactions and personal events should be mentioned in your post.
Blog #1
“Which character from the novel is most similar to you? Why? What
differences do you still have? Are their relationships similar to your own?”
You must include 3 references to the novel in your response to this prompt.
Your response should be at least 8 sentences in length.
You may write as much as you would like and can add to your response at any time.
You may reference instructions for the blog here
You must include 3 references to the novel in your response to this prompt.
Your response should be at least 8 sentences in length.
You may write as much as you would like and can add to your response at any time.
You may reference instructions for the blog here
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