It Was The Custom

"She said that very often-- ' It was the custom.' The native servants were always saying it. If one told them to do a thing their ancestors had not done for a thousand years they gazed at one mildly and said, ' It is not the custom' and one knew that was the end of the matter,"

(Burnett, 19).

I really like this quote so I decided to do an entry on it... It kind of brings to mind everything that I've learned about in my LING 307 class this semester. It's a class about language and culture and so this quote is very applicable to the class, as it discusses varying cultures. In India, Mary had a very easy life. Everything was done for her. She didn't even have to dress herself. When she is uprooted her life is turned upside down. She has to learn to do things for herself, she has to grow up.

Likewise, when people move cross country they have to adjust to a new life as things are different. For instance, in the south I've found people to be more friendly. When I went to D.C one time I found people to be extremely rude. When ordering food at a fast-food restaurant in a mall the people working there kind of snapped at us. They weren't polite and instead of greeting us and asking us what we wanted they merely asked us what we wanted. It doesn't sound too bad, but they really took a serious tone with us. I remember after that that someone in our group ran into a guy's wife and he got very confrontational with the kid in our group. I know that I shouldn't make my assumptions based off of this one, or these two experiences but I guess I have. And it wasn't just that one experience; I make that judgement based on other experiences...

When people move across oceans and continents the culture shock is big. It isn't just that people are unfriendly- people are completely different. For instance, we were talking about hospitality in varying cultures in class recently and someone mentioned that they had known of a missionary family who had gone on furlough. When they got back the friends of the missionaries greeted them and cooked for them. The meal consisted of the missionaries pet dog, I think. I don't remember if it was a dog or another animal but they did eat the meal. They wanted to show that they were polite and thankful for the hospitality. In another culture, I think this happened in Samoa, a man served his wife, to a guest. It's gross huh?

Anyway, my point is that customs differ from one place to another. I was stoked to find this quote as it kind of fit within the realm of LING 307 and that I could write about this... And I am glad to say that Mary does change. It was kind of a relief that she did, because it seemed kind of annoying that she was so unwilling to change. But, I postulate that she acted how she did because she missed her parents and her home. Rebelling was kind of way to embrace her past and to keep to what she knew.

So, I think that wraps it up for now... I should go.

Fun With My Friend Jack; I mean C.S Lewis

Extra Outside Reading

" Once there were four children living in London whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. During the Second World War, because of air-raids, they were sent far away into the country into the country to stay at the house of Professor Kirke. This story is about their adventure there" (C.S. Lewis, 1).


So, I went through the drive through at the new Chick-fil-A a few weeks ago with my friend... We got kids meals and this book is what came with the kids meal. I thought it was interesting that we should get books instead of a toy. I don't ever remember getting a book when I was younger and got kids meals at fast-food restaurants. All I ever got were toys... But, do not misunderstand me. I think it's neat that we got books. In an age where children watch more TV and read less it is uncommon that a fast-food-restaurant would give aways a book. I must applaud Chick-fil-A for doing this, for promoting literacy.

Now for the actual post...

I never realized that these books, The Chronicles of Narnia, had been altered in any way. I did see the movie The Chronicles of Narnia but I did not read the book. I don't remember why but I just didn't. These adaptations appeal to children which is great. The original version of the book is aimed for older children, and adolescents but these adaptations would probably work just fine. They are break up the story that we are familiar with, and make it easier for children to read. It is a long book, if I'm recalling correctly. These shortened versions make it more manageable for younger children to read.


But, I must point out that the book does actually have a lot of text. So, children who are unable to read the book should have a parent read it to them. Nonetheless, it does work. It's a good story, and gives parents and children options. Moreover, this story works because, as stated previously, it appeals to children. When children are are able to engage because the book is good, they learn. When they learn they are better off.


And also, as stated in previous posts, when a book appeals to a person they are better off because they relate to the literature and their own little world in general. In short, the realatiblity( sp?) factor is very important as people need to feel connected and affiliated.
Anyway, it was a good book, and a good option over the real unabridged version. I would definitley suggest it to children if they were trying to find something to read... I think that about wraps it up for now...


I should go.

Subversion of Authority In Children's Literature...

"Kids Will Be Kids."

This might just be the shortest entry I've written yet. I'm tired, I want to go to bed and I'm getting over being sick... Anyway, with that said I turn towards my focus for this post... Subversion of Authority in Children's Literature.

Basically, I liked how it was mentioned that Peter and Max are alike in that they both rebel against their mothers. I don't know why, maybe it's that I can relate... I don't claim to be a rebel, but I do call myself a little stubborn. Therefore I liked the discussion that we had on Monday. Futhermore, I think that children can relate too. Sooner or later a kid is going to get into trouble, no matter how good the child is. Peter and Max are no different, even though the books are vastly different. Max is both wolf and child. Peter on the other hand, is both a little boy and a rabbit. Both, lose it for a bit but at the end they kind of come back to reality and the parent wins. But yeah, I think that kids need to read things that they can relate too. If we want children to read, and to be literate then we should write things that appeal to them on a personal level.

So in response to the above statement, here's to Louise Fitzhugh's book, Harriet The Spy and to good ol' Louise herself. To explain, we learned in class that this was one of the first books where there was conflict between the mother and the child... And here's to Potter and Sendak and the many others who have written similar stories. Hats off!

-Amanda

Aliens For Breakfast

Outside Reading

"Well, Dranes can look like anything they want to. The one here has blond hair, blue eyes, and a smile no one can resist. He is in your class. He just showed up two days ago." Etra and Spinner, 11.

"Dorf? Dorf is an alien?" Etra and Spinner, 11.

First off I should clear the air by saying that the information I gave is based on the version of the book that I read. I couldn't find the original image of the version of the book that I read... Now then for the actual blog entry...

Apparently I've read this "chapter book" but I have no memory of having read this whatsoever. I'm at home this weekend and my mom was asking if I remember reading this book. I told her that I've never read and well she thought otherwise. So if I have read this, I have no recollection of having done so. I guess what I'm trying to get at is that I have nothing to really compare it to... When I write on books that I have already read I make it a point to comment on how I felt about the book when I read it before verses how I feel about the book now. I can't do that with this book since I don't have any memory of reading the book before. I can only comment on my observations of the book at present.

Here goes, in short, I really liked the book. What I mean is that I think that it was suitable for children or rather its intended audience. It' s fresh, new and orginal and I like that a lot. One thing I hate in reading a book is when I read a book and think, " this has been done before" or " this isn't an orignal ideas." This book isn't like that at all- like I said it's good and new. I judge how good something is by whether or not it reaches its intended audience... For instance, when I go to the movies and see a scary movie I like it if it scares me. If a "scary movie" makes me laugh then it isn't good. If a comedy doesn't make me laugh I'm not likely to like the movie. Likewise, if a book does well and reaches many I like it. I'm defintley not a kid, but I can imagine that a kid would like this book.

Why do I think that??

Simply put, a person needs an escape sometimes and a book provides the perfect opportunity to do so. It is in reading, and watching movies of course, that we get to travel to worlds we never knew existed. We get to fight in battles against overwhelming odds, we get to sail down the mighty Mississipi with Huck and Jim, and get to fall in love with a handsome prince. Who wouldn't like that?? It sounds like so much fun. In Aliens for Breakfast, readers get to fight, with the aid of a space alien from the planet Ganoob, in a battle to save Earth. How do we fight? We feed the enemy red pepper flakes. Ha ha ha. That's funny and so unexpected. This is what I liked, that I didn't expect it to be so easy to depose the enemy.

Others might have a different opinion but I thought that it was great. Like I said, it fun , fresh and new. We may have read about aliens before but we haven't read this. It defitley isn't your typical alien story. No, it's different and unique and marches to the beat of it's own drum. And in my opinion, that's what it takes for a story to be a success. Like I said, nobody wants to read about a story that lacks in originality. It just isn't good...

So, yeah I think that's it for now. It's late I need to go.

Back to Tears Of A Tiger

More thoughts...

I don't exactly have a quote for this entry but as usual I do have a picture. I know that it seems as if I'm really harping on Sharon Draper and Tears of a Tiger but I liked this book and like the author. There were also a lot of resources provided on her website and in the book as well.

In the back for instance there is a "Readers Guide to Tears of a Tiger. The guide poses a lot of questions for the readers to consider... With that said, here are some of those questions that are asked as well as my answers.

1. Tears of a Tiger begins with a tragic accident- a fatal car crash caused by drinking and driving. The story is then told from the points of view of the group of friends involved.

• How does this method of telling the story affect the reader's response?


• What advantages and disadvantages does this method of narrative offer?

I think that this method does in fact change the reader's response. It allows the reader to get a more detailed perspective on the incident which changes the lives of the characters in the book. It lets us get to know them on a deeper level and gives us a varied perspective. As far as advantages and disadvantages... Personally, I do like this method. However, some do not. I recently wrote a story which used a similar method and it wasn't received as like I hope it would be. People called my style muddled and confusing. I think that some people might call this method confusing but I do like it, personally speaking. Lastly, we get more information about the event by getting several people's account of the event.

2. Many teenagers drink and then drive without thinking about the consequences.

• How is Andy like many young people today?


• How is he different?


• What makes this book more than just a moral warning to readers about drinking and driving?

Andy is sometimes thoughtless and not mindful of others... Better said, Andy is kind of selfish. When he commits suicide, he is being selfish. At that point, he isn't thinking about anyone but himself. While many teens do care about others, I feel like a trademark of all people is that they are naturally selfish. Andy is too. He is different on the other hand in that he never forgives himself. He takes this harder than most and suffers because of the guilt. I can imagine that anyone who kills thier best friend would have a rough time but not like this. This book isn't a moral warning in the least. It may cause people to think about it, it goes deeper than that. It explores the thoughts and minds of the characters in this book. It harps on feelings, not on how wrong it was to drink and drive.

6. Andy's family had many problems. Andy's parents loved him, but seemed preoccupied with their own lives and were helpless to see his pain. Andy could talk to his younger brother, Monty but the six-year-old was unable to help with Andy's problems./

• How can families learn to cope effectively with tragedy and difficulties?


• How could Andy's family have dealt more successfully with Andy's situation?

I think that families really need to be honest. Andy wasn't honest. His pain was so great and he masked it because that was easier for him than sharing with everyone. In a sense, that was a way for him to save others from the pain and to save himself as well. To be honest, however, a person has to be realistic. There was no way that Andy could have improved as much and as quickly as his parents wanted him to. He lost best friend because HE killed him. They had unrealistic goals for their son, and didn't attempt to read between the lines or to see the heart of the issue from Andy's perspective. I think if they had stopped and really, truly considered the situation they might have been able to help him more. When his grades started to decline they should have been concerned and asked him if he was okay. They should never have threatened to punish him. Also, I think that maybe family counseling would have been optimal. That sounds a little strange I know- but the event( the crash) that Andy was involved in effected everyone in the family, not just Andy. Andy was partly responsible for lying, but I think that it was the parent's responsibility to read between the lines.

So, that's it for now. This is getting really long and I need to go.

Next Year I'll Be Special

Extra Outside Reading
" Next year, mean Miss Minch will still be in first grade. I'll be in second grade with Miss Lark and everything will be different. Giff


I decided to do another post over a picture book since that is what we're going over in class. I just got done reading another book for outside reading and wanted to compare an illustrated book with a picture book so that I could come to a better understanding of what the difference is. I think that helped to clarify...


So about the book. I definitley remember my mom reading this book to me when I was younger. I don't know if I had an opinion on the book to be perfectly honest. I do have a few now. In short, I thought that the book was good. I enjoyed it. I think it's good because children can relate. Everyone, elementary to high school aged children of course, wants to be popular, to be part of the in-crowd. In college there really isn't an in-crowd and so a person is in some ways a lot better off. But for children the pressure to fit in can be overwhelming. Those who are in the in-crowd have it easy, or so it seems. Those who aren't in the in-crowd want to be. At least most of them do.


This, is what the book is about... In the story, Marilyn dreams about the second grade and imagines it to be sooooo wonderful compared to first grade. She imagines that she will be liked by everyone and that people will fight over her. The teachers will give her special attention - I guess I could say that she imagines herself as the teachers pet. She expects that she will get the very best that life can offer.



My only compliant about the book is that it's a little unrealistic. It's probable that some of these imaginings would come into fruition but not all of them. I think that it's great to dream but that it could be potentially disappointing in the end. If a person sets their self up for disappointment, has unrealistic expectations, then they will end up disappointed. I know this sounds negative and I'm not against having dreams and aspirations but their comes a time when those dreams become unrealistic, or rather kind of inflated. In the end, this comes to bite a person in the butt.
On the flip side, I have to say that I've maybe been a Marilyn at times. I remember times when I was younger and in school that I had similar thoughts. That eighth grade would be different than seventh that I would wear the trendy clothes and be liked based on what I wore. I imagined that I would become more popular and more loved... And the thing is that I thought this more than once.


But now, I've grown up. I do have dreams and all but I guess I've learned to look at the situation more realistically. Maybe this makes me sound like a cynic but if that's the case then I rather be a cynic then someone who isn't as down-to-earth.


So yeah, I think that's it for now. I should go. I'm tired...

Tears of A Tiger

Outside Reading

" But I'll always love you, and I'll always miss you, and I'll never forget that it's okay to put dragons in the jungle and tears on a tiger." Draper, 180

I'm not exactly sure that this is a book for kids...But, in my defense I have to say that I didn't exactly think that The Giver was appropriate for young children. The Hobbit is a little mature for a younger child as well. Anyway, I definitley wouldn't let a six year old read it, but I'd consider letting an eight year old read this book. On the website, it says it's for teens but when then again, children's liteature has gotten darker. Still though, like I said, I would be really leery of letting a young child read this. To explain, it deals with several really big issues, such as drinking and driving and suicide.

In the book, Andy and his friends decide to celebrate the win of a basketball game by drinking beer. Andy the driver partakes in the fun, and drinks too... Bad idea. The car crashed and his best friend dies... To put it lightly, Andy has a hard time dealing with the situation and an even harder time forgiving himself. As time goes by, he becomes more and more withdrawn until he withdraws himself completley and kills himself.

He leaves his friends and family behind to deal with the grief... His mother cries, apparentley that's all she does. His ex-girlfriend doesn't want to believe that it's true; she's in denial. His friendsare at mad at him, as can be imagined. I guess what I'm trying to say is that everyone deals with the situation differently... And this to me is the most realisitic thing in the book. People deal with grief differently.

It was Andy's inablity to grieve effectively that caused him to suffer most. He wasn't real with other, he lied. Because he lied, others were unable to help him. I know that it probably sounds strange that I could argue that someone can grieve ineffectivley but I think that this would be a good example. To be honest, I never really thought about that until now.

What I have thought about is survivor's guilt... I'd never heard about it until this semester. My ENGL 345 class has a focus on horror and post-millenal tensions. 9/11 is a common topic that people write on. Most of the time there is a character in the story who feels guilty because he/she lived and their loved one did not. It seems to me that this is how Andy feels. Time and time again, in this book, Andy remarks that it should have been him instead.

Anyway, this made for a good story, and was just as good the second time I read as the first time. I read this a long time ago, and remember liking it. I only a few complaints, but they're more about the syntax and the dialogue than the actual prose. For instance I don't like that dashes replace quotation marks when dialogue is written. I've never really seen that done, and I can honestly say that I don't like that. What I do like is that it's kind of like a piece of mixed-media art. It's not straight prose. It starts off with a newspaper article and ends with "Monty's Goodbye to Andy." It makes for a more interesting piece and a more dynamic one at that.

So, I think that's about it for now... I gotta run.

-Amanda

The Amazing Sharon Draper

"I am a creator, an educator, a visionaryI approach the world with the eyes of an artist, the ears of a musician, and the soul of a writer. I see rainbows where others see only rain, and possibilities when others see only problems. I love spring flowers, summer's heat on my body, and the beauty of the dying leaves in the fall. Classical music, art museums, and ballet are sources of inspiration, as well as blues music, dim cafes, and the jitterbug. I love to write; words flow easily from my fingertips, and my heart beats rapidly with excitement as an idea becomes a reality on the paper in front of me. I use all of these elements to encourage my students as well as myself. I'm a learner and a seeker of knowledge, and I take my students along on my journey. I smile often, and laugh easily, and I weep at pain and cruelty. I love what I do, and I'm good at it. I learned to dream through reading, learned to create dreams through writing, and learned to develop dreamers through teaching. I shall always be a dreamer."


Alright, so where do I begin? I guess I should start off by saying that I didn't know how amazing this author is until yesterday. I'm reading a book for "outside reading" and wanted to find out more information on this author so I searched for her online. I was really surprised and impressed by what I found. Her website is awesome!

To explain, the above quote that I used for this post is what Sharon Draper says of herself and her writing... I thought it was a really neat and poetic statement so I wanted to include it, even though that's a long statement and takes up a lot of space. Now then, here are some other details on Draper that describe her. Rather, here is a list of accomplishments that describe and let others know what about her:

• In the mid 90's her first book was published., I think it looks to be this way based on what her website says


• She is the winner of various awards including but not limited to: Ohio's Outstanding High School Language Arts Educator, Ohio Teacher of the Year, and was chosen as a NCNW Excellence in Teaching Award winner; she has won the Coretta Scott King Award five times for five different books and well the list goes on from there.


• We obviously know now that she is/was a teacher for 30yrs.


• The list doesn't stop there but I think that's good and is representative to what kind of a writer/ person she is.

Also, on the website she is a tab titled, "for new teacher" where she gives advice to new teachers. I think that it's neat that she did that and so I just thought that I would mention about that in my entry...

I think that does a good job of explaining who she is and how amazing she is as well. If not here is the link to her website: http://sharondraper.com/home.asp .

So that about wraps it up. Gotta run.

-Amanda

The Tale of Peter Rabbit

" Once upon a time their were four little Rabbits, and their names were- Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-Tail and Peter. They lived with their Mother in a sand-bank, underneath the root of a very big fir-tree," Potter, 7

We haven't discussed this story in class yet but I figured that I would go ahead and write on it anyway. So, here goes... Onward with the entry.

First off, this story kind of reminded me of Little Red Riding Hood. Peter goes to Mr. McGregor's house even though his mother warns the little rabbits not to. On the same token, LRRH strays from the path even though her mother tells her not to.

In some tales Red wins; in other versions she doesn't make it out alive. Luckily, Peter gets out of the garden alive. For a while we are not so sure if he will get away. I was hoping he would, and he did. It makes sense though, why would you kill off the main character? That doesn't make sense. It would certainly make for a much shorter story, and less interesting if it came out any other way, if Peter was caught and killed by Mr. Mc Gregor.

Furthermore, I think that if the ending had been different and Peter had been caught, and killed then this story would not be suitable for children. In my opinion, it just isn't right to make children read about characters who are murdered, whether or not they are animals. Children are not ready to deal with death, on a psychological level that is. I think that the idea of death, and sufferering are a little too mature for a child to deal with, so an author should keep that in mind when he or she writes.

Next, I think it interesting that the mother seems so detached when she speaks of the father/ husband. I know I just got done with saying that children don't need to read about death, but I still think that she's insensitive. But perhaps, the mother does grieve, but maybe she does so when the kids aren't around. Maybe she feels like she has to be strong for them. Who knows?? Or, it could be that this aspect of Mrs. Rabbit's life just isn't important to the book, and would do nothing to further the story. Personally, I think that's the right answer. In the end though, I don't think that there is any one right answer to these questions that we pose. As I've said before, I think it would be bold of me to say that I am right, and that everyone else is wrong. That would be selfish...

So, yeah, I think that's enough. Gotta run.

-Amanda

The Robots in The Community, Lack of feelings in The Giver

" Jonas, you and I are the only ones who have feelings," Lowry, 154.

Alright, so I got the idea for this post in class. It's a culmination of random thoughts and hopefully this all makes sense... So here goes, there's no turning back. Onward with the blog entry.

In my notes I have written, "lack of feeling empowers ppl. in The Community to 'release' others." Then as I listened to the lecture I thought some more. I postulate that, maybe this lack of feeling, or apathy even is what has led others to commit such atrocities against their fellow brothers and sisters... I cited the Holocaust as an example. Other examples of this happening, people commiting such horrible violent acts against mankind, are someone abundunt. In the early 90's the Rawandan Patriotic Army invaded northern Rwanda and eventually a genocide ensued. I believe that these people whether they be Nazi soldiers, or members of the Rwandan Patriotic Army are alike in that they put any feelings aside, if they had any, so that they could "release" or relinquish others of their lives and love.

I also thought about my psychology classes that I've taken and remembered about the Zimbardo prison experiment. In short, in this experiement college students were empowered to play in a role, of "prison guard", where they could abuse those students who were not empowered. After a few days, the students who had assumed the "inmate" roles begged the experimenter to end the experiement and eventually they were forced to do so. I used this example because it seemed fitting. People are cruel and what's scarier is that they don't feel as if they're doing anything wrong.

In The Giver, Nuturers as well as those who care for the old are given permission to kill others. The euphemism used throughout the book is "release." Infants who do progress get released. Old people are released if they want to be... Those who break the rules three times are out. On The ones who carry out the act of releasing are like robots, they have no feelings. They don't feel for those they kill and are able to be living, thriving members of the community because they do not love one another.

So, I guess that we can see how easy it has been for these people, both real and imagined to commit such acts. All they to do is hear that it is okay for them to release X person and then they don't feel bad when they do release X person.

And so, I think that this is fine now. There's enough for now... Gotta run.