Book Club Book: The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
(Warning: This post contains spoilers)

          The book, The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold, contains many archetypes, though many of them are very subtle.  It’s about the story of Susie Salmon, looking on to her family and friends from haven after she was raped and murdered by her neighbor, Mr. Harvey. It’s mainly occurs from 1973-1984 with flashbacks to the past and old memories as well. All of the characters, even Susie, moan and deal with her death in different ways and go through the 5 stages of grief as well. Their pain and the challenges that they face help bring out their inner, true self and show who they really are. It helped to build them to be stronger than they once were and strengthens their bonds with one another as well.

     The general theme is that death is a part of the life cycle. All of the characters are affected by the death and are very denial when they find out that Susie might be dead. When her dad, Jack Salmon, is told by the police detective Len Fenerman that they found an elbow of Susie’s, her father asks “So you can’t be certain that she’s dead?” (Sebold 20). He is denial at this point, which is the first stage of grief. He goes through the 2^nd stage of grief when he destroys the little boats in the glass jars because they remind him of Susie and it pains him to think of his loss. Mr. Salmon’s bargaining stage, which is the 3^rd stage of grief, is most likely when he goes after Mr. Harvey for revenge. Mr. Salmon is telling himself that if he can prove that Mr. Harvey is Susie’s murderer, he may get Susie back.  Mr. Salmon faces the 4^th stage of grief, depression, when his wife leaves and he wonders why. He feels as if he is to blame for all of the unfortunate events that occurred in his family and doesn’t take time to recognize the small, happy moments that have occurred. But he enters the final stage of grief, acceptance, when he is in the hospital, recovering from his heart attack and sees his family reunited and his other daughter, Lindsey, happily engaged to her boyfriend, Samuel Heckler.

     As for the character archetypes, Susie is the obvious heroine. She is forced to sacrifice living and growing up though she doesn’t want to. The shadow would seem to be Mr. Harvey, but is actually the grief and pain they feel preceding and about Susie’s death. They try hard to fight it but it always seems to get to them and won’t let them ignore the pain. Susie is on a quest for identity, trying to find out who she now is, being dead, and what her position in the world is now, from heaven.

     The mentor and mother figure is Franny, who guides Susie on how to let go of the living and how to live in heaven. She was a counselor, back when she was alive, and continues that role in heaven, guiding and advising Susie. Susie and Ray are the star-crossed lovers since they want to be together but can’t because Susie is in heaven and Ray is still on Earth. In my opinion, the damsel in distress is her mother, Abigail Salmon, because she was vulnerable to Susie’s death. The unsuspecting hero is Mr. Salmon since his heart attack helped her defeat her pain over Susie’s death.

     This text connects to the world because so many people die every day and it’s hard to imagine that it feels like to lose someone until you do. And you don’t know how you’ll deal with it when it happens. All of the mystery of a murder only makes the situation worse. It causes false hope and makes people more denial of a situation, like the Salmon family in the book. And in both the book and in real life, the pain we feel drives us to make poor choices, causing us not only to hurt ourselves, but also those around us and important to us as well.

Non-fiction Article Reading Response

     In the article "Spread a Rumor, Go to Jail?" in Upfront Magazine, it talks about a new Chinese law in China (of course) against “rumor mongering”. Under this law, it’s “a crime to post a false statement online if it’s viewed more that 5,000 times and reposted more than 500 times.” Yang Hui, a 16-year-old from Gansu Province, “was the first person to be arrested” under this new law. He “was detained for 7 days” because he questioned the “official explanation of a local man’s death”. He was freed “after a public outcry”. In my opinion, this is unfair and offending the rights of the people. They have the right to say what they want and are entitled to their opinions. They shouldn’t have to live in fear in their own country for wanting the better for themselves and of the people. It their country and they have to live their lives based on the laws so shouldn’t they get to choose who makes them and what they are?

     The thing that annoys me the most is that this law is just the newest and latest addition to China’s “crackdown on freedom of expression”. The Communists government there also is arresting dissenting bloggers, blocking foreign media websites, and censoring Facebook and Twitter. I really don’t see why they have to control them so much. I mean when you try to stop people from doing by terrorizing them, you will fail at one point, PERIOD. No one likes, or wants, to be locked up, even if it’s for their own good. We ask “Why not?” because we like to challenge and challenges make us feel free. But if you stop people from doing the basic things, like saying what’s on their mind, they will rebel. Opinions are basic things we are born to have and make and you can’t just take that away from someone. They are entitled to it and it’s theirs.

     Also, making this law just shows how corrupt their government really is. It shows how the people regard it and how close it is to falling apart. If a government has to go to the length to dissent people and deprive the people of their opinions that are meant for the people’s good or to raise awareness to how the people are treated, it’s visible that there is a problem. And in addition to that, a government is supposed to represent their people, not control them. They have brains for that purpose.

     This article really helped me understand that although we don’t have the best government, it’s better than what other people have. We should be grateful for that but we should also try to help out other people in places who don’t have what we have. We should see it as our responsibility to make sure that everyone is treated fair and equal. 

Works Cited
"Spread a Rumor, Go to Jail?" Upfront Magazine 3 Feb. 2014: 4. Web. 8 Mar. 2014.

My Sonnet, Revised & Redone

When I was about to hand in my final sonnet, I realized that it had a few mistakes in it. Things were missing and I didn't do somethings I wanted to should have done. So I decided it fix it up. Even though it won’t count or help my grade, I feel good knowing that it’s finished and perfected to the best of its/my ability. So here's my final sonnet. (I was kind of in bad mood that day though I don't remember why, so... yeah.) Enjoy!

The Darkness

The darkness hovers over all at once,

From widest stars to basic things that sing.

But in the light it’s almost like a dunce,

They laugh at it though it says not a thing.

The darkness comes to some to overtake, 

They fear and they cannot take it no more.

Hence, once appeared, their fear makes them shake

And through their fantasies, there starts a war.

It lurks in tiny spaces of the heart,

Brightened and dimmed with what they encounter,

And strikes into them like some poisoned darts.

It changes them, inside out, in a blur.

Little overcame their fear, winning glee,

Others have no choice but to flee.

Poerty Response on the poem "Photography" by Nikki Giovanni

PHOTOGRAPHY
by Nikki Giovanni

the eye we are told
is a camera
but the film is the heart
not the brain
and our hands joining
those that reach
develop the product

it's easy sitting in the sun
to forget that cold exists
let alone envelops
the lives of people
it's easy sitting in the sun
to forget the ice and ravages
of winter yet
there are those who would have
no other season
it's always easy when thinking
we have the best to assume
others covet it
yet surf or sea each has
its lovers and its meaning
for love

watching the red sun bleed
into the ocean
one thinks of the beauty that fire brings
if the eye is a camera and the film is the heart
then the photo assistant is god

     Cameras are a very personal item for most of the people who own them, including me. They preserve some of the greatest moments of our lives, whether they are good or bad, that our brains are unable to. But after reading the poem “Photography”, by Nikki Giovanni, I realized how similar we are to a camera and how similar photography is to life. I was able to realize these similarities with the help of all the literary devices that the poet incorporated into this poem. The poet uses a lot of metaphors, symbolism, and imagery to illuminate these similarities and encourage the reader to enjoy their life as well.

     The poet uses metaphors and symbolism to show how similar a camera is to a person and how both are able to capture life in a similar way. She first says “it's easy sitting in the sun / to forget that cold exists / let alone envelops / the lives of people”( Giovanni 8-11). Here, the poet is saying how when we are enjoying a specific moment in life, whether it’s in person or through a picture, we forget about all of the things that we think are bad about life and in the world. The poet then continues on to say “yet surf or sea each has / its lovers and its meaning / for love” (Giovanni 19-22). This shows that there are many lovers of surf and sea, humans as well as cameras, since they both love and help to capture and preserve surf and they both enjoy it as well.

     Throughout the poem, the poet also uses symbolism with imagery to help set the mood of the poem as well as teach the readers that we should enjoy life for what it is. She starts out stating that “our hands joining / those that reach / develop the product” (Giovanni 5-7). By saying this, the poet’s message is that our life is already made for us so we should just enjoy it and live it to the fullest for both the good and the bad moments since they both help to define who we are. Then at the end, she ends the final stanza of the poem by saying “watching the red sun bleed / into the ocean” (Giovanni 23-24). This helps the reader transition to the time of the sunset and helps them to imagine the end of a day at the beach, which she is also using as a way to end the poem.

     The poet sums up the poem at last with metaphors that relate us to cameras. She says that the “the film is the heart” (Giovanni 26), meaning the film feels and has the ability to enjoy every moment of life that it captures, just like the human. The last stanza of the poem, which is “then the photo assistant is god” (Giovanni 28), shows that the poet believes in god and also believes that god already knows what had/is/will happen, and, in a way, controls us.

     There are many things I learned from this poem. I learned that life is like a photo album that’s different for everyone. That every moment has a different meaning to every person and everyone has different reactions to the same things. Our definitions for good, bad, sadness, joy, love, and hate are all different. Yet we all love life the same and we should try to enjoy it to the fullest and for all, good and bad, small and big as well. These are just some the most important things that this poem has to teach to it’s reader’s.

 

Works Cited

 Giovanni, Nikki. "PHOTOGRAPHY". Poetry Packet. Print.

6 Word per Line Poem

What It's Like
I've always wondered what it's like
To be someone at another place,
How would it be, and who
Might I be, then and there?
What would I want and need,
Would I still be the same
Or at least similar to what
I have known to be me.

I've wondered how if I were
To fix all, or even some,
Even if that some was one,
Mistake, how would it change me?
What would I have to gain?
And what things must I sacrifice
So that I can be more
Perfect, by correcting the mistake made?

But then there's that question I
Must ask myself before I undo
What has already been done before.
It's odd yet it contains meaning
To it so very, very much.
Would undoing a mistake be a
Mistake itself as well, or would
It be better, or be worse?
What is the meaning of fixing
A mistake? Is it worth it?

To do or to not do,
That's the question I ask you. 

Maximum Ride: School's Out Forever by James Patterson

(This post contains spoilers.)

     Everyone was born different, with different abilities and talents. We all think a different way, making our goals very different from one another. But these abilities can do a lot of harm to us as well. In the book, Maximum Ride: School’s Out Forever, Max has that exact problem. She is the leader of 5 other kids who, like her, are 98% human and 2% bird. They were born in a lab and treated as lab rats until thy escaped. They are now being hunted by the same scientists who created them. Although they are only 2% bird, they have 13 feet long wings that they use to fly with. Although having wings seems awesome and is something that everyone wants and would trade their lives for, being different always has its consequences.

     The ability to fly is one of their abilities that causes many problems for the Flock. First of all, it makes people want to learn more about them by testing on them because they are different. They want to discover all of their abilities and push them to their limit, which isn't right because the Flock is being forced to go along with it against their will. They were kept in cages and tested on in the School, which is where they were born. They didn't know who their parents were or how they ended up there but their childhoods were ruined. In addition to that, they wouldn’t be accepted in the same way as others if they came out to the world. It’s would just make them a target for more people, or, to be exact, more companies and scientists. The government was also “observing” them from a distance, specifically Anne, who they were staying with and who ended up being one of the scientists who created the flock. All of this shows how even the things we are good at can affect us in very negative ways.

   Another problem that only the main character, Max, faces I being in charge or the leader. She has lots of responsibilities that belong to a parent although she isn’t anyone’s mother. She is only 15 but has to make adult decisions. She doesn’t even have a proper education but in her scenario, that’s not her biggest challenge. She has to keep the Flock safe, together, alive and at the same time, she has to try to save the world while constantly being attacked by the scientists. That’s not exactly the idea I get in my mind when I’m left in charge. I’m either happy that I get to boss my little sisters around or annoyed that I’m stuck with them. But Max doesn’t really have a choice. Everyone looks up to her to lead them and so she has to even when she doesn’t want to. She is more superior than everyone else so she is stuck with the job.

     All of our abilities make us who we are but they also can cause problems that make our lives harder. Like for me, being oldest is awesome but also a nightmare. I have to be perfect so my sisters learn from me. Also, I have to be nice and quite since I’m a girl and because it’s what all of the other Bengali neighbors expect of a girl. And finally, I have to b smart since in and Asian. Most of these are stereotypes but they all affect me no matter how much I wish they didn’t.      

Nonfiction Article Reading Response

     Malala Yousafzai is girl from Pakistan who is fighting for the rights of girls. She fought against the Taliban, a group of Muslims who, according to the article “The Bravest Girl in the World” in Upfront Magazine, “imposed their harsh interpretation of Islamic law on the religion, banning music, dance, and many personal freedoms, including schooling for girls. They also forbade women from being in without their husbands or fathers. Taliban used violence-including public beatings, torture, and beheadings-to spread fear and enforce their edicts.” Malala was shot in the face in 2012 by the Taliban. They tried to scare her into being quite and stop protesting against women rights. But the shooting just attracted more attention towards Malala, making her more famous. Her famousness helped her spread her message to the entire world. She became the youngest person ever to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. She even published her own book, I Am Malala, where she describes the day that changed her life.

     The purpose of this article is to make us feel thankful for all that we have, especially education. We are able to go to school here for free with no threat. But people in countries like Pakistan, where the Taliban are, don’t have the same freedom as us. They are fighting for rights as simple as education that we take for grant. They go to school with the fear they might die at any moment but with the determination that education and knowledge is worth the risk. Here, we wake up, annoyed to go to school. The author shows this by giving an excerpt of Malala’s book. This excerpt shows the hardships Malala has gone through and how life is like for a girl to risk her life just to gain more knowledge. Some of the risks she wrote in her book include how people warned her father that he might become a target of the Taliban, like a friend of his, since he started the school. Also, she was fearful that she “a terrorist might jump out and shoot me on those steps.”

     The author used this excerpt as a primary resource to persuade us that education is important and Malala is his example of this. This article shows the perspective of the victims of the Taliban, such as Malala, but not the perspective of the Taliban itself. If the Taliban’s perspective was included, it would be easier to understand why they are doing what they’re doing. For example, if they were doing this because they wanted to take over the world, then they’d be the bad guys as this article indicates. But if they had another purpose that was to help the people, then that’d change the view people on them. Frankly, I can’t think of one good reason that they’d have for doing what they do. But their perspective and goals are still important.

     This article makes me appreciate education that I get here for free as well as the safety of the country. I realized that everything that I learn can help me do better and maybe even use it change the world one day. I look up to Malala as an inspiration and am amazed at her accomplishments because I’d never have the guts to do what she did. I truly recognize her as a personal hero of mine.

   
 Works cited

"The Bravest Girl in the World." Upfront Magazine 9 Dec. 2014: n. pag. The New York Times. Web. 18 Dec. 2014.