Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 25-26

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
5/13/13

 

Chapters 25-26

 

Summary: Holden starts to regret leaving Mr. Antolini's house and has second thoughts if Mr. Antolini was in fact making a pass at him. Holden gets his bags and walks up Fifth Avenue and decides that he wants to go out to the mid-west and pretend to be a deaf-mute. He gives a note to Phoebe's school and she meets him by the museum. She wants to go with Holden, but he refuses and to please her he takes her to the zoo and watches her ride the carousel and he promises Phoebe that he isn't leaving after all. In the last chapter of the book, Holden expresses that he misses everyone on his journey and tells people to never tell anyone anything or else you start missing them.

Quotation: "Every time I came to the end of a block and stepped off the goddam curb, I had this feeling that I'd never get to the other side of the street. I thought I'd just go down, down, down, and nobody'd ever see me again"(197).

Quotation Significance: Holden is walking up Fifth Avenue and every time he leaves a curb he feels like he is sinking and dying, like he is escaping his life and his loneliness. This is important because he is telling us that he almost wants to escape from his life and his loneliness.

Reflection: In the last two chapters of the book, Holden considers leaving New York to go to the mid-west and work on a ranch pretending to be a deaf-mute so he doesn't have to talk to anyone and he can live in peace. But when he sees Phoebe on the carousel he realizes how much he would miss his family and how lonely he would be and he decides to abandon this plan and stay in New York after all. Earlier, Holden is walking up Fifth Avenue and every time he leaves a curb he feels like he is sinking and dying, like he is escaping his life and his loneliness. This is important because he is telling us that he almost wants to escape from his life and his loneliness. In the last chapter of the book Holden expresses that when you tell people things you start to miss them. This means that he admits to missing Ackley, Stradlater, Sally, and even Maurice. No matter how lonely Holden is and how much he hates most of the people on his journey he has started to miss them. Overall, this is a good book and it teaches people a lot about what is truly important and how others perceive each other.

Discussion Question: Why does Holden decide not to run away? Why is the curb scene in the book important?



 



Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 21-22

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
5/9/13

Chapters 21-22

 

Summary: Holden gets to the apartment building and tells the elevator boy that he is here to see his aunt and uncle. Holden sneaks into Phoebe's room and reads her school journals for awhile until he decides to wake her up. Holden's parents are away and Phoebe is happy to see Holden but is mad once she finds out that he was expelled from Pencey and then decides to ignore him. In chapter 22, Phoebe asks Holden why he got expelled and Phoebe claims that Holden doesn't like anyone or anything. Holden says he likes Allie and he likes James Castle, who stood up against school bullies. Holden also says he if he could be anything he would be a catcher in the rye.

Quotation: "You don't like anything that's happening...You don't like any schools. You don't like a million things. You don't"(169).

Quotation Significance: Phoebe claims that Holden doesn't like anything. Phoebe is right because Holden believes almost everyone is phony and he hates school and many other places. Holden is lonely because he won't open up and see that he is the phony and the fact that the reason he is lonely is because he won't except anything for what it is.

Reflection: Holden goes to his house because he is lonely and wants to chat with Phoebe. Phoebe is really disappointed that Holden gets expelled from Pencey and ignores him for a little way and is mad at him. Phoebe also claims that Holden doesn't like anyone or anything at all. This isn't totally true but Holden doesn't like most people except for Allie, Jane, and Phoebe.  Phoebe is right because Holden believes almost everyone is phony and he hates school and many other places. Holden is lonely because he won't open up and see that he is the phony and the fact that the reason he is lonely is because he won't except anything for what it is. Holden does say that if he could do anything he would be the catcher in the rye. This idea comes from a dream he has when kids are playing in a field of rye and he has to catch the kids when they accidentally fall off the cliff. This seems symbolic in the book and this passage earned the book it's name "Catcher in the Rye". I think this is symbolizing that when someone falls or becomes sad that someone will always be there to lift them back up and help them enjoy life again. I think this is the kind of person that Holden needs. Holden needs someone to catch him from falling off his cliff.

Discussion Question: What do you think the "catcher in the rye" symbolizes?





Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 19-20

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
5/9/13

 

Chapters 19-20

 

Summary: Holden goes the Wicker Bar at the Seton Hotel to meet up with Luce, a friend from an old school. Luce and Holden drink for awhile and talk about girls. When Luce has to leave, Holden begs him to stay telling Luce that he is lonely. Holden gets drunk after Luce leaves and he calls Sally. Sally figures out he is drunk and tells him to go home. Holden leaves the bar later crying and decides to go to the park and visit the lake. No one was there and afterwards he decides to go home and sneak in the house to talk with Phoebe.

Quotation: "I couldn't stand it. I know it's only his body and all that's in the cemetery, and his soul's in Heaven and all that crap, but I couldn't stand it anyway. I just wish he wasn't there"(156).

Quotation Significance: Holden is really expressing here how much he truly misses Allie and doesn't want him in that cemetery. He wishes Allie is still alive.

Reflection: In these chapters, Holden is becoming very lonely. He goes to have a drink with the boy Luce from one of his old schools and Luce has to leave fairly early and Holden tells him not to leave because he is lonely. Holden has been apart from his family for a few weeks and he is starting to really miss some human interactions. This is why he turns to old friends like Luce and why he finally makes the decision to walk home to sneak in and talk to Phoebe. He really misses Phoebe because she is one of the only people he is close to. Holden has a hard time liking most people because he believes most of them are "phonies". Holden is willing to risk being discovered by his parents to see a member of his family again. Holden still hasn't decided to call Jane but I still believe that he is also close to her and really likes her. Holden also calls Sally when he is drunk because he is still lonely and also why he talks to the bartender about one of the girls that works at the bar. Holden is looking for anyone to talk to him and be with him.

Discussion Question: Why does Holden finally make the decision to go home? Why is Holden lonely and why wont he reach out to Jane?





Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 17-18

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
5/6/13

Chapters 17-18

 

Summary: Holden meets up with Sally to go on a date to see the Lunts in a show. Holden tells Sally he loves her in the car ride there when they are kissing and she says it back. Sally runs into another guy friend of hers at the show and afterwards Sally and Holden go ice-skating and then Holden tells Sally that they should run away together and when Sally refuses Holden calls her a bad word and Holden apologizes but then starts laughing and Sally makes Holden leave.

Quotation: "If you want to know the truth, I don't even know why I started all that stuff with her...She wouldn't have been anybody to go with. The terrible part, though, is that I meant it when I asked her. That's the terrible part. I swear to God I'm a madman" (134).

Quotation Significance: Holden isn't sure why he asked Sally to go off with him and runaway. He thought she was a phony and not even worth going with but he asked her anyway and he meant it when he asked her. Holden has gotten to the point that he is so lonely that he is willing to ask almost anyone to run away with him and be with him.

Reflection: Holden believes that he is a madman. This isn't true, the truth is that Holden feels lonely. This is what motivates him to ask for the prostitute and to ask Sally to run away with him. Holden knows he can't go home and he is doing whatever he can to avoid loneliness and depression. This is also what motivates Holden to tell Sally that he loves her even though Holden actually doesn't really like Sally at all. Holden becomes angry when he calls Sally the bad word because he is angry that she doesn't want to go run away with him. I think that Holden is missing his family and missing the feeling of being part of a family and being home. But he can not go home because his parents do not know that he has been expelled yet and he knows that he is a disappointment to them all. His younger brother Allie and his sister Phoebe are all A+ students and Holden is flunking all of his classes. I also believe that Holden wants to find someone that he doesn't have to constantly compare himself to, someone who is original with a fresh outlook on life.

Discussion Question: Why is Holden so lonely? Why does Holden want Sally to run away with him?





Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 11-12

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
4/24/13

Chapters 11-12

 

Summary: Holden sits in the lobby and starts thinking about Jane. He admits that he likes her and once they were close to kissing. Then Holden went to Ernie's- a night club in Greenwich Village. Ernie, the pianist was showing off for the crowd and Holden got a drink and listened to couples. Later, Holden's brother's ex-girlfriend showed up with her date and Holden found an excuse to leave after talking to them for a few minutes.

Quotation: "You never even worried, with Jane, whether your hand was sweaty or not. All you knew was, you were happy. You really were" (79).

Quotation Significance: It is starting to become more evident that Holden loves Jane and this is why he got into the fight with Stradlater and was always worrying about Jane being with Stradlater.

Reflection: Holden is still hanging out in New York until he has to go home and face his parents once they know he was kicked out of Pencey. We find out that Holden also loves Jane. He talks about how they almost kissed, how they always held hands, and how Holden thought she was beautiful. This is why Holden was fighting Stradlater and why he was so worried about them being together. It might still just be the fact that Stradlater is a womanizer, but some of it is jealously. Holden wishes that Jane was his girlfriend and that he could be with her. He knows what Stradlater can do and he doesn't want this for Jane. Holden also runs into D.B's ex and she starts to ask questions about D.B. and he makes up an excuse to leave.

Discussion Question: How does Holden feel about having to talk to his parents about getting expelled from Pencey?





Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 9-10

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
4-22-13

 

Chapters 9-10

 

Summary: Holden arrives in New York and talks about wanting to call his sister, Phoebe. He decides to stay at the Edmont Hotel. Later that night he calls Faith Cavendish, a girl he had met at a party a year ago. He wanted to meet her for a cocktail but it didn't work out. Then Holden goes down the club in the hotel called the Lavender Room. He dances with a pretty blonde and talks with her and her "ugly friends". After this Holden returns to his room.

Quotation: "There isn't any night club in the world you can sit in for a long time unless you can at least buy some liquor and get drunk. Or unless you're with some girl that really knocks you out"(76).

Quotation Significance: Holden is at the night club and he is saying that bars aren't fun unless you can drink or dance with a pretty girl. Honestly, this shows that Holden values only girls and alcohol.

Reflection: In these two chapters, Holden is all by himself in New York staying at the Edmont Hotel. We learn that he has a sister named Phoebe, who he speaks very highly of. We also learn that inside his mind he is a sex maniac and is always thinking about women. We also find out that he does have some experience with women. Holden also believes that everyone is phony. This makes no sense to me because Holden is one of the phoniest characters in the book. He enjoys lying to people and making up fake identities for himself. Holden seems very hypocritical. Holden also dances with some girls from the night club in the hotel, even though he thinks that they are dumb and two of them are ugly. It seems insane to me that Holden hangs out with people he doesn't like and he constantly pretends to fit in with them and like them. Holden should instead be around smart girls and boys that he likes. So far, this book is good but it's hard for me to understand Holden's way of life.

Discussion Question: Why does Holden go to New York? Why does Holden feel the need to drink and party with women?





Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 3-4

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
4/17/13

 

Chapters 3-4

 

Summary: Holden heads back to his dorm room and reads his book until Ackley- the kid in the next dorm comes in to bug him like he always does. Ackley hates Stradlater (Holden's roommate) and only came when he wasn't around. Ackley is s a rude, dirty, and an annoying senior and he continues to bug Holden until Stradlater arrives. In chapter 4, Holden goes with Stradlater to the bathroom. Stradlater is handsome, a secret slob, and is experienced with sex and women. Stradlater asks him to do a paper for him and tells him about his date and his date tonight is a girl that Holden used to live next to named Jane. Holden becomes worried for Jane when he finds out that she is Stradlater's date and wants to go see her. Then later Ackley barges in again.

Quotation: "I kept thinking about Jane, and about Stradlater having a date with her and all. It made me so nervous I nearly went crazy. I already told you what a sexy bastard Stradlater was"(34).

Quotation Significance: Holden is worried about Jane because he knows that Stradlater just wants to have sex with her and he doesn't want Jane to be pressured to do anything she doesn't want to do and he likes Jane and he thinks that she deserves better.

Reflection: In these chapters we get to know how Holden's life is at school. We learn about his roommate, Stradlater. He is a womanizer, strong, fit, conceited, handsome, and a secret slob. He is always going on dates with girls and he is angry because his date is only allowed to be out until 9:30. Stradlater only wants to have sex and he is mad that he wont have time to do this if she goes home at 9:30. Holden then finds out his date is Jane and he talks about how she loves to dance, checkers, and her family situation. It seems that it is possible that Holden is in love with Jane. He is concerned when he finds out that Stradlater is going on a date with her and he doesn't want Jane to be pressured to do something she doesn't want to do and he thinks that she deserves better than Stradlater. He might also be upset because she isn't going out with him. I think that Holden thinks that he has no chance because Stradlater is handsome and strong and he abandons his plans to say hello to her and heads to his room. Holden is also constantly bombarded by Ackley. Ackley hates Stradlater and he is always picking up Holden's things, not listening to Holden, and is also treating Holden like a kid. It seems like Ackley just wants to have a friend and be the boss of someone.

Discussion Question: Do you think that Holden is in love with Jane?





Catcher in the Rye Litblog Ch. 1-2

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
4-15-13

 

Chapters 1-2

 

Summary: The narrator of this story is named Holden Caulfield who is seventeen years old and he tells us about being at Pencey Prep in Pennsylvania when he was sixteen. He was the captain of the fencing team and he was kicked out of school for flunking four of his classes. He goes over to his history teacher's house, Mr. Spencer, to say goodbye to him before leaving the next week. He talks with Mr. Spencer who lectures and interrogates him on flunking his classes and his future. Holden eventually makes up a lie and leaves Mr. Spencer's house.

Quotation: "I don't think I'll ever forgive him for reading me that crap out loud. I wouldn't've read it out loud to him if he'd written it- I really wouldn't"(12).

Quotation Significance: Holden becomes angry when Mr. Spencer reads the note that Holden left him on his paper about flunking the class. He feels that teachers are always treating him unfairly and that he wouldn't have read the humiliating note out loud.

Reflection: So far this book seems to be well written and I think it will be a good read. Holden has been to four schools and he obviously isn't focused on his future and doesn't care about the consequences about not taking advantage of his education and all that it can bring him. Holden is annoyed with teachers and he feels that even though he tries to be nice they also don't like him because he doesn't put in any effort. And now because of this he was kicked out of Pencey Prep and he has to go home and face his parents. Holden is narrating this story from when he is seventeen years old and he doesn't tell us where he is just that he is away from his parents in a place he doesn't like. I'm thinking that he is probably at a new school. Although Holden is flunking out of school and not thinking about his future it is easy to see that he is a good kid deep down.

Discussion Question: Why does Holden not try in school and why does he not care about his future?





A Seperate Peace Litblog Ch. 13

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
4-4-13

Chapter 13



Summary: The military arrives at Devon to stay the summer and train. Brinker's dad came and Gene, Brinker, and his dad had a talk in the butt room and Brinker tells his father wants to be in the coast guard and Gene says that he wants to be in the navy. Gene watchs the platoons doing calisthenics and imagines himself in their place in the next few years. Gene comes back as his older self from the war and tells how he never killed anyone and that the words of Finny helped him through rough times in the military.

Quotation: "I never killed anybody and I never developed an intense level of hatred for the enemy. Because my war ended before I ever put on a uniform; I was on active duty all my time at school; I killed my enemy there"(196).

Quotation Significance: This is Gene when he comes back as himself at the end of the book after the war. He is saying that being in the school was like being the war, he had killed his enemy. This enemy is inside himself. This enemy is not Finny like he had orginally thought, Finny had supported Gene and only tried to help him. This enemy inside Gene was the one who pushed Finny off the tree and tried to compete with him and after the war Gene has conquered this enemy.

Reflection: This is the final chapter of the book. Gene talks with Brinker and his dad and Gene knows that he wants to be in the navy and Brinker knows that he wants to be on the coast guard. Gene imagines himself in the military and he sees a future where he is part of it and joining the fight. Then Gene comes back from after the war and tells us that he killed no one in the war except his enemy at school, because that was when he was on active duty. This enemy is inside himself. This enemy is not Finny like he had orginally thought, Finny had supported Gene and only tried to help him. This enemy was conquered when he was at school,and this enemy is not Finny. This enemy is inside Gene is the one who pushed Finny off the tree and tried to compete with him and after the war Gene has conquered this enemy. Gene had to conqueror this jealously and envy feelings he was having for Finny and his feeling for competiviness. Gene had kill the enmy inside him that tricked him into believing that Finny was his real enemy. Overall, this was a great book but it didn't have the greatest ending. The ending felt very predictable and the reader could predict it was coming. But other than that, this book is a great read.

Discussion Question: How did Gene conqueror the enemy within himself?

A Seperate Peace Litblog Chapter 12

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
4-3-13

 

Chapter 12

 

Summary: After finding out the Gene jounced the limb, Finny broke his leg again after falling down the stairs but this time the break was clean. Finny gets taken to the Infirmary and Gene sneaks in through his window after the doctor was gone and Finny tries to attack him but is unsuccessful due to his condition. Gene then leaves Finny's room and comes back the next day with Finny's suitcase and Finny believes that Gene acted on a blind and crazy impulse. Gene comes back the next day to find out that Finny is dead from the marrow of his blood flowing to his heart.

Quotation: I did not cry then or ever about Finny... I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case"(186).

Quotation Significance: This quote is saying that Gene could not cry about Finny's death because Gene felt like that Finny's death was like he himself dying and dead people don't cry at their own funerals.

Reflection: In this chapter, Finny is in shock because he knows that Gene was the one who jounced the limb and Finny even tries to attack Gene because of it and Gene feels immensely guilty that his best friend is suffering because of him. When Gene comes back later and Finny is dead Gene feels extremely sad but cant cry. Gene can't cry because he feels like Finny dying is almost like both of them dying. Gene knows that in Finny's death he is losing his other half and part of himself. So Gene knows that he can't possibly cry at his own funeral. Finny could almost barely believe that Gene had actually jounced the limb on purpose and told Gene that he believed that Gene was only having an uncontrollable blind impulse. Gene agrees and the boys become friends again and the next day is when Finny dies by accident from blood marrow getting to his heart.

Discussion Question: Why does Finny refuse to believe that Gene jouncing the limb wasn't a crazy impulse?





A Seperate Peace Litblog Ch. 9-10

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-29-13

 

 

Chapters 9-10

 

Summary: After watching a video of the U.S. Ski Troops convinced Leper to enlist and he left the school. Afterwards, everyone referred very reported war event to Leper and they assumed he was the hero in these battles. Finny and a few other boys decide to hold a carnival on the upcoming Saturday with sports and prizes. At the end of the chapter, Gene gets a telegram from Leper asking for his immediate help because his life is in danger. In chapter 10, Gene travels to Leper's house and finds him there. Leper seems almost completely different and tells Gene he ran away because he was receiving a Section Eight Discharge- a discharge for psychos and unstable fighters, meaning that he would get no good jobs in the army. Leper had become psycho and told Gene that he sees random body parts appear on people and suffers from strange visions and Leper tells Gene the first time he screamed and freaked out because of this first vision in the bunks and Gene tells Leper to stop and Gene leaves his house.

Quotation: "It wasn't the cider that made me surpass myself, it was this liberation we had torn from the gray encroachments of 1943, the escape we had concocted, this afternoon of momentary, illusory, special and separate peace" (123).

Quotation Significance: Part of the reason this quote is significant is that the last two words are the title of the novel. This quote is when Gene is being crowned with a wreath when he is about to compete in the Carnival. The boys have found a way to have fun and escape the horrors of the war and of winter and this gives them a separate peace

Reflection: In these two chapters, Leper has joined and enlisted in the army because he saw the video of them skiing, one of his favorite sports. He assumed that everything would be like the video and when Gene gets the telegram to rescue him he sees how much the war has changed Leper. Leper used to be shy, kind, and lighthearted and now when Gene visits him he seems almost unfriendly, grumpy, and cold. He is given the Section Eight Discharge and Leper seems to accept the fact that he is psycho because he sees random visions. For some reason, this really freaks out Gene and Gene yells at Leper telling him that he didn't want to hear this story because it had nothing to do with him. It scarred him so badly that Gene immediately left afterwards. The boys also held the Carnival during that time too and this provided them with an escape from the harsh winter and the horrors of the war. giving them a separate peace from the rest of the world.

Discussion Question: Why does Gene leave Leper's house when Leper tells his story?





A Seperate Peace Litblog Chapters 7-8

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-28-13

Chapters 7-8

Summary: Brinker comes to visit Gene, he thinks that Gene got rid of Finny so he could have a big room. They go down to the smoking room and Brinker jokes around and tells everyone down in the room his theory about what Gene did to Finny, playing it off as a joke. Gene and the other boys take a job shoveling snow off the railroad and on the way there he sees Leper skiing. Gene promises to enlist in the army with Brinker. At the end of the chapter, Finny is back. Gene tells Finny he plans on enlisting and Finny is shocked that Gene might leave. Later that day the boys ditch French class and go down to the gym and now Finny is going to train Gene for the Olympics. The boys come up with a theory that the war is a fake created by fat, old, men who want to keep their jobs.

Quotation: "To enlist. To slam the door impulsively on the past, to shed everything down to my last bit of clothing, to break the pattern of my life-that complex design I had been weaving since birth with all its dark threads...I yearned to take giant military shears to it..." (92).

Quotation Significance: This quote is talking about how desperately wants to cut off the ties of his old life and all that he has built and owned to enlist in the military and completely start a new life.

Reflection: In these chapters, Brinker embarrasses Gene by saying that he sabotaged Finny so he could get a big room and tells everyone in the smoking room about it and Gene tries to play it off like Brinker as a joke and tells them how he "poisoned" Finny. Gene knows that if he doesn't play this off right that he will get a bad reputation at Devon and he would sacrifice anyone else's reputation to save his. Finny also returns in chapter 8. Instead of being rivals again Gene and Finny work together. Gene tutors Finny in school and Finny trains Gene for the Olympics. Finny is shocked when he finds out that Gene might enlist. Gene feels trapped by his school life and secretly wished to cut the ties with his old life and enlist in the army and go live a new life and fight in the war. In the gym, Finny also says that he is suffering and the boys have an awkward moment and Gene doesn't know exactly how to respond but he feels bad for Finny and I think that Gene is starting to realize that Finny is actually a good friend and not out to steal any of his academic glory.

Discussion Question: How have Finny and Gene's relationship changed since he returned?



A Seperate Peace Litblog Ch. 5-6

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-25-13

Chapters 5-6

 

Summary: Gene goes in to see Finny and finds out that he can never play sports again. Gene also tries to tell Finny that he jostled the tree branch to make him fall on purpose but then the doctor comes in. Gene goes off to summer break and right before arriving back at Devon on September 1, he stops by Finny's house and tells him the truth. Finny is very upset and Gene takes it back and pretends like he was tried because of the train ride and he didn't mean any of it. Gene becomes an assistant manager for Quackenbush and the boys get into a fist fight and both boys get drenched in the river. Later, Finny calls Gene and they talk about school and Gene reassures Finny that he is still his roommate.

Quotation: "...I lost part of myself to him then, and a soaring sense of freedom revealed that this might must have been my purpose from the first: to become part of Phineas"(77).

Quotation Significance: Gene is saying this when he is on the phone with Finny and he tells him about the assistant manager job. Finny is disappointed and insists that Gene play sports since he can't. Gene is now starting to realize that Finny and him are so different that they can't really be competitors. Gene also realizes that he is going to become a part of Phineas and Phineas will now have to live through him since everything that Finny was once good at was taken from him by Gene.

Reflection: For awhile, Gene was always trying to compete with Finny. Finny was popular, handsome, and athletic. While Gene is smart and shy. Gene already excels Finny at school and wants to become top of the class to beat Finny even more. But he is now starting to realize that him and Finny are so different that it is almost impossible for them to compete against one another fairly. Gene is also realizing that Finny was not trying to take advantage him and is just being a good friend and being himself. Gene wanted to beat Finny because he was jealous of Finny and his ability to stay out of trouble and being good at sports. This is what pushed Gene is jostle the branch to make Finny fall. Gene wanted to be the dominant one and be the one on top for once. But he didn't realize and didn't want Finny to lose his ability to play sports. Now that Gene realizes this he knows that what he did is wrong and he tries to come clean to Finny. But coming clean is hard, especially since Finny is going through so much already. But Gene now realizes that he has to make up to Finny by letting Finny live through him.

Discussion Question: Why did Gene jostle the branch to make Finny fall?





A Seperate Peace Litblog Chapters 1-2

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-21-13

 

Chapters 1-2

 

Summary: A man named Gene Forrester returns to his old school called Devon in New Hampshire. He remembers about how fearful he was in those days when World War II was going on in Europe. He visits the old staircase and a tree down by the river. He remembers this tree from when he was 16, and he dares his friend to jump off one of the branches into the river, Finny jumps first and then Gene jumps. In chapter 2, Finny decides to wear pink to celebrate the bombing of central Europe. At a faculty tea with Mr. Patch-Withers, his wife notices that Finny is using the school tie as a belt and he talks himself out of trouble again. They then go down to the river and make a secret society called the "Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session". Gene loses his balance on a tree branch and is caught by Finny, who saves his life.

Quotation: "Looking back now across fifteen years, I could see with great clarity the fear I had lived in, which must mean that in the interval I had succeeded in a very important undertaking: I must have made my escape from it"(2).

Quotation Significance: Gene is back at his old school in Devon and looking back from went he went to school there he realizes that he had lived his life in fear, and now that he is able to look back and recognize this he knows that this means that he has broken free from that fear.

Reflection: This book is set in around the time of World War II. Gene is returning to his school in Devon when World War II was going on and he realizes the fear he constantly lived in at the school. There was the fear of the war obviously and also peer pressures from his friends. One of his good friends, Finny, was able to get away with almost anything and Gene always thought this was extremely unfair and I think he was jealous of Finny. Finny also seemed to be a little bossy and ordered Gene to do things, like jumping into the river. Gene wanted to fit in and be accepted by his other friends so that is why I think he obeyed Finny. Gene falls from a tree branch one day and Finny catches him. He looks back on the moment later and realizes that he owes Finny his life. He could have landed on a rock in the river and broken his neck or back. The boys also make their own secret society.

Discussion Question: Why does Gene sometimes get jealous of Finny? Why is Gene always afraid when he is in Devon?





Night Litblog Pages 104-115

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-20-13

Pages 104-115

Summary: Elie is with his father, who is becoming very sick. Elie stays in the hospital with him and and SS man hits him in the head because he calls out to Elie when the SS men are telling the sick all to be quiet. That night while Elie was asleep, his father died. A few monthes later, all the Jews are ordered to meet in the main area for a group roll call. The rebels tell them not to because they believe the Germans are going to shoot them. They go back to their block and later return to the main area where the rebels overcome the Germans and the U.S. attacks the camp, and the prisoners are now free. Elie gets transferred to as hospital because his got sick from poisoning and when he wakes up, the book ends. 

Quotation: "... Don't forget that you are in a concentration camp. In this place, it is every man for himself, and you cannot think of others. You cannot help him anymore. And you are hurting yourself"

Quotation Significance: A doctor says this to Elie when he goes to check on his father. He is saying that in this society, every man is for himself and by feeding his father he is hurting his own chance of survival. The Germans are so cruel that they have made sons turn on their fathers.

Reflection: The book ends with all the prisoners at the camp being rescued. Elie's father dies just a few days before this happens. Elie feels sorry for his father but he also almost feels a sense of relief. Now he doesn't have the burden of taking care of his father on his shoulders. He knows that he should not thinks this, but in his situation, it becomes almost understandable. Now Elie only has himself to take care of. Elie is aware of his thoughts to abandon his father and he is glad that he was able to be there in his day alive. But he also knows that having his father with him gave him a sense of purpose to be alive, and now he has no reason to going on living. But he continues to fight through and eventually the U.S. defeats the Germans and Elie and the other prisoners are set free. When he is in the hospital, he gets out of bed and he sees himself in the mirror for the first time in a very long time. And he says that he will never forget the look in his eyes in that moment. Those eyes hold all the horrors of the everlasting night that he had to live through, the death of family, his missing faith, and his anger towards the inner beast inside humans. Overall, this was a very good book which showed the terror and cruel moments that go on inside a Jewish concentration camp in the Holocaust. 

Discussion Question: Why will Elie never forget his reflection in the mirror in the hospital? How does Elie feel about his father's death?





Night Litblog Pages 85-103

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-18-13

Pages 85-103

Summary: The men are evacuated because the Russian front is advancing towards them. The men are forced to march twenty kilometers before they are allowed to stop near a shed and Elie and his father keep each other awake. Elie is worried that he will abandon his weak father because of his own will to stay alive. They arrive in Gleiwitz and Elie meets his old friend Juliek and he plays the violin. They stay in Gleiwitz for three days and the men are boarded on trains- 100 men per car. The men received no food and fought violently over pieces of bread passerby in towns threw in. Elie is sleeping when someone starts to choke and he is saved by his father and Meir Katz. The men have no strength left and all of them begin to wail and cry and that night they arrive in Buchenwald, only 12 men remain in the cart.

Quotation: "The lament spread from wagon to wagon. It was contagious. And now hundreds of cries rose at once. The death rattle of an entire convoy with the end approaching. All boundaries had been crossed. Nobody had any strength left. And the night seemed endless.

Quotation Significance: The men have been stuck on this wagon for days without food. They only have access to snow for water. The men are so exhausted and tired that they have no more will to live. They feel like giving up and they all cry and moan together, and the endless night is full of misery and sadness for them.

Reflection: In this section of the book, the men are forced to leave Buna because the Russians are coming. Elie wants to be with his father and chooses not to stay in the infirmary. Elie is having trouble staying behind with his father and he doesn't want to die with him. Elie describes various stories where men abandon their fathers in order to save themselves. Elie understands that they only want to survive and if their father is in their way, then they will sacrifice their fathers. But on the otherhand, Elie loves his father and his father needs him and he couldn't possibly hurt his father and let him die. Elie also knows that his father is the only person that he has left. On the march to Gleiwitz, Elie almost feels like giving up but he knows that he must go on to give support to his father, who would have given up if it wasn't for him. On the train, all the men almost give up. They have no food and only 12 of the 100 men survive. They are exposed to extreme weather conditions and they are forced to fight for crumbs of food. The Germans seem to have no pity or mercy for the Jews. It deeply sickens me how they could simply ignore this and not feed the men.

Discussion Question: How has the journey to Buchenwald affected Elie and his feelings about his father?





Night Litblog Pages 44-65

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-15-13

 

Pages 44-65

 

Summary: Stein finds out the real news of Reizel and his children. Elie and his block leave Auschwitz and are transferred to Buna. The routine process for new recruits goes smoothly. Elie and his father are placed with a group of workers who have to assemble electrical parts. Elie gets called into the dentist because of his gold crown and delays the doctor and the doctor is fired before Elie's crown is removed. When their supervisor, Idek, gets angry one day he beats up Elie for no reason, and a French girl consoles him. Franek, their foreman, wants Elie's gold crown and tortures Elie's father daily until Elie gives it up. On Sunday, Elie catches Idek and a female prosititute and he laughs and his punished by being whipped. Later, the U.S. bombed the camp and later Elie watched several hangings.  

Quotation: "Bite your lips, little brother... Don't cry. Keep your anger, your hate, for another day, for later. The day will come but not now...Wait. Clench your teeth and wait" (53).

Quotation Significance: The French girl says this to Elie after he is beaten up by Idek for no reason. She tells him that their time to rise and fight back will come but they must wait. She understands what Elie must be going through and he wants to fight back against the Germans.

Reflection: Elie and his father are transferred to Buna in this section and are given relatively easy jobs. Akiba Drumer believes that God is putting the through a test but Elie cant help thinking that how God test them so harshly for so long to let millions of innocent men die and show no mercy? Now Elie's heart is black. His only thought is survival. He is also beaten up by Idek for no reason and this makes him extremely angry because he had done nothing wrong. The French girl consoles him and convinces him to wait and that they will have revenge one day. Elie almost has to have his crown removed and avoids until Franek tortures his father daily, and his father is the only person that Elie has left and he would do anything to keep him from dying, so Elie gives up his tooth. He also catches Idek with a prostitute and receives a very harsh punishment for spying on them and laughing. He is whipped 50 times and can not stand once his beating is finished and Idek threatens his life if he says anything about it to anyone. The U.S. also bomb the camp but only one man is killed. Elie is also forced to watch several hangings and they even hang a child, who is small so it takes a half hour before he finally dies. The men force everyone to look at their dead bodies, feeling Elie with unspeakable horror.

Discussion Question: Do you think that Elie has completely lost his faith? Do you think that he can regain it?





Night Litblog Pages 21-43

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-12-13

 

Pages 21-43

 

Summary: Elie and his family depart in a train car with 80 other people on a long journey, dying of thirst. They then arrive at their destination: Auschwitz. The crazy mad-woman in the car kept yelling about flames and when the train rolled into the camp at Birknaeu, she was right. They were forced from the trains and Elie was separated from his mother and sisters. An inmate told him and his father to lie about their ages. Elie and his father were almost two steps from the crematorium and then they were told to turn left. They were sent to barracks and met up with some of their friends. The next day, they had to get new prison clothes and run to different barracks and were lectured by an German officer. Elie's father was slapped. They were then transferred to the actual Auschwitz camp, Elie became number A-7713 and was forced to run to different barracks again and met a family friend of theirs during daily roll call.

Quotation: "What had happened to me? My father had just been struck, in front of me, and I had not even blinked. I had watched and kept silent. Only yesterday, I would have dug my nails into this criminals flesh. Had I changed so much? So fast? Remorse began to gnaw at me. All I could think was: I shall never forgive them for this"(39).

Quotation Significance: Elie's father is slapped when asking to use the bathroom when they are at the gypsy camp and Elie was very surprised and shocked that he barely reacted at all. If he had been at home and this would have happened, Elie would have attacked the man who struck his father. But he had changed. Elie had seen too much and knew that if he resisted in any way, he would have been beaten down too. Elie was learning that to survive in this terrible place, you had to do your work and keep silent.

Reflection: Elie and his family have arrived at Birknaeu and eventually Auschwitz. He was separated from his mother and sisters and he had no idea that this would be the last time he ever saw them. Elie and his father walk towards the crematorium and almost believe that they are going to be burned, but the men in their convoy are turned away from the flames in the last second. This scarred Elie and later when his father is struck, he feels an immeasureable anger towards the Germans and knows he will never forgive them. Elie and his father also get a identification number tattooed on their left arms and he will be now be known as only a number. Elie talks in the book about how the barracks and the concentration camp changes him forever. He sees babies been thrown into fires, and women and their husbands burning in the flames. He wonders how humans could let this all happen? He wonders how no one stood up for them? Elie even begins to doubt his own faith. He doesn't think that if there was a God, that it would let something like this happen to his family.

Discussion Question: Why does Elie begin to doubt his own faith?

 



Night Litblog Pages 1-20

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-11-13

 

Pages 1-20

 

Summary: Elie Wiesel lives in Sighet, Transylvania. Elie is a Jew and as a boy he is learning about the Torah and his teacher is the poor Moishe the Beadle. Foreign jews are rounded up and forced to leave the town, and Moishe is forced to leave. He returns and tells Elie about how the Jews were forced to dig trenches and then murdered, and Moishe left to die. The Germans come to their town and slowly impose the yellow-star rule and place restrictions on the Jews. Soon, Elie and the rest of the village are sent to the small ghetto to wait to be sent to the secret destination.

Quotation: "That was when I began to hate them, and my hatred remains our only link today. They were our first oppressors. They were the first faces of hell and death "(19).

Quotation Significance: Elie and his family are being rounded up and forced to run to the small ghetto until their expulsion. When the men called them some "good-for-nothings" and brandished clubs at them, Elie began to hate them. This hatred for them never ends and is the only thing they have in common.

Reflection: Elie is a Jew and was being trained by Moishe. Moishe was the poor man of the town but he had taken Elie under his wing. Elie wanted to enter the world of mysticism, but his father claims he is too young. Everyone in the town talks about World War II and many of the townspeople believe that the Germans wouldn't come for them. They tried to talk themselves into believing that the Germans would only go so far as the main city and not into the small towns and country-side. But they were wrong. The townspeople lived in denial and believed that nothing would happen to them as long as they had hope and remained calm. But the Germans found them and now the Jews are being forced to go to a secret destination, most likely a concentration camp. The signs come early, the restritions on Jews, the yellow star, the building of the ghettos and many more things. Elie sees his dad cry for the first time when they leave their home and Elie feels the despair and shame of his family and friends as they are forced to leave their homes.

Discussion Question: Why did Elie's family choose not to escape before the Germans came? Where do you think the Germans will take them?



Fahrenheit 451 Litblog Pages 137-157

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-8-13

Pages 137-157

Summary: Montag ran towards the river and he turns on the seashell and hears the police suggesting the citizens to open their doors all at once and catch Montag. They count down, but Montag gets to the river before they see him. Montag floats down the river so the Hound can't smell him and he follows the train tracks until he meets a group of men.  The leader of the men is named Granger and Montag joins the group, and watches his fake "capture" on their mini tv. The men tell him that they memorize books so they can pass them on for generations.

Quotation: "The most important single thing we had to pound into ourselves is that we were not important, we mustn't be pendants; we were not to feel superior to anyone else in the world. We're nothing more than dust jackets for books, of no significance otherwise" (153).

Quotation Significance: These group of men that Montag meant read a book once, and then memorized it totally. They know that reading is illegal and this way they have the knowledge from books without the book itself. They can pass on the stories to their children and other people for generations. They are saying that just because they have a book memorized doesn't mean they are any better than anyone else or have divine knowledge. They are just preserving the book for others and nothing more.

Reflection: In this part of the book, Montag barely escapes the city and floats down the river, almost caught by the Hound and the helicopters. They turn around and Montag wonders why. I think that it is because this society moves so fast that they would have to spend hours looking for Montag in the river and they would rather stage a fake capture to keep the citizens happy. Later, Montag meets a group of men roasting around a campfire and they welcome him to their group. Many of them are professors and writers, and Montag feels that he doesn't entirely fit in with them. Granger tells him that his grandfather was a big inspiration for him. Montag's fake capture is shown on tv and Montag feels badly for the man who had to die, and who had done nothing to deserve it. The men have memorized great novels and they want to keep them to pass on to people. They have convinced themselves that they just relay the stories to people and they are not superior to anyone else.

Discussion Question: Why do you think the government fake "captures" Montag and not actually search the river and find him?





Fahrenheit 451 Litblog Pages 113-136

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-6-13

 

Pages 113-136

 

Summary: Montag is called in by Mildred and Mrs. Bowles (one of her friends he read the poem to) and the first stop of the night is his own house. Montag burns down his entire house with only a flame-thrower and when Beatty moves to arrest him and he discovers his ear piece, Montag points the flame-thrower at him and kills Beatty. The Hound then attacks him and stabs its needle into Montag's leg but he kills it with the flame-thrower in time. Montag runs from the scene and almost gets run over by a car and makes it to Faber's house, and finds out another Hound is after him. On the way, Montag plants some books in a fireman's house (Mr. Black's). Faber tells him to run to the river and follow it to the train tracks and travel with the hobo camps.

Quotation: "In the middle of the crying Montag knew it for the truth. Beatty had wanted to die. He had just stood there, not really trying to save himself, just stood there, joking, needling... How strange, strange, to want to die so much that you let a man walk around armed..." (122).

Quotation Significance: Montag now knows that Beatty had wanted to die and that was why Beatty had still insulted him while he had the flame-thrower in his hand. Beatty was basically asking for Montag to kill him.

Reflection: In this chapter, Montag is exposed for having books and is totally on the run. He killes Beatty and the Hound and is on his way to escape the city and eventually meet up with Faber in St. Louis. On the way to meet Faber, Montag planted books in Mr. Black's house, Mr. Black is a fireman and Montag is trying to plant a seed of doubt in the minds of the people and hopefully encourage them to overturn the system once they realize the men running it are hypocrites. The other firemen arrive and burn down Mr. Black's house. Montag feels terrible for killing Beatty but he soon realizes that Beatty had been asking to die. Beatty was provoking him while Montag had the flame-thrower pointed at him and Montag snapped and pulled the trigger, killing Beatty. Montag cries about it and feels extremely guilty about this. He also kills the Hound, and he has to limp away from the scene because the Hound injected a little of it's venom into him. He soon regains movement in his leg though and escapes.

Discussion Question: How is Beatty's death deeply affecting Montag? Do you think that Montag will still try and overthrow the society that he lives in?

 



Fahrenheit 451 Litblog Pages 81-110

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
3-5-13

Pages 81-110

Summary: Faber and Montag plan to plant books in the firemen's houses to make them look guilty and raise questioning. They will rally old professors, printers, and historians and start protesting at the end of the war. Faber gives Montag an earpiece so he can talk to him when he returns to work that night. Montag returns home and gets angry at Mildred and her friends, and reads them all a poem, horrifying the women. Montag returns to work and his book is burned and the first stop for the firemen is his house.

Quotation: "And you'll try to judge them and make your decisions as to which way to jump, or fall... But remember that the Captain belongs to the most dangerous enemy to truth and freedom, the solid unmoving cattle of the majority. We all have our harps to play. And now its up to you now to know with which ear you'll listen"(108).

Quotation Significance: Faber is saying this into Montag's earpiece. He wants Montag to make his own decision on which side he wants to be on but he wants Montag to know that Beatty represents the majority. The majority of people that believe in this fake happiness. He knows that everyone plays a part, and now it is Montag's turn to choose his side. 

Reflection: In this chapter, Montag is almost sure that he wants to overthrow the firemen and bring back books and the old ways. He goes to the professor Faber and they devise that plan. Montag becomes enraged at Mildred and her friends because they all only carry about the parlor. The women talk about how useless and annoying children are and Mildred and one of her friends refuses to have them entirely and the other one has had two children. In this society, abortion rates are high, and c-sections common. Children are thrown into school very earlier and only home 3 days of the month. The children and parents despise each other. This seems very wrong to me and gives me more of a understanding how twisted and sad this society is. Montag gets angry at the women and reads them a poem, making one of them cry. The women leave and Montag regrets what he did and rethinks his choice. When on a run later, the firemen all arrive at Montag's house and Montag is surprised.

Discussion Question: How do you think Beatty discovered that Montag had a collection of books?

Fahrenheit 451 Litblog Pages 51-63

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
2-28-13

Pages 51-63

Summary: Montag tells Mildred he no longer wants to be a firemen and he can't live with the guilt of making that woman die. Captain Beatty comes to his house and they talk. Mildred tries to fluff his pillow and Montag is afraid of the book being found that is hidden under his pillow. The captain doesn't find the book and he tells Montag how things slowly receded from chapter books and classics, to tabloids and commics, and then to no books at all. He tells Montag that he has read a few books, and they mean nothing to him. Beatty says that they put theories and philosophies in people's heads that make them unhappy.

Quotation:"Each man the image of every other; then all are happy, for there are no mountains to make them cower, to judge themselves against. So! A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it " (58).

Quotation Significance: Beatty is saying that if men are all the same, then nothing will put them down and no one can judge them or make fun of their differences. Beatty says that books puts these ideas that cause diversity in people's minds. This in turn creates tension and judgement in society. To prevent this, Beatty thinks that burning the book is the answer.

Reflection: In this chapter, Montag is seriously doubting being a firemen. He wants to read books and find out what they are about. Clarisse has taught him all the little and different things in life make life worth living. Beatty thinks that diversity causes judgment and tension but in reality diversity creates a feeling of uniqueness and happiness to be who you are. Books cause diversity, so Montag wants to bring them back so people and be creative and think for themselves for once. Montag still has the book hidden under his pillow and it is almost discovered by Mildred. Beatty mentions also that is wasn't all the government's fault that books were unpopular and forbidden. Classics and stories were replaced soon by comics and tabloids over the years and the movies were replaced with violent and quick, flashy images. Then reading totally disappeared and the government started to ban books that were judgmental to one group some way or another. After a few decades, all books were banned and the firemen were put to use to burn the books they found. I think next someone will catch Montag stealing a book and he will try to rally the firemen to stop burning the books and he will start a revolution.

Discussion Question: Why is diversity and uniqueness important for our world and important to Montag? Why does Beatty disagree with Montag's philosophy?

 





Fahrenheit 451 Litblog Pages 32-50

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
2-26-13

Pages 32-50

 

Summary: Clarisse disappears and Montag misses her a lot. They get an alert then travel to an old woman's house and Montag steals a book while the rest of the books burn. . The old woman picked up a match and started the fire herself while the men ran from the house. When he returns home, Montag realizes that he barely knows Mildred, she is a stranger to him. Then Montag cries because he realizes that he wouldn't cry if she died. Then Montag hears that Clarisse was run over by a car and killed. He hides the book under his pillow and calls in sick to work.

Quotation:"He was in someone else's house, like those other jokes people told of the gentleman, drunk, coming home late late at night, unlocking the wrong door, entering a wrong room, and bedding with a stranger and getting up early and going to work and neither of them the wiser" (42).

Quotation Significance: Montag is saying that he actually doesn't know Mildred and she feels weird and almost like a stranger to him. He feels like a drunk man who has no idea what he was doing and slept with someone he barely knows. This is how he feels about Mildred.

Reflection: In this section, Clarisse disappears! Montag is distraught about her disappearance and is deeply saddened when he learns that she died being run over by a car. Montag likes Clarisse and his routine has been upset. Clarisse taught him about the old ways and how to think and look at the little details in life that everyone else passes by. Clarisse was Montag's mentor and Montag now is realizing that he needs to do something to fix the messed up world that they live in. When the old woman died, Montag felt terrible and wishes he could take it back. This woman died so she could be with her books. Obviously, the books meant the world to her. Montag is wondering why this is and this is partly why he takes one of the books. We know that he has some hidden in the ventilation grille in his house, and he wants more books because he wants to understand the mystery about them. Montag is also starting to realize that he barely knows his wife Mildred, he can't even remember when they met. Montag thinks this is sad and cries when he finds that he wouldn't even cry if she died.

Discussion Question: Why do you think Mildred listens to the seashells? Do you think that Montag will do something to try and reverse the world they live in?

Fahrenheit 451 Litblog Pages 3-31

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
2-25-13

 

Pages 3-31 Litblog

 

Summary: Guy Montag is a fireman who instead of putting out fires, he lights them and burns books. On his way home one day he meets Clarisse McClellan, a 17 year old girl who isn't like everyone else. She tells him about how things used to be, and she liked to talk midnight walks and just think, she even asks him if he is happy. Montag thinks this girl is crazy. He comes home to find his wife Mildred has overdosed on sleeping pills. The doctors come and Mildred denies that she tried to commit suicide. At work, the "Hound" (a machine programmed to kill people) growls at Montag and people at the firehouse get suspicious because hidden in a ventilation grill in his house Montag hides books. He becomes friends with Clarisse and walks with her each day and learns from her.

Quotation: "He was not happy. He was not happy. He said the words to himself. He recognized this as the true state of affairs. He wore his happiness like a mask and the girl had run off across the lawn with the mask and there was no way of going to knock on her door and ask for it back" (12).

Quotation Significance: For a long time Montag thought that he was happy. He hadn't really thought about it but he knew that this had to be the case. But when he really thought about it he realized that he wasn't at all. This is part of the first steps for Montag to find his true happiness.

Reflection: As you can see, this society that Montag lives in is a very twisted and sad society. The fireman are assigned to burn books, and Montag is one of them. But we know that he is against this because we discover that he does in fact have some books hidden in his ventilation grill at his house. The Hound senses this, and because the Hound can't sense or do anything it isn't programmed to do leads Montag to believe that someone might know about the books or have suspicions about him. Because of this, the firechief becomes suspicious of Montag. Montag also meets Clarisse. Clarisse is known as an outcast, and also no longer attends school. All the schoolchildren murder each other and commit violent acts for fun. Underneath the fake "happy" feeling in this society that is enforced, everyone is sad and angry. Montag looks at things and thinks a bout things he never even noticed before when he is with Clarisse. She tells him how the world used to be and Montag realizes how bad the world is now and how it needs to change. I think next, Clarisse will disappear or die leaving Montag to start a revolution to end the terrible society they live in and reestablish the old ways.

Discussion Question: Why is the Hound suspicious of Montag, and who programmed the Hound to act this way? What do you think will happen Clarisse?





All Quiet on the Western Front Ch. 10 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
2-6-13

Chapter 10

 

Summary: The boys are sent to guard a supply dump at a vacant village nearby and they take the chance to live luxuriously by bringing in beds, adopting a cat, and making a feast but they are bombed once because the enemy sees their smoke. They leave taking the supplies and cat with them and while evacuating another village Kropp and Paul are injured by a shell. Paul's leg is broken and Kropp's leg has to be amputated at the thigh but he survives. An injured man named Lewandowski is excited when his wife arrives and the boys help arrange private time for him and his wife he has been separated from for two years. Paul receives leave to go home and visits his mom, who is very weak.

Quotation: "What do they expect of us if a time ever comes when the war is over? Through the years our business has been killing;- it was our first calling in life Our knowledge of life is limited to death. What will happen afterwards? And what shall come out of us?" (264).

Quotation Significance: Paul is telling us that he doesn't know what he would do if the war was over. He has no plans when all he knows of life and living is death itself. He has no idea what will happen to him afterwards.

Reflection: The boys guard a supply dump and they live luxuriously for a few weeks. Amid all the dying and the terror they wanted to pretend and reassure themselves that life can still be good. They adopt a cat, roast pigs, and make feasts. They even get blankets and sleep in soft beds. But then Kropp gets injured and once his leg is amputated Kropp loses all the fight in him and Paul knows that he wants to commit suicide. He won't talk and he must feel useless now. All he knew how to do was be a soldier and now this is ending for him. His whole life is gone and he doesn't know where to go next or how to deal with it. Paul feels badly for him but Paul is ready to go back into battle after his broken leg heals up quickly along with his broken arm. Paul even visits his mom, who is even weaker than before. She is dying from cancer and Paul is trying to find a way to deal with it. The boys also want to help Lewandowski reconnect and spend intimiate time with his wife because the boys want the same thing for themselves someday so they distract the nurses and talk loudly so the man and his wife can have privacy.

Discussion Question: Why is Kropp so upset about his leg being amputated? How is Paul dealing with his thoughts about war and why it should end?



All Quiet On The Western Front Ch. 9 Litlbog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
2-5-13

Chapter 9

Summary: Paul returns to the front and finds that Kat, Muller, Tjaden, and Kropp are all alive and well. The emperor of Germany comes to visit them and after he leaves Paul volunteers to go out in the open and gather info about the enemy's strength. On the way back Paul gets lost and hears an attack coming and he has to crawl in a shell hole to play dead. An enemy soldier comes in and Paul kills him. Paul has to wait in the hole because it is too light and talks and treats to the dying soldier, whose name is Gerard Duval. Paul reads him letters from his family and promises to send the family money. Paul returns and tells the boys about killing the man.

Quotation: "But now, for the first time, I see you are a man like me...Why do they never tell us that you are poor devils like us, that your mothers are just as anxious as ours, and that we have the same fear of death, and the same dying and the same agony-Forgive me, comrade; how could you be my enemy?"(223).

Quotation Significance: Paul has stabbed an enemy soldier and for the real first time he knows that this man isn't his enemy and as he is dying Paul makes promises to him and tries to ease his pain. Paul now recognizes that this man has the same hopes and fears as him. He refuses to believe that this man is his enemy.

Reflection: Paul feels terrible for killing that soldier and this guilt is eating him alive. He refuses to now believe that the men they are shooting are their enemies and he now only wants peace. This was the first man that Paul kills in hand-to-hand combat and this is hard for him to swallow. He finds that the name of the man is Gerard Duval and he has a wife and a child. Paul feels horrible knowing that this family will be cut off from a loving father and money so Paul promises to write to his wife and send her money. But Paul knows he won't be able to keep this promise. Paul realizes that this man has the same fears and hopes as him and that he is only trying to survive.

Discussion Question:

 







All Quiet On The Western Front Ch. 8 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
2-5-13

Chapter 8

Summary: Pauk arrives at the training camp and Russian prisoners are starving and picking through the garbage and Paul doesn't see an enemy in them.  Paul gives them cigarettes and one plays the violin by the fence for Paul. Paul visits his sister and father before returning to the front and gives the prisoners two of the cakes his mother made for him.

Quotation: "It is strange to see these enemies of ours so close up. They have faces that make one think- honest peasant faces, broad foreheads, broad noses, broad mouths, broad hands, and thick hair "(190).

Quotation Significance: Paul is saying that he sees his comrades in these "enemies" of his. He knows that some people powerful people made them his "enemies" but he can't see it. All he sees is a normal man and he doesn't know why he is fighting these men who are just like him.

Reflection: Paul arrives at training camp in this chapter and his sister and father come to visit. It seems like Paul has a hard time connecting with his family and it sounds awkward for him and his family. His family is going through a rough time because his mother has cancer and Paul doesn't know how to respond to it. So this just makes an awkward and sad time between Paul and his family and he feels more comfortable around his friends because they understand the horrors of war and what he is going through. Paul is also distraught because of the Russian prisoners. Paul doesn't see the enemy in the poor peasants digging through scraps of food and he gives them some cakes and cigarettes. Paul knows that men with power have made him and these prisoners enemies but he doesn't see why he is willing to fight a man who is just like him.

Discussion Question: Why is it so hard for Paul to connect with his family?

All Quiet on the Western Front Ch. 5-6 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
2-1-13

Chapters 5-6

 

Summary:  Himmelstoss is sent to the front as a punishment for tormenting recruits. Himmelstoss comes over and orders Tjaden to stand but Tjaden moons him. The boys talk about what they will do after the war. Authorities come looking for Tjaden but the boys wont give him up. Tjaden and Kropp are put on trial for insuboridination and they receive light punishments because of the way  Himmelstoss treated them and Himmelstoss gets talked to about his behavior.  Tjaden receives three days of arrest and Kropp gets one.  The boys then go back to the farmhouse and kill the geese and eat it. In chapter 6, the Second Company return to the front two days early. Men wait and receive food and ammunition.  Days pass and then the bombs begin to fall, and a recruit cracks and tries to leave so Kat and Paul have to beat him into submission.  The dugout receives a direct hit, and a recruit escapes. The shelling lessons and the attack comes.  The company fights ferociously and wreak havoc before grabbing all the provisions they can carry and run back to rest. Paul keeps watch and days pass and many are dead and wounded. Paul runs into Himmelstoss pretending to be wounded. They rush forward with an attack and Haie receives a fatal wound. In the end only 32 of the 150 men remain.

Quotation: “We have become wild beasts. We do not fight, we defend ourselves against annihilation. It is not against men that we fling our bombs, what do we know of men in this moment when Death is hunting us down- now, for the first time in three days we can see his face, now for the first time in three days we can oppose him; we feel a mad anger” (113).

Quotation Significance: Paul and the men are just about to fight after days of waiting and Paul is saying that he is not fighting against these men, he is just running from death. The men attack each other but Death is the real enemy, not the men themselves.

Reflection: In this chapter, Paul and the men return to the front. In this section of the book we begin to see more of how Paul is an experienced soldier who knows what he is doing on the battle field. The men are reinforced with recruits who are barely trained and drop like flies. Haie receives a fatal wound and only 32 of the 150 men die. Paul begins to reflect how Death is the real enemy in this war, not the men fighting against them. On watch, Paul has daydreams of being in a cathedral and talks about how this memories are strange and move him. The men are tired and in chapter 5 they talk about how they don’t know what they are going to do after the war. Kat has a wife and children, but most talk of getting drunk and being with women but Paul doesn’t know how to answer this question. He knows that the war has become his whole life and he doesn’t know where he will go after the war is over.  In chapter 5, Tjaden also moons Himmelstoss and gets three days of jail time. But after considering what he did to Tjaden the judge goes easy on him and if I was Tjaden I wouldn’t show Himmelstoss too much respect but it seems like the boys and Tjaden keep punishing Himmelstoss. They did it once (where they beat him senseless) but now they are doing reckless things to keep punishing him. It seems like they are almost punishing Himmelstoss for making them into monsters and someone they didn’t want to be.

Discussion Question:  Why do you think the boys keep punishing Himmelstoss?

 

 





All Quiet on the Western Front Ch. 3-4 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
1-30-13

Chapters 3 and 4

 

Summary: A group of new recruits arrive to reinforce the company and many of the reruits are only 17. Kat gives food to a recruit in exchange for tobacco. Tjaden reports that Himmelstoss is joining them on the frontlines. The boys took revenge on Himmelstoss and when he arrived at the camp they ambushed him and covered him with a sheet so he couldn't recognize the boys and they beat him senseless. In chapter 4, the Second Company must lay a barbed wire at the front, a very dangerous job.They are bombarded that night while waiting for the trucks and Paul helps a quivering recruit with his helmet as they scramble for cover. When the trucks arrive, bombs fly through the air around them and they take cover in a graveyard. The shelling stops and the recruit from earlier that day who Paul helped is now badly injured and will die.

Quotation: "That evening's work made us more or less content to leave the next morning. And an old buffer was pleased to describe us as 'young heroes'" (50).

Quotation Significance: The boys are angry at Himmelstoss for all the horrors he has put him through but they do recognize that what he has done to toughen them up has worked. The boys wanted revenge on Himmelstoss and they are a little ashamed and they being trained for the war has made them into monsters and the whole point was to become "young heroes" but now they see themselves as anything but heroes.

Reflection: After the boy's beat up Himmelstoss they are sent the next day with the recruits to put up the barbed wire in the ditches, which is very dangerous. They are shelled and bombarded and at the end of the day a recruit is dead. Kat considers putting the boy out of his misery before everything gets much worse for him and he would eventually die. Paul agrees but other soldiers arrive and it is too late for the boys to anything for the recruit. Paul feels badly for the boy and doesn't thing that it is fair that he will have to suffer for a few more days before he dies. In chapter 3, the boys are talking and they say that under all the manners and customs that men are beasts. Kat says that once men get a little power they can change and they let this power rule them. This is how Himmelstoss was and the boys are now starting to recognize it. I think next the boys will go back on the front and Paul will learn more lessons about life and death when one of his close friends dies.

Discussion Question: How do you feel about the idea of men being beasts underneath their manners and customs? Does war bring out this beast in them? Is this relatable to the "essential illness" of man in Lord of the Flies?

 





All Quiet on the Western Front- Ch. 1-2 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
1-28-13

Chapters 1 and 2

Summary: Paul Baumer and the other members of his Second Company during WW1 are resting after being relieved from the front lines, after two weeks in constant battle. Paul, Leer, Muller, and Kropp are all 19. Out of 150 mean, only 80 made it back. Katczinsky is the unofficial leader of their group which also includes Tjaden, Westhus, and Detering. Kemmerich, a member in the Second company is in the hospital with a thigh wound. Paul remembers their teacher, Kantorek, the man who pressured them into joining the army and now the men despise him. The men see Kemmerich and know that he will not live long and his leg was amputated. In chapter 2,  Paul remembers being a kid and writing poetry. Paul realizes that he has nothing to return to after the war and it has become his whole life. Corporal Himmelstoss, trained Paul's platoon. He always enjoyed humiliated Paul and his friends. This toughness Himmelstoss gave them helped the boys in battle. Kemmerich is near death and gives Muller his boots and he later dies.

Quotation: "My feet begin to move forward in my boots, I go quicker, I run... The earth is streaming with forces which pour through the soles of my feet... The night cracks electrically... The night lives, I live. I feel a hunger, greater than comes from the belly alone" (33).

Quotation Significance: Paul runs out of the hospital after Kemmerich's death. I think here he is describing the feeling of loss and sadness for his friend, yet he feels powerful that it wasn't him who died on the battlefield. He feels powerful and strong that he is defeated death for the time being and is remembering the joys of life and how special life really is.

Reflection: In this story, Paul and his friends are fighting on the frontlines of World War 1. Their teacher encouraged them to volunteer and made war seem like somthing heroic and good. But the boys are realizing how war is a terrible thing that is the most un-heroic thing that they can imagine. They now despise their teacher for encouraging do something where they will most likely die. Kemmerich dies and this helps Paul remember girls and meadows, some of the greater happiness and joys in life. Kemmerich's death helps Paul feel special and lucky that he is alive. It helps him see the joy in life and that maybe he has something to go back to once he reaches home. But it is hard for Paul and his friends to realize this because they are so young and they haven't had time to build families like the older men have. Paul is worried that once he reaches the U.S. again he will find that he has no where to go back to.

Discussion Question: How do you think that Paul is handling Kemmerich's death?





Lord of the Flies Ch. 12 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
1-22-13

Chapter 12

 

Summary: Ralph lays in the covert and sneaks up Castle Rock to talk to Samneric. They give him meat and tell him that the tribe is planning to hunt him tomorrow. Ralph finds the pig's head and smashes it. Ralph decides to hide in the thicket by the Rock and tells Samneric to keep the tribe away from it. The next day, Samneric are forced to give him up and a rock is launched at Ralph and the thicket set on fire. Ralph runs and hides again in Simon's old hiding spot and is discovered and runs until he gets back to the beach where he and the other boys find an officer with a ship and the boys are rescued.

Quotation: "... otherwise the thing was lifeless. Or was it?... Little pricks of sensation ran up and down his back... The skull regarded Ralph like one who knows all the answers and won't tell..." (185).

Quotation Significance: Ralph finds the pig's head and feels like it is almost alive and feels like the skull has answers that it won't tell him. Ralph senses something weird about the pig's head and smashes it. This is maybe symbolic of savagery starting to be broken from the boys and is symbolizing their return to society.

Reflection: This final chapter of Lord of the Flies was really good. Samneric start off on Ralph's side but they are heard by a tribe member and Roger and Jack force them to give Ralph up. Samneric and Ralph are the only ones on the island with any inkling of society left. Ralph outsmarts the boys and in the end the boys are rescued. The savagery is broken in them when the pig's head is smashed by Ralph, which helped to rid the beast in side of them and also when they lay eyes on the officer. After they run into the officer the boys start to cry. When the pig's head is smashed, the feeling of savagery leaves the boys and they are starting to replace this feeling with being civil. Even Jack feels this and accepts the rules of society at the end of the story. Overall, this was a terrific book I would recommend for anyone and I will definitely read it again.

Discussion Question: Do you think that the breaking of the pig's head was symbolic? Do you think that the boys will re-adjust easily to civilization?

 





Lord of the Flies Chapter 9 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
1-17-13

Chapter 9

 

Summary: Simon goes to the top of the mountain and finds the dead parachutist everyone thought was the beast. The boys all come together and have a feast. Tension between Jack and Ralph develops and it starts to rain, and the boys play a game where Roger pretends to be a pig and they chant. Simon comes by to tell them about the dead parachutist and the boys are excited in their game of hunting the beast that they attack and kill Simon. His body then begins to drift out to the open sea.

Quotation: "At once the crowd surged after it, poured down the rock, leapt on to the beast, screamed, struck, bit, tore. There were no words, and no movements but the tearing of teeth and claws... Even in the rain they could see how small a beast it was; and already its blood was staining the sand" (153).

Quotation Significance: The boys become caught up in their hunting game and they basically pretend Simon is the beast in the heat of the moment and their lust for blood and flesh is so strong they don't even pause to realize that Simon isn't the beast.

Reflection: In chapter 9, Simon is killed. He comes down to the feast to tell them about the dead parachutist but they get caught up in their weird chanting game and they basically kill Simon. They were so eager for blood they killed the first thing they laid eyes on, unfortunately this was Simon. The boys are now totally lost from the rules and inklings of society they had held on to. Even Ralph and Piggy. It is easy to see that high tensions are forming between Ralph and Jack. Jack has almost all the biguns now. Including Samneric and Bill. Now Ralph has only Piggy and the littluns. Jack is treated like a king and doesn't care about being rescued because all he wants is power. Now that Simon is dead they have no idea about the dead parachutist and it floats down the mountain that night and scares the boys away. I think that next there will be lots of fighting between Ralph and Jack's tribe until eventually kill everyone on the island.

Discussion Question: Do you think that Simon's death bothered any of the boys? Do you think that Ralph and Jack's tribe will all fight to the death?

 





Lord of the Flies Ch. 8 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
1-15-13

Chapter 8

 

Summary: Jack becomes upset and deserts Ralph and some of the other boys follow him. Piggy comes up with the idea to make the signal fire down at camp. Jack and some hunters go on an afternoon hunt for a pig, steal some fire and invite Ralph and his boys to come have a feast with them. Simon finds the pig head on the stick and has a conversation with the Lord of the Flies. Simon learns that the Beast is inside him, and it can never be defeated. Then, Simon faints.

Quotation: "Fancy thinking the Beast was something  you could hunt and kill!... You knew didn't you? I'm part of you? Close, close, close! I'm the reason why it's no go? Why things are what they are?" (143).

Quotation Significance: Ralph sees a vision where the pig's head is talking to him and he names it the Lord of the Flies. The pig's head tells him that the Beast is inside him and that this is why things are getting bad and this is man's essential illness.

Reflection: This chapter is one of the best chapters yet! Jack leaves the tribe along with Henry, Robert, Roger, and Maurice. The boys hunt and invite Ralph and his boys to a feast. I think that Jack and his tribe will hurt, threaten, or even kill members of Ralph's pack. Jack and his followers are turning into a savage pack of animals and are forgetting all the rules of society and civilization. Ralph still sets the rescue fire as the number one priority, which is a main reason why Jack leaves. He calls Ralph a coward and leaves because the rest of the boys don't vote him to be chief instead of Ralph. Ralph still has his heart set on being rescued and hasn't yet lost all the rules of society and he is trying to hang on to them but this isn't working. Simon has a weird encounter with almost himself. He meets the Lord of the Flies (the pig's head) and it tells him that he is the Beast and that this is why everything it going wrong. It just basically means that the essential illness of man is taking over all of the boys slowly and it is why they are attacking each other. I'm guessing the illness is power. Power has corrupted Jack and his little taste of it while being in charge of the choir boys is making him want more, he wants Ralph's power. Ralph is the chief and he is the only one with more power than Jack so when Jack doesn't get what he wants, Jack leaves. Simon is starting to realize what is happening to the boys on the island but isn't making a move to stop it at all.

Discussion Question: Do you think the boys are suffering from man's essential illness? Do you think that Jack and the hunters will hurt or kill Ralph's tribe?





Lord of the Flies Ch. 7 Litblog

Mary Ann MacDonald
Period 5
1-14-13

Chapter 7

 

Summary: The boys find a pig-run and go hunting and Ralph hits a boar in the snout with a spear but then it runs off. The boys then play a game and pretend Robert is the pig and then decide to climb to the top of the mountain. Simon goes back to camp to tell Piggy the boys will be returning after dark. They take a pig-run through the forest to reach the top of the mountain and Jack, Ralph, and Roger  go ahead to climb the mountain and Jack spots something on the mountain top. They get closer and spot a creature bobbing up and down with the wind.

Quotation: "Ralph too was fighting to get near, to get a handful of that brown, vulnerable flesh. The desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering" (115).

Quotation Significance: The boys are having a tough time curbing their urge to become savage and to kill things. This even happens when they are playing with their friend Robert. They bash him with the butt of their spears and brandish knives at him. They were getting close to actually deciding to kill Robert. Even Ralph expresses his urge to kill Robert.

Reflection: The boys are starting to fins more of an urge to kill and are having a hard time dealing with it. This can be seen when they are playing with Robert and pretending he is a pig. A few chapters back, one of the boys throws rocks at a littun. The boys are getting more and more savage and will most likely kill each other in the end. Even Ralph feels an urge to kill Robert and Jack brandishes his knife at Robert. The boys decide to climb the mountain to look for the beast and Jack accuses Ralph repeatedly for being scared and Ralph doesn't want to be seen as a sissy to Roger and Ralph go along with Jack to see if they can find the beast. They see a figure at the end of the chapter but it is really most likely the dead parachutist that flew in the night before. The wind causes the parachutist to move up and down with the wind. The boys are making a huge deal out of nothing and they are letting their imaginations and their fear get to them. Ralph is starting to hate Jack and I think eventually they will fight over who gets to be chief.

Discussion Question: Do you think that eventually the boys will start to kill each other? Do you think that a beast is on the island?