Comparisons of Different Times

How do people change? Do they change through experience? Do they change by advice? Whatever the reason, characters in books develop differently such as Huckleberry Finn, in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and Guy Montag, in Fahrenheit 451.

            Huckleberry Finn started off as a low class, typical, southern boy in the 1800’s with a drunken dad, and a widow who was trying to “reform” him. His father then took him to his cottage in southern Illinois, where he was locked up. After Huckleberry escaped, his views began to change thanks to Jim, a runaway slave who he was friends with before he left for his father’s cabin. He begins to realize that slavery isn’t right and figures that sometimes you have to go upstream and against the flow. It’s the same thing with Guy Montag from Fahrenheit 451.

            Guy Montag is a fireman in the future, except his job isn’t to put out fires, it’s to start them. He’s always enjoyed going on midnight raids, burning houses, watching the dancing flames consume the house, but it isn’t until he meets a teenage girl named Clarisse that he learns that sometimes, you need to stop and think. He begins to try this and it helps him throughout his chaotic life.

Fahrenheit 451 Quote

A book lit, almost obediently, like a white pigeon, in his hands, wings fluttering.

What was Ray Bradbury trying to represent in this sentence? I think the point he was trying to get across is that books will come at the most unexpected time in a form so innocent you have to pick them up and read. Also it softens the up the setting in which this is taking place. The setting is in a house that’s being ready to be burned.

The Flood

     Days of rain had swelled the river, floods threatened to break loose over the dam. People in the village below looked in fear at it. This dam had been there since the 16th century and had never broken. That was about to change.

     It happened at approximately 3 PM on a Saturday. Rain had been falling for 5 days straight now. Reports of mudslides from other towns had come in, but we were below where they were occurring.  People fled our town in the valley and moved to higher ground. I along with some other people stayed and watched.  I was eating an apple on my front porch,  looking at the mountains so majestic, like rocky spires protruding in to the heavens while listening to the pitter-patter of rain on the ground. Then, a loud rumble, almost like thunder, disturbed me from this amazing scenery I looked up for the dam. It was gone. All I saw was the torrent of water careening down the mountainside. My instinct reaction was to run inside but I didn't want to drown so I decided to run to the mountain opposite from the other one. I was joined by others and we ran to a near by hill. We got there just as the water reached the base of the mountain. We watched the flow of water pulverize houses and swallow the trees and vegetation.
  
     When the water receded, all that was left was the natural landscape and little pools formed in the foundations of houses. That event changed my life forever. The looks on peoples faces. Looks of awe and sadness. This changed my thinking on where to live.

Comparitive Essay

     Where would you prefer to be, on a raft floating down the Mississippi River with your friend and two strangers, or in the midst of war, uncertain of the fate of your companion? These examples are from “The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn”, by Mark Twain and “The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the Nation Kingdom on the Waves”, by M.T. Anderson.  Both books are not even close to being the same but have the characters Jim, from Mark Twain’s book and Dr. Trefusis, from M.T. Anderson’s book, have roles in the book that are similar.

            One of the first similarities between these two characters is that they both help the main character along in their journey by giving them advice. Dr. Trefusis uses philosophy and fables to answer Octavian’s questions. One example of that is when Dr. Trefusis talks about self-love to Octavian. He relates a fable to that answer. Jim always provides Huckleberry Finn with wisdom and guidance from past experiences.   
     Another reason why these characters are similar is that they both are separated for a while. When Octavian is registering for the British Army, he does not know where Dr. Trefusis is. Also Jim loses track of Huckleberry Finn when their raft is crushed by steamboat. In both books after they were separated, the characters each other again, but each character still has their differences.

            One of the big reasons why they’re different is because the time periods are decades apart. Jim is a Pre-Civil War slave and Dr. Trefusis is a free-man in the Revolutionary War colonies. The Revolutionary War was a fight for independence while the Civil War was just pure bickering about whether slavery should be abolished. Jim’s point of view would be different from the view Dr. Trefusis because of their social status and their values. Jim is very religious when it comes to giving wisdom and rejoicing. Dr. Trefusis just chooses not to mention God at all and denounces that He exists. If these two characters met, they would be fighting like an old couple.

            These two characters may have identical roles in each book, but their values and personalities are like hot and cold.

The List

     It's election day in Johnson County. People from all over the county are lining up at the town hall to vote for the new Mayor of Pagawaukonomowoc.Just a few blocks away in the city square, the candidates are giving speeches of what their plans are for the city if they're elected. John Faccini, the current mayor who's about to be replaced, has just finished giving his "farewell" speech. He shakes the hand of Ron Omalley, who's a candidate,  as he walks up to give a speech. People are cheering and applauding when he steps up to the podium. He begins his speech and when he's about halfway done with his speech, he collapses as shots ring out throughout the air. The crowd screams and ducks at the sound. All the while, a person chuckles on top of a building surveying the scene as an empty 7.62 mm shell hits the ground.
To be continued.................

What Does “The Outsiders” Mean?

What does the term “outsider” mean? Does it describe someone who is different and goes above and beyond, or is it someone who watches from a distance, pushed aside by the population and forgotten. In the book, “The Outsiders” by S.E. Hinton, this term is clearly visualized. An outsider is a person, who is not accepted by society or does not belong to a particular group. There are several examples that depict this in the book, “The Outsiders.”

The story is told by Ponyboy, the main character in the book, who is a Greaser. There are three classes of kids in the city, the wealthy “Socs,” the middle class, and the poor “Greasers.” Because of the discrimination and bullying from the “Socs,” Ponyboy writes a paper for his class assignment to help the “Socs” have an understanding of who the “Greasers” are. There has been a long rivalry of hatred, mistrust, violence and jealousy among the “Greasers” and the “Socs.”

In the beginning of the book, Ponyboy is” jumped” by a group “Socs,” when he was walking back from the movies. Jealousy towards the “Greasers” had been translated to physical violence by the “Socs.” The conflict is complicated when Ponyboy and his friend, Johnny, befriend some “Soc” girls. These girls, however, did not discriminate the “Greaser” boys. Jealousy is pronounced, when a car full of “Soc” boys witness Ponyboy and Johnny walking their “Soc” girlfriends home. They are enraged with jealousy and hatred. Both the “Greasers” and the “Socs” had fear of the unknown, which affirmed their negative perceptions of each other. This resulted from bad experiences with each other. The Greasers envied the money and the wealth of the “Socs.” Meanwhile, the Socs wished they could have the true emotional expressions and genuine friendships that the Greasers have. Because of these assets, the Greasers could fully enjoy life without having wealth.

There are examples of this even in our community. A setting in the book similar to “The Outsiders” is Milwaukee. There is the poorer section of town, known as the Central City. An example of a middle class area is the suburbs of Milwaukee. River Hills is one of the wealthier areas in the city of Milwaukee. These different groups of people have disparate lives, which can lead to jealousy and hatred. People in River Hills may be jealous of true friendships while the poor people in the inner city envy luxury.

When the common denominator is the unknown, we tend to discriminate and judge people, whether it is for better or for worse. In real life or fiction, discrimination and jealousy should be avoided...but they still occur.

Nothing Gold Can Stay

That is an example in Ponyboy's life. Both of his parents died and he's stuck with his mean brother. The phrase really means that some good things eventually go away.