What do you think I am?

A giddy excited child hops up to me and inserts the shiny disc, and puts his hand on the joystick. As the cheesy music turns on, I jiggle around the upper half of the machine, looking into the depths of stuffed animals' eyes. The kid walks around the contraption excitedly trying to get the best angle and then with one final look, presses the button and watches me fall down and down and down. When I get to the end of my reach, I close my grip and start to ascend. When I pop out of the jumble a brown teddy bear is in my grasp. I return to my starting position and let go of the child's new possession. Boy, does he look happy that he has mastered my game. What do you think I am?

You Win, and You're Dead

Author's Note: This is a short response on the story "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson and its symbolism.

In the short story, "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson has many items that symbolize what is happening and what is going to happen at the end of the story. For example the box in which the heads of the families pick out of is black which is the common symbol for death or evil. This story definitely has an ending with death when Mrs. Tessie is unluckily chosen to be stoned  to death by her family and friends.

There are also some other symbolic items that lead to this ironic ending.

When Tessie was finally chosen for her doom, her friend Mrs.Doucroix picked up the biggest rock she could find which symbolized friendship and humanity because she wanted her friend to die quickly with the least pain possible. Some other items in "The Lottery" that symbolizes death are the black-spotted ticket and the rocks. Finally, the last symbolic item is the lottery itself which represents tradition. Overall the symbolic items in "The Lottery" represented death and evilness.

The Totalitarian Country

Just imagine, having telescreens in your flat or home, watching your every move. Think about having to work and live with the worry that a bombshell could land on you at any moment. Finally, dream about the fact that if you have even one bad thought against your country, you will be caught and then vaporized by the Thought Police, never to be heard or seen of again. This is what life is like for the citizens of Oceania with their totalitarian run government in the book 1984 by George Orwell. The comrades (or at least that’s what they call each other) are overrun by their government and live in a world with little supplies and the likelihood that someone could betray you any second. Although there are many quotes in this confusing but intelligently written book, I chose a few that were especially expressive regarding the ideals of The Party (what Oceania calls their government) such as the rules of the country and the citizens' privileges.

The quote “BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU” (Part 1, chapter 1, page 3) is on the Ingsoc (stands for English Socialism) posters in every alleyway, street, and home in the whole country of Oceania. Big Brother is the man who every citizen loves because he knows all and lives forever. I think that the posters relate to the telescreens which are in every room in every home. These cameras watch the citizens to make sure that they aren't doing anything that would be unfaithful to Big Brother. I also think that this quote relates to the overall tone and theme of the story because the comrades of this dreadful place had no freedom whatsoever to do whatever they wanted without the pesky eyes of the Thought Police starring them down.

The next quote is “WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH" (found throughout the whole book). This is the Party’s saying which can be found in places like Oceania currency, The Two Minutes of Hate, and again on the Ingsoc posters. The Two Minutes of Hate is a time each day when the citizens watch a video about all of the people they hate, especially a man named Goldstien. Anyways, war in this country is actually peace because without the wars, there wouldn’t be the alliances with the other country (Either Eurasia or Eastasia) ending the overall system of trading for goods. This saying also represents Oceana's indoctrinate leader's passion for everlasting war, slavery, and ignorance which is all a main theme and mood of the story.

Furthermore, the excerpt “Syme was not only dead, he was abolished, an unperson” (Part 2, chapter 6) clearly states what the government could do to you if you thought badly of Big Brother or Oceania. Syme was an intelligent, outgoing man who worked with the main character Winston Smith in the Ministry of Truth. Like Winston, he was starting to challenge and defy Ingsoc so when the Thought Police caught on, he disappeared. Syme was wiped away from the records and any newspaper article he was in, making it as though he never existed. This quote relates to the story because it shows how capable and irksome the authorities were in the dictatorship country.

Pursuing this one step further, the quote “The past was dead, the future was unimaginable" (Part 1, chapter 2) connects to Winston’s job at the Ministry of Truth. Winston is responsible for changing any palimpsests (untrue pieces of writing)and making them true by making up stories with a lot of factual support. For example, during the story, the country of Oceania was at war with Eurasia but suddenly switched and went to battle with Eastasia. So Winston and all of the workers at the Ministry of Truth spent six days going through articles and newspapers switching the facts from war with Eurasia to war with Eastasia. This made all of the comrades think that they were always at war with Eastasia and never at war with Eurasia. This example blends perfectly with the quote because the past is untrue or dead and the future is imaginable by the minds and imaginations of the workers at the Ministry of Truth.

The mood and theme, the law of the country, and the privileges of the comrades are specifically defined by the previous quotes of the novel 1984 by George Orwell. This book really makes me appreciate the government and society that the United States has. No ignorance, no slavery, not always wars, a peaceful existence and mp creepy telescreens. The overall meaning of 1984 was not just to show us what life was like in an alternate universe, but to teach us that a productive and free society cannot help but be luxurious and self-governing. 

You Look at Me, and See Nothing Back

I have been through years and years,

But the spot you are looking at is the only fault.

You look at me,

But you see nothing back.

You have no idea what history and what people I have seen,

But all those people just see me as an oxidized crack.

You look at me,

But you see nothing back.

I have built up rust and dust,

But that doesn't matter because I am still just a crack.

You look at me,

But you see nothing back.

A big shiny mirror,

Isn't so shiny with a dark mysterious indent.

You look at me,

But you see nothing back.

People look at themselves in the mirror,

But when they try to see something through me they can never see themselves.

You look at me,

And see nothing back.

The point of view of this piece is important in the crack on the window because if it weren't, there wouldn't be any of the adjectives about the crack. If it were written in the point of view of a person looking at the crack, there wouldn't be more then a mere sentence about the crack. 

An Autobiography of Gabe Hall

 Authors Note: This piece is an autobiography and the purpose for writing is to complete one of my goals for Language Arts class.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! I wake up at 6:00 in the morning every single weekday for the whole school year. Then I get ready, eat breakfast, and get on the bus. By 7:15, I start a 7 hour 15 minute long day. By the time I get home, I eat a snack, and then am whisked away to a sports practice. Finally, I get home eat dinner, and then go to bed. You have just gone through a day in the life of Gabriel Patrick Hall.

I was born on August 29^th, 1997 in an Elmbrook Hospital and I have lived in Pewaukee, WI all of my life. I am tall, have blonde hair, and blue eyes. My Mom, Step-dad John, Brother Sam, Sister Megan, my dog Rufus, and I all live under one roof. The other part of my family, my Dad’s, all live in SC and I only get to see every once in a while. Since Kindergarten, I have been going to the Pewaukee School District and have loved every second of it. I am very happy with the life that I have and I am almost positive that it will get better!

During my lifetime, I have played many sports. But, after eight years, I have narrowed it down to soccer and basketball. In soccer, my favorite position is goalie and in basketball, my favorite position is shooting guard. I am also the president of my school’s student council and am a trumpet player in band. I really love leading this school with fresh ideas and leadership skills!

As I have stated before I have been in the Pewaukee School District for 8 years, I have liked it so much because I am really smart. Although I am good at all subjects, my favorite is math. I don’t know how I am so good at it but I can solve so many different types of problems like the volume of an apple. Speaking of food, I have a huge variety of foods that I like and I will eat almost anything. My favorite foods are sushi and bacon. It really takes acquired taste buds to like those types of foods.

So far, old my life has been ecstatically wonderful as a fourteen year. I have had such a great time with the life my dad and mom have provided for me. I really enjoy doing all of the things that makes me, me. With Sports, Student Council, and school you can’t get any better. Hopefully though, my future will be even better!!!

Mitosis: The Cause of Cancer

Author’s Note: This piece is a research paper about the relationship of mitosis and cancer and I am writing this for my language arts and my science class.

Did you know that fifteen hundred people die of cancer each year? This means that four people are dying every day from cancer. Since 2008, cancer has accounted for one in every four deaths. Finally, cancer is the most common cause of death in the U.S. Obviously; cancer is not a good thing to have and all of that is due to the process of cell division or mitosis.

            

Mitosis is the usual method of cell division where two cells are resulted from another (dictionary.com).
Cancer is a disease caused by an uncontrolled division of abnormal cells. You can definitely see how mitosis is related to cancer in a very large way. 

            

During cell division, gaining or losing a chromosome or DNA mutation can lead to an abnormal cell and then cancer. A chromosome is attained or lost when mitosis is not acting naturally- the common ‘rest stops’ for cells are not acknowledged or taken over by a cancer cell (Biology). DNA mutation happens when the nucleus transforms into something abnormal. The process of mitosis and the deadly disease of cancer are very relatable because cancer is created during cell division.

             

Even though the daunting process of cancer is hard to find a cure for, doctors around the world are still making their best efforts to find a solution. In the year 2010, a college professor discovered proteins that have a big influence on how cancer cells are created during mitosis (University). This was one of the first big steps into the beginning of a cure. Next, in 2011, a doctor found out that the malfunction of mitosis by anti mitotic drugs can cause mitosis failure (Orth). This is another huge step in figuring out what influences cancer. Finally, in our current year, a scientist named Kiyomitsu figured out that the nuclear protein Ran blocks the important LGN protein and therefore dynein, from attaching to the cell membrane closest to the chromosomes (Kiyomitsu).

Mitosis and the mutation of cells is the big reason in why cancer exists today. Right now, my step mom in South Carolina has breast cancer and that’s why I chose to do this research project. To treat the cancer she had to have chemotherapy and then radiation. After that, they will see if the cancer is gone and if it is, she is cancer free! Although, my step-mom is one of the lucky ones. There are 1500 deaths a year in relation to cancer and it is growing. But the doctors and scientists are working diligently hard to find a cure!

Poetry vs. Song

The meanings of the author in both poems "Big Yellow Taxi" by Joni Mitchell and "Field Below" by Regina Spektor, are that you don't no what you've got until it's gone. Both of the authors are talking about how the nature around them was sucked up by the big city that they both live in. The mood of Joni and Regina are anger towards the nature around them that is now gone and the tone is disappointment and anger.

Both of the author's turned their poems into songs and the mood and tone of them are very different between the two. In the song "Big Yellow Taxi", it is fast paced and almost sounds happy. But, like I said before, her intentions of the poem were to express her anger, not happiness. In the song "Field Below", it is very slow paced and it seems like she is really agonizing over what is happening around her. I did not think that the song would be that long and dreary because her poem had a pretty consistent rhyme pattern which usually means it is going to go faster.

The Non-Autistic Experience

Author’s Note: This piece is about how the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon would be different if it were not written in the first person view of Christopher, a 15 yr. old with autism. My purpose for writing is for my first 4th quarter writing conference.

Just imagine, have specified rules that only you have to follow. Think about being made fun of for a disease that you were born with. Lastly, I want you to dream about having the inspiration to investigate, and hunt down a dog murderer while your father is yelling at you not to. This is what happens to a fifteen year old, autistic kid named Christopher goes through in the story, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon. In his class at school, he was given an assignment to write a novel. Of course it happened that Christopher’s favorite neighborhood dog was murder that night and he was going to write a mystery book about who killed it. However, he happened to write the book in his point of view which made it go on and on. If the novel that Christopher wrote was in his father’s point of view, the story would be a lot less sidetracking, an actual plotline, and less complexity of writing in the book.

In The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, the autistic character named Christopher, sidetracks a lot from the main concept of the story which was who killed Wellington. One chapter, he would be talking about the actual plot and the next he would be telling us about the frogs in the pond by his school. This happened throughout the whole book and it turned probably a one hundred and fifty page book into 228 pages. Clearly then, the novel would have been a whole lot less off topic if it were written in the first person view of Christopher’s dad.

Furthermore, there would be an actual plot for the events in the story if it were written in his dad’s mind. With the random subject changes, it is hard to distinguish the different events on the line. But without all of the random segways, the book would have a constant plot including rising and falling events, the climax, and the resolution. It would make the story a lot easier to read and more enjoyable because there would actually be investigating instead of having the police do all of the work.

In addition, as an autistic child Christopher is made fun of at school by being called names like ‘dumb’ or ‘stupid’. Actually though, he is a really intelligent kid. In the story, he went through and showed us many hard and complicated math problems that he faced along his mystery and his journey to London, where his Mother lives. Also he is a great writer and probably had no trouble at all writing the two hundred and twenty eight page story. On the other hand, his father is not as smart as the fifteen year old, considering that he works for a heating and cooling corporation. Therefore, the book would not be as long as it was and it would be less descriptive.

In conclusion, the novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time would have an actual plotline, would be less sidetracked, and there would be worse writing in the book if it were his dad who wrote it. This book was very unique because the viewpoint it was in was not a normal person. It shows you and anyone who reads it that people with disabilities and borne illnesses are smarter than they look and that they can do anything that normal people can.

"This is Just to Say" Parody

Your mom is alive,
She didn’t die.
She was seeing someone else,
So I kicked her out.

And which
You probably
Thought
She was dead.

Forgive me
She sucked
And I’m glad
She’s outta my life

This relates to our novel because it is about how Christopher’s mom cheated on his dad with Mr. Shears. This poem is from Christopher’s dad’s point of view, and it is written towards Christopher. Its tone and mood was very sad at first but then got sarcastic at the end because his dad was glad his cheater of a wife was gone.

The Herculean, Perspicacious Thing in the Cave

Author’s Note: This is a “Guess Who I am” piece and my purpose for writing this is to get a 10 in Word Choice and Context

The excitement bubbles up inside me and forces me to tremble, when I’m taking kids’ disheartening dreams from their sleeping thoughts and giving them a whole new, wonderful fantasy. The weather tonight in this muted, little town was lovely with warmth and a bit of wind. The breeze was like Aeolus, the Greek god of wind, was blowing gently on the Earth and on my wrinkled face. As I was making my final pass around the small civilization, a child’s head popped out of the window and starred straight at me with her little beady eyes. Once she saw me, I had no choice but to grab her out of the opening in the building and dash back to my home in Giant Country.

As I returned to the cave that I’ve called home for many years, I set the minor down on the table and dashed to the jar table, where I put all of my captured dreams into jars. On my way back from my work station, I passed a mirror. Now, this was the first time that I have looked at me in a long time and it shocked me at what I saw. As usual, my ears were the great big parasails in the bright blue skies but everything else was alternated eminently. The hair on my chin was grown like the untrimmed lawn in front of my cavern and my face was as wrinkly as my fingertips get in water. But overall, I didn’t look to bad for a century old, man!

The depths of my cave are actually not that abysmal at all. When approaching the door to my cavity of a home, a boulder, you would think that the inside was dusty and full of wildlife creatures. But as you roll aside the four ton object, the area around you would light up in the glows of the many shining dreams on the shelves and lights above. My cave is sometimes, pretty cramped, but is one of the most secure places in the world. It has a grand bathroom the size of three elephants, a dining room for eating the nasty snozzcumbers, and a room to keep all of the dreams that I have arrayed over the years. This algid environment is a perfect place to sleep at nights, unlike the flesh-eating giants, who sleep during the blistering warm days, and take their victims and nights.

Outside of cool rocky abode, there is an arid wasteland ready to reach out and grab any precipitation in its reach. Now this blazing place is where the nine flesh eating giants sleep until it’s time for them to go catch some homo sapiens for dinner. There’s Bonecruncher, Manhugger, Childchewer, Meatdripper, Gizzardgulper, Maidmasher, Bloodbottler, Butcher Boy, and worst of all, Fleshlumpeater. These dastardly giants go out during the nighttime to their favorite tasting countries and then they snatch kids and parents out of their rooms and down them gulp by gulp, and chomp by chomp. And what do I eat myself you say? Well, I frown upon eating humans so I consume the only apparatus that there is left in Giant Country, which happens to be a foul vegetable called the snozzcumber. These sour, soggy, sickening, soiled, squalid snozzcumbers are the worst food that you will ever try. But, I go through the horrid plant for the sake of the human beings, and that is all that matters.

As the exciting day of a giant in Giant country comes to a close, I am back where I started. Shaking ecstatically to see what type of dream comes out of a little child’s sleeping, but imaginative mind. Is it a trogglehumper or just a nightmare with an awful ending like being guzzled by a 48 ft giant? Or maybe the little sprout is lucky and has a great dream with an endeavor or all the candy he can think of. I bet the next time though, when I give the girl with the little beady eyes a golden phizzwizard, it is going to be the story of her and a Herculean figure like me, vanishing to Giant Country.

The Poem of the Renaissance

Author’s Note: This is a short response about the poem “Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes and the purpose for writing is to get a ten in word choice and context.

In the poem “Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes, the figurative language clearly expresses the tone and the main idea and tone that the author wanted. The sentences, “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair” and “I’se been a-climbin’ on” are the two examples that really catch my eyes as the two figurative examples. The purposes of these sentences are that life is not always going to be smooth and easy (like a crystal) and the other one shows how she has had to work and or ‘climb’ to reach her goal. Lastly, the tone and mood are conveyed and that is sad and depressing for the Mother because she had such a hard life but perseverance while talking to her son to get through the hard times. Overall, the figurative language is expressed elegantly and in the right spots to set the tone and the mood of the characters’ surroundings.

Chrisopher John Francis Boon

These two paragraphs are about the characteristics of Christopher James Francis Boon

Christopher John Francis Boon is exactly 6 foot 2 with hickory brown hair, powder blue eyes, and black glasses. He is 15 years, 3 months, and 2 days old autistic kid who his a lot smarter than some people realize, although they are probably just prejudicing. The family members that he has are his father and his pet rabbit Toby. His mother had just died of a heart attack and he did not seem to mad which meant that he was not that close to her. Since he is autistic, he doesn't like being touched and he always does things in logical order. If not he usually freaks out which usually gets him in trouble. But like I said before, he is really intelligent and would never purposely hurt anyone.

Christopher knows every prime number up 7,057 and it takes him barely any time to do very difficult equations. When he grows up he wants to be an astronaut or something that includes math. Although he knows the he is different, he is confident that there are chances for him in the real world. He also wants to write a novel about an event that happened in his life. He is truly a special and enthusiastic kid. No matter what life throws at him, he is going to shine through everything and make a name for himself.

The Gluttony Games

Author’s Note: This is a parody of the story, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and the purpose for writing is to complete one of my goals (creative piece).

“And from district twelve, Primrose Everdeen!”

Primrose started crying, because the overwhelming thought of exercise was too much for her. As soon as I saw this I jumped up from the crowd and screamed, “I volunteer to take her place for district 12!” Primrose looked at me in awe and said, “Katniss, you don’t have to do this!” but I said that I must.

The crowd gasped in astonishment as I said this because it is always the worst thing to happen in a year in Panem. What happens is two tributes are picked from each district to fight it out to the death but to ultimately find the golden donut. This trophy per say, is hidden in the arena and whoever finds it and escapes the arena alive wins the games.

This was of course a worry for me because I didn’t know how to kill or exercise or anything like that so training was going to be really tough on me.

Once all of the tributes were chosen from the sacred pizza box, we were loaded into a car and we went to a large building. There we chose our weapons of expertise, were given our rooms, and we begun our training. For my weapon, I chose the asparagus bow and arrow because I know that most of the contestants are allergic to it because it is so healthy. We got to train for a week and it was actually not as terrible as I thought it was going to be. The only bad part was when I had to go on the stationary bike for ten minutes because my legs cannot peddle that well.

My agenda during the week was as follows:
1. Wake up and eat a super healthy breakfast(which I hate)
2. Do my morning training session
3. Eat lunch and talk to Peeta(The other tribute from my district who might like me)
4. Afternoon training session
5. Dinner and talk to Peeta more
6. Go to Bed

After the long and grueling week, we were all finally transported to our individual start lines at the entrance to the arena. The crowd around us was going wild and I couldn’t even hear the thoughts inside my head. Finally, the gluttonous chancellor came to the microphone and told everyone to quiet down. She said, “Welcome everyone to the Gluttony Games!” After taking in a long breath from the energy draining shout, she continued. “You must cheer as hard as you can for your district’s tributes because the tributes district that wins gets a life supply of all of the sugary treats you can think of! And to the tributes, try as hard as you can for your district and don’t let your country down!” The chancellor pressed a button with her pudgy index finger and a countdown began. 3…..2…..1…… GO!!! The doors to the arena opened, we all ran in, and my life as I knew it, was now long gone.

************************************************************************************

It was the worst month of my existence on this planet. It was gruesome, but my weapon was proven to the best because I won. I only had to kill one person and it breaks my heart to say the it was Peeta. It happened so quickly. He was about to kiss me when I stabbed him with his celery stick and he died instantly. I eventually found the golden donut ina tree and had no problem slowly returning to my starting spot where there was a huge celebration awaiting me. When I saw Primrose, she jumped up to me and thanked me graciously. After that, everything went back to normal life where I hunted with my best friend Gale and we lived happily ever after!

The Viewpoint of a Preschooler

Authors Note: This piece is about how the change in viewpoint in the novel The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau would change the main characters, setting, and the plot.

Just imagine, having to live with your old and forgetting grandmother in a place where there is danger around every corner. Think about how the only other person that cares about you is out working most of the time and you rarely get to see her. Lastly, I want you to think about living in a place with very little varieties of food and very little place to sleep and play. This is what the story The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau would be like if it was through the point of view of Poppy instead of Lina and Doon. Once again, if the point of view of the story was changed, there would be a different set of main characters, an alternate setting, and a way different plot line that the story would follow.

First off, the main characters would dramatically change in the book The City of Ember, if the story was in the first person of Poppy. The adventures with Doon and Lina would have never happened and they would be a lot less of importance. Instead of Doon and Lina, it would be Granny and Mrs.Murdo because they were the two people who spent the most time with her. These two characters were also the people who took care of her and did things like feed her.

Furthermore, the supreme point of setting would be alternated as well. There wouldn’t be a lot of worry in the eerie city of blackness and streetlamps. The environment would probably be the warm and inviting place of either Granny’s or Mrs. Murdo’s house. This is, because the only times Poppy was ‘outdoors’ in the story, was when Lina lost her and during the major celebration of the Singing. Therefore, she spent all of her other time inside the houses of her family and those who were close to her.

In the same way, the structure of the plot would be adjusted as well. Instead of all of the adventures that happened with Doon and Lina, it would basically be the same characterless and stale thing every day. Wake up, eat, play, nap, eat, play, dinner. There wouldn’t be a plot at all because there wouldn’t be a rising or falling action, climax, and resolution. Although, the plots would have met up during the falling action of the The City of Ember. This was when Lina took Poppy from Mrs. Murdo in the streetlamp lit streets, but there wouldn’t be anything to resolve because the baby sister of Lina and Poppy had no idea what was happening when Lina took her anyways.

In the novel The City of Ember, the main characters, setting, and plot line would have changed greatly if it were written in the viewpoint of Poppy, instead of Lina. There would be no adventures, no mysteries, and most importantly, no purpose for reading the book. With her and Mrs. Murdo's in her apartment, she wouldn't have done anything noteworthy but chew the Instructions of Egress.

The Young and the Brave

This piece is about what Poppy from the novel, The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, is thinking about during chapter 17: Away and chapter 18: Where the River Goes.

There’s this big crowd, and everything has gone dark. I don’t know where I am. But I do know that Mrs. Murdo is carrying me, trying to get me out of the gigantic amount of hustling and bustling Ember citizens. Then roughly ten minutes into this terrible moment, the floodlights flickered on and everyone including myself was relieved. Mrs. Murdo then began to hurry home with me in her grasp because she didn’t want to be on the streets, if this ancient street goes black again.
About half way to my home, Lina suddenly appeared and began to talk to Mrs. Murdo rapidly. Then Lina quickly grabbed me out of the clutches of our former neighbor, and we ran off into the dark alleys of this dying city.

As we finally stopped running, Doon approached us in a relieved fashion. Then with this light source that I have never seen before, we ventured into a building, down a long, wet staircase, and down a wet ladder. Then Lina set me down and told me to stay there or else. After that my sister and her friend started to take this big wooden contraption out of a cave and they placed it into the rambunctious river. When Lina finally took hold of me, she gave me to Doon, and stepped into the mysteriously floating thing. Doon handed me to her and then he stepped in as well. A couple of seconds later, we were off at break-neck speed down the river.

************************************************************************************

We sped down the twisting and turning river with many bumps and walls that terrified me because I thought that I was going to fly out into the frigid water. But Lina and Doon made sure that that didn’t happen. They covered me up with their bodies and made sure I was safe. Minutes, maybe hours later, we slammed to a halt on a rock face with a tunnel above it and Lina and Doon seemed to be studying it. They talked a bit and then Lina went into that cave and disappeared into the eerie darkness of the inside.

I heard her yell something; it was probably to Doon; and then she came out with a joyful look on her face. They then climbed out of the floating device, with me in hand, and into the cave where they set me down at the mouth. Both of them finally went to the place where I couldn’t see Lina before, to see what was in there. As they were, I was curiously looking around and spotted a book lying there on the dark hard rock. I picked it up and was about to tear it up, like I usually do, when Lina came out and spotted me. She screamed at me telling me something that sounded like “Put that down”. It startled me so much, that I dropped the book and started crying.

After I had calmed down, Doon went to the water one last time to pick up some items from the boat. As he was doing that, Lina tied a piece of rope around herself at the waist and then around my waist as well. As if it was to prevent me from going too far ahead so I couldn’t get lost. After that, though we were off into the darkness of a tunnel where our only light source was the ‘candle’ in Doon’s hands.

************************************************************************************

The Quotes of Mystery

Author’s Note: This piece is about a very important quote in the novel The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau.

Just imagine living in a city where the only source of light in our domain happens to be awkwardly placed lamp posts and that your city is surrounded by an eerie darkness. Think about how your community isn’t coming together at difficult times but instead, they are fighting over things like light bulbs. If your city was about to collapse because of the people in it, would you find out a way to escape? In the book, The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, this is what Doon and Lina go through when they find the instructions that were written by the Builders, many years ago. After that moment, those two and Lina’s sister Poppy, find mysterious items that they have no idea what to do with.

When Doon and Lina find toolboxes with candles and matches in them, they exclaimed, “What does ‘Candles’ mean?” and “And what does ‘Matches’ mean? Matches what!” These quotes from Lina and Doon show the reader that the people of Ember were very isolated when they entered the mystical city. What is really mysterious, is that the first people that went into Ember, didn’t pass down those common words and concepts down from the outside world like matches and candles to their given children.

These quotes from the book The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau express how the characters and people in the city have no idea about the outside world. The existence of Ember is only known by those who built it and the people who live there. The majority of the people of Ember believe in one thing and one thing only, and that is The Book of the City of Ember.

The Setting that Affects a City

The setting of the award winning novel The City of Ember by Jeanne Duprau is a dark and gloomy place where the only sources of lights happen to be awkwardly placed street lamps. Also the city of Ember is surrounded by total darkness and nobody knows what is out in that darkness. These both create an eerie and weird feeling for everyone in the mystical city.

This setting affects the plot because the whole plot consists and leads up to one thing, and that is getting out of Ember. Lina and Doon, the two main characters, are starting to find a way out because the city is starting to lose all of its electricity and supplies for their citizens. So if this wasn’t the main problem in the story and all of the lights were working perfectly, then it would not be part of the plot at all. A different setting, such as a bright and sunny city, there would be no needs at all to find either a different way power the city or a way to escape the city. It would lastly affect the citizens of the city and the main characters, because everybody would be happy instead of mad and everybody would live more in harmony. Not fighting each other for the last light bulb.

The Knowledgeable Sayings

Authors Note: This piece is analyzing the quotes and/or sayings that relate to the short story “Thank You Ma’am” by Langston Hughes.

“Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get.” –Forrest Gump

Just imagine, being alone; no family or friends at all. Think about having no money for food or transportation and all you really want is a pair of blue suede shoes. Lastly, dream about how this unorthodox, enigmatic woman named Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones would take you in and feed you just to teach you a lesson. This is what the main character; Roger goes through in the short story “Thank You Ma’am” by Langston Hughes. In this brief two hour time with Mrs. Jones, he is taught that he can’t get the goods that he wants by stealing from other people. The teenager also learns that you don’t have to be discriminative or prejudiced to demonstrate proper manners and/or thankfulness. There are many quotes in the short story and in the outside world that clearly shows and analyzes the main concepts and conflicts of this story, “Thank You Ma’am”.

The opening quote that can be related to the story “Thank You Ma’am” by Langston Hughes is the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.”(By: African Proverb) This excerpt is logically related to the young boy, Roger because he doesn’t have a home or anyone to love him. When Luella asks him if he has any family he simply repeats, "No’m”. The reason this relates to him because if he was raised and nurtured by an actual family and if he grew up in a safe environment or a 'village', he would not have been trying to steal Mrs. Jones pocketbook.

Furthermore, another quote that is comparative to “Thank You Ma’am” is “Everything happens for as reason.” This reference simply means that if Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones would have done something like calling the cops, Roger wouldn’t have learned the simple life lesson of kindness. He realized that you don't just have to be rude and mean to people to teach them a lesson. He acknowledged that you can be nice and caring to people to show them something important. The real meaning of that excerpt, is that no matter what happens or what you do, everything happens for a reason. Maybe he wasn’t told on for a reason and it was just karma for Roger(Which I highly doubt), or that she was just giving him a chance.

In addition, there is also one more very important quote in the chronicle that helps Roger change his life completely. Luella exclaimed at him in her house saying, "Um-hum! You thought I was going to say but, didn’t you? You thought I was going to say, but I didn’t snatch people’s pocketbooks. Well, I wasn’t going to say that." When saying this, the no-longer-thug Roger learned probably the most important lesson in his life. This excerpt means so much to him because it taught him that all people are created equal and that you should never discriminate people for what happened in the past because they may have changed by then. After that I don’t think that the young teenager will never make fun of people and he will not in any way, try to steal from people to get what he wants.

In conclusion, I would like to express my feelings on the title of this piece. What this means is when Roger was captured by Mrs.Jones, he had no idea what was going to happen. Just like in the saying from Forrest Gump, “…you never know what you’re gonna get.” Nevertheless, “Everything happens for a reason” and who knew that for Roger, his ‘village’ would be Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones.

Deathwatch Retelling

At the beginning of the story Deathwatch by Robb White, Madec hires Ben to take him Bighorn hunting. After Madec ‘accidentally’ shoots an old prospector, the crazed man starts talking all criminally. He then makes Ben, take off all his clothes and then he ditches him in the scorching hot desert. Using his background knowledge of the simmering lands, Ben outsmarts the man that was blatantly hunting him and escapes the desert.

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Deathwatch
By:Robb White, Pages-220
When Madec turns on him during hunting, Ben goes through perilous torture, dangerous cliffs, and a cruel and vicious man with a .358 Magnum. Will Ben escape the crazed madman and the scorching desert alive? This thrilling page turner by the author, Robb White is a great read with many twists and turns!

The Developing Obi

Author’s Note: This piece is about how the main character, Obi from the short story “Dead Man’s Path” by Chinua Achebe changes during the story.

Imagine getting the chance to have your dream job, early in your career. Think about wanting to change the schools culture, just because it wasn’t modern enough. Lastly, dream about the whole tribe at your school coming down on you because you were altering their culture. This is how the events and actions change Obi as a character in the short story “Dead Man’s Path” by Chinua Achebe.
When Obi is first elected as principal of the school, he and his wife think that they can go there and change everything about it. The appearance, the teachers, what the kids are learning, and even the culture were all altered in some way. Although the largest thing that he changed was the path that went in and out of this ancestral footpath. All of this changes Obi because he finally realizes that different towns have different aspects that make it unique and that it’s never a good idea to change them.
Consequently, the enigmatic Obi changed as a character in the story “Dead Man’s Path” by Chinua Achebe because he changed other people’s cultures!