Q2W2 Comments

"Why is music important?" - Ethan Webb

"My Own Prompt" - Matthew Bickham

Custom Prompt: I Need a New Outside Reading Book

          I recently finished The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls as my outside reading book. This novel is a memoir about Jeannette Walls' childhood and teen life in an odd family. Her family became heavily nomadic as they were driven out of Phoenix, Arizona at a young age. As they moved from home-to-home, they came closer together as a family, but they still had to drive through a few potholes along the road. Although I was skeptical about this book when I started a few weeks ago, I was increasingly surprised at how the story, despite being non-fiction, held my attention. However, now I am in need of a new outside reading book.
          Although I have my own ideas about my endless choices, I am still open to suggestions. After reading The Glass Castle, I am also now more open to the non-fiction genre, but I still heavily enjoy the genres of fantasy, fiction, and historical fiction or non-fiction. I am also comfortable reading a book of any size or reading level, so you don't have to take those factors into account. A novel that ties into a series would be the best option for me, as I usually prefer to read a chain of novels with a linked story, but standalone books can also be highly enjoyable for me. Please take these into consideration and get back to me ASAP.

Thanks,
Robert

Human Nature

          Much can be said about us humans. The way we speak, act, and think are all prime examples of human complexity. Our complexity is what makes us such interesting topics. Our disposition as organisms is generally similar to that of most organisms: to survive. However, our nature doesn't stop at simply primal instincts. We have developed a much deeper thought process, one that draws a blurry line between good and bad. Our truest nature is often said to be greedy, deceiving, and dominating. While these traits are all seen in many people, there are also some who say that humans can be loving, generous, and empathetic when facing others. I personally agree with both of these ideas. We tend to stray towards a deceiving and greedier nature many times, usually for self-preservation, but we can also be emotionally deep characters. What defines us as humans; aside from our body, speech, and mind; is how we interact with each other.
          These thoughts of mine have required much thinking throughout my life. I often ask myself questions such as: "Why do we do this?" or "How do we impact each other?". I think about such topics as my mind drifts, which it tends to more than I would like it to, but I almost never find a definite answer. I think and think, but I always seem to come back to the conclusion that we are too complex for us to even begin to understand. Still, I have managed to collect my thoughts from many philosophical thinking sessions (many of which were sadly conducted in classes) to convey that all of these ideas of mine are mine alone, and not much except the observation of others has affected that one statement.

Q1:W8

The Client - JC Neumann

Response to reading - Evan Meek

Flash Fiction #2 (Fall Break Free Post)

          "Scratch!" I contemplated this move. I took the risk to see if he was going to try for the cluster of solids by the left corner. In that cluster, was the Black 8. "Good game, better luck next time."
          "Hmph, don't get arrogant."
          "C'mon, don't be a sore loser." I performed my best poker face. He picked up the smooth, white ball. He placed it a foot away from the left-corner cluster. While aligning his aim and stretching his arm, I calculated the chances. If he tilted his hand a mere quarter-of-an-inch while shooting, he could tilt the Black 8 into the hole. He realized this too, so he attempted to calm his shaking hands. I looked at him with cold eyes. I could feel the pressure mounting on his back as he leaned forward. Time paused as he analyzed his next move with a marksman's focus. I half-expected to see beads of sweat down the sides of his face. His arm pulled back. The pole collided with the ball. Traveling at almost terminal velocity, the white ball raced across the green felt table. A crack, and then a tumble. I no longer saw the Black 8 on the table anymore.
          "Good game, better luck next time."

Reading Response - Harrison Bergeron

          Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. is the first short story we read to start off this unit. Being the first short story, I read it with an open mind to give me a refreshing idea of the layout of these short stories. With this open outlook, I tried to analyze some key aspects of short stories and their general plot graph. Fortunately, Harrison Bergeron has a very clear plot graph, as I could easily spot rising and falling action as well as the general climax. Aside from the plot, Harrison Bergeron's characters are also very clear, but they're not as round or deep as I would see in most stories, but I suppose that would be natural for a story only a few pages long.
          Despite these somewhat-flat characters, they still held my attention and interest through a strange uniqueness. Specifically, George and Hazel Bergeron intrigued me the most. George and Hazel are simply ordinary citizens of the United States, meaning that they are handicapped to the lowest possible standard. Due to their handicaps, these "main" characters are able to express some emotion, but only in short bursts, as they would soon forget about their feeling and thoughts. In short, their uniqueness as characters come from how they aren't able to express much emotion or thought, yet rather than repelling any interest with their shallowness, they instead captured mine. In this way, Kurt Vonnegut is able to create characters of interest and intrigue in a short story through his use of a lack of depth, rather than an excess.

Q1W7 Comments

Da-Duh - Ethan Webb

Hunger Games Reading Response - Evan Meek

Flash Fiction

          Trumpets filled the air. Silence fell across the swarms of flesh as all eyes were directed towards the Founder. A boy cried for his mother, whom he lost in the fray. The Founder flinched at the outcry. Before the Founder even needed to nod his head, the boy was silenced. No one winced at such an abnormal interruption. Natural selection they said it was. The Founder redirected his attention back to the flocks of his pale-skinned subjects. He rose his hand. Every knee was bent towards him. His hand lay suspended in the air for a small eternity. His thumb began to point towards his chest. The silence grew. Soon, the wind stopped as well. As the point of his thumb brushed his sternum, the crowds began to slowly rise. The Founder left his podium, and so silence was lifted.

Reading Response - The Glass Castle

          As I continue to read The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, I notice character changes on a deeper level than I had noticed before. As the novel introduces even more characters, some minor and some major, they each seem to have specific backgrounds and motives. Many of these characters grow, to a certain extent at least, to have an impact on the main characters themselves. Some main characters however, such as Rex Walls, undergo internal and external changes as well, although they don't always last. It is important to note however, that character changes aren't exclusively positive.
          Rex Walls, being the father of the narrator and the patriarch of the family, is initially described as a loyal and caring father, but he shows more complexity than that in his actions, which sometimes contradicts this statement. Although he's had a drinking problem since Jeannette Walls was a toddler, it seems to steadily grow worse as his kids grow up and they move from home-to-home frequently. This often leads to his "drunken rampages", which causes family complications as he attacks anything or anyone in his way, often leading to the rest of the family going into hiding. However, Rex is aware of his destructive drunken nature and even tries to become sober, which succeeds for a few months, but he eventually returns to his alcoholic state. Being one of the roundest yet simultaneously flattest characters in the novel so far, Rex Walls truly is a human who behaves true-to-nature.