Blog 6

The Southern family [Doodle and "Brother" are a part of] believes in superstitions. Upon Doodle's birth, Aunt Nicey thinks the boy is holy because he was born in a caul, "Jesus's nightgown." Additionally, the mother of both boys does not think it will rain because she hadn't heard the call of a "rain frog." What other superstitions are shared in the story? How do you think they affect the developments in plot? Can you think of other superstitions you believe/ have heard others believe?

Another superstition is when Aunt Nicey says that dead birds are bad luck, especially the red birds. They affect plot by having what happens contradict or support their theory on the superstition. The dead, red bird was bad luck because: Doodle died. I have heard that black cats are bad luck, broken mirrors, and spilling salt. These are all examples of superstitions. A common one is, "Step on a crack, and you'll break your mothers back." Many people believe in, knocking on wood,  ladybugs landing on you meaning good luck, and pennies heads up. A strange one is: seeing an ambulance is very unlucky unless you pinch your nose or hold your breath until you see a black or a brown dog. There is a poem that goes along with it: touch your toes, touch your nose, never go in one of those, until you see a dog.

Blog 5

Answer the following questions for Richard Wright's short story, "The Man Who Was Almost a Man" in complete sentences, with as much detail as possible [this might mean a short paragraph]:

1. After reading the first paragraph, identify the narrator, the point of view, and the dialect.
This is in third person point of view, and the narrator is an omniscient narrator. This means that the narrator is inside Dave's head, and he knows his personal thoughts and feelings. The narrator is able to read the peoples minds and is not an actual part of the story, but more of a mind reader. The type of dialect that this story is written in is in a southern country way. This is why some of the words appear as slang, and they are not proper english.

2.What is Dave's mother's response when he asks her if he can buy a gun? How does he ask her?
She says no to the gun and then he keeps pushing her. She says his father doesn't even have a gun, and there is no need for him to have one either. She finally gives in after he makes many promises to her. He asks her by showing her the catalogue and showing what he wanted. She said he needed to save the money for school clothes for winter, but he says it is his money so he should get it.

3. What is Dave's reaction when pressed to tell the truth? What is the crowd's reaction when he tells?

Dave gets very nervous and he lies. After he told the truth though, Hawkins said he has to buy the mule. Everyone laughs at him because they say he has to purchase a dead mule, and they find it funny.

4. Think of the train as a symbol. What do you think it represents?
I think the train represents his life ending as far as the people from his town are aware of. Although he is not actually killing himself, he is getting away from the life he once had. In a way, he is ending his own life, without actually killing himself. He is also proving that he is man enough to live on his own and take care of himself.

5. Is society better off without individuals like Dave? Should they celebrate his departure?

No, they should not celebrate his departure because Dave is what makes the society the way it is. One person affects the society drastically, and his accidents should not make the people hate them. The society is not better off without him, but he is better off without them. This is true because they were rude to Dave and laughed at him when he was very upset. The society didn't treat him well, and nobody deserves to be treated like that.

Blog 4

What were your thoughts about the ending of this short story? Could Mary Maloney get away with the same crime in today's current society? Why/why not? 

Your response to this blog should be two-three paragraphs [at least 5-6 sentences].

At the end of this short story, I found it very shocking how Mary got away with it, and the cops had no clue. She basically begged them to eat the food which was her way of throwing away the evidence. She was very smart and was able to pull off her act very well. Mary did not seem like she was lying to the cops, she was very upset and acted like a normal wife would after her husband died. I find it appalling how somebody could get away with that so easily.

In modern times, Mary probably would not have gotten away with this because, this story is realistic-fiction. Although this seemed like it could happen, it didn't. The cops would have searched the whole house much more thoroughly and taken the lamb and question whether or not it could have struck someone with such a heavy blow. They also would have questioned the wife, because nowadays women and husbands have be known to kill each other. They could have done an investigation to see whether or not the marriage between Mr. and Mrs. Maloney was okay.

Blog 3

The GAC words for this week are: aggressive, authentic, contradict, extravagant, flounder, hone, perceive, quirk, saunter, and summon.

Use four (4) of these vocabulary words in a one-paragraph response to your reading over the weekend. What portions of the story did you find compelling [moving] in Chapters 34-40? Challenge: Include a quotation from the text.

In chapter 34, two girls from Riva's barrack were called in front of everyone. They summoned for some authentic food, and not the petit amount that they normally receive. The girls had not had an extravagant meal in forever, and decided to steal some potato peels from the garbage. The commandant made the one sister whip the sister, and if she disobeyed, the commandant would whip her in a much more aggressive manner. At first the sister floundered at whipping her sister, but she knew she had to for both of their well beings. After the whipping was done, the girls were sent away. This part of the story was compelling because it showed how no matter what the situation was, even family members had to hurt each other. The girls stole, and then had to be whipped. It made me think about which is worse, being whipped by your sister, or having to whip your sister.

Blog 2

Yesterday, we explored twenty-eight concepts that pertained to the Jewish Holocaust, and as a class, we constructed a dictionary of terms. 

Which of these twenty-eight entries were you most surprised that you had not heard of before? ...the least? [If you were not surprised, then write about the one you would like to find out more about.] Include the description of the concept [or definition] and your thoughts/feelings.

This entry may be one longer paragraph [at least 7-8 sentences].

Out of all the entries we researched in class, the one that I had not heard about before was the Kristallnacht. I thought it was surprising that I never heard about that. It is also known as the night of broken glass, but I had not heard of that either. All I know is that when the Nazis destroyed all Jewish stores and homes by breaking the glass in the windows and doors. I would like to learn more about this because it is a cruel thing to do. Also, I found it really interesting and want to research it more. I'd like to know where it started, why they did it and when. The thing that bothers me the most is that the Nazis would stoop so low to bothering the Jews by destroying their stores.

Blog 1: Part 1 Reflection

Part I of Ruth Minsky Sender's The Cage explores the experiences Riva and her siblings have while living in the ghetto. Part II of the personal memoir will unveil her horrors in the camps.

What portion of Part I stood out to you in your reading? Provide a page number and short analysis of the excerpt.

Page 90

In Part 1, the part that stood out to me the most was the part when Riva's brother was dying. Her brother, Laibele had been fighting his disease, and his time was done. He could not fight any longer, and it showed the bond between sister and brother. Riva was crying because he was dying, and there was nothing she could do about it. She held him in her arms as his time was fading away, but she had to let go to let him know he could die peacefully.

Another thing about this part was that, she was screaming for him to keep fighting and letting go. In the beginning she told him not to give up, but then she realized it would be easier for him to die if he could go peacefully. " 'Riva, you are sinning. You are not letting him die in peace. You are calling him back, again and again. This is a great sin you are committing. Let him go, darling. Maybe he will be better off than we are' "(Sender 90). Riva realized that she needed to let him go to put him out of his pain. This was a very emotional part of the book and it showed her growing up as a person. She handled the situation like a mature adult would.

Blog 16

Pretend you are a Nazi journalist and you witness the events that occurred in Chapter Four of Ruth Minsky Sender's The Cage. Write a detailed news report [the type that would be printed in a German newspaper] on the incident(s) in your reading. Include specifics about the situation: dates, location, etc.

This posting should be approximately TWO paragraphs in length, (5-6 sentences in each paragraph). You should include one quotation from the text to support your story; this quotation can be used as a witness to the events that happened.

Be sure to stay true to journalistic writing! If you need help with this style, go here: How to Write a News Article.

Today is April 16, 1943 and here at in Lodz, Poland, the Nazis are trying to keep people in line. The disgusting attitudes the Jewish people are giving to us Nazi's in charge is not going to be tolerated anymore. The Nazi's are doing the right things, but the Jews are just being ignorant. This is ludicrous and will not be acceptable. The people are trying to frustrate us and that will not be good for them. One female yelled today, "Please, have pity. Let him be. He is a deaf mute."

The Jews need to realize that mercy will not be granted to them. They do not deserve the same treatment as everyone else. Their religion and what they want is wrong. They should not be granted the same rights as everyone else since they are not of the same level as us. Also, the rules are not the same for every person and the Jews are no exception. The ignorance they give off just angers us more and makes the Nazis act more vicious towards them. We are doing what is best for the country and most people are on our side. The Jews need to accept what is going on.