Lit Circle Reflection

In our first discussion as a lit circle I feel that I did not do a sufficient job.  I needed to work on basically everything overall. Such as asking more questions and participating more in the discussion.  For the second discussion I came prepared with more notes and questions that I was prepared to ask.  I also more fully understood what I was reading as I re-read many parts of the book I did not fully understand.  This helped me be able to ask more thought provoking questions that enabled our group to have some sort of depth in our conversation.  Our group as a whole has done a pretty good job so far.  Everyone is organized and knows what to do and everyone does his or her job.  One thing that needs improvement is the depth of conversation, I feel like we only scratch the surface on topics when we could really go deeper into subject.  Coming to class with notes and questions jotted down can help better this problem.

Tuesday Write #8 Lost and LOTF

There are many characters and different personalities in the show Lost and the book Lord of the Flies that can be connected. A major connection is the similarities between Sawyer from Lost and Jack from Lord of the Flies.  Although Sawyer is a loner and Jack has many people in his tribe there are very blatant connections that can be seen between the two antagonists.   

Sawyer from Lost

Before the plane crashed on the island in Lost Sawyer was a big con man.  He tricked people into buying items for a lot of money when really they are cheap.  He uses his experience of conning people to his advantage and cons everyone on the island into getting the prized and valuable guns.  Since he got the guns and he is the only one who knows where they are he has control over everyone and takes over leadership.  Jack also uses a con to get what he wants, more power.  He cons Ralph into giving him more power and creating an even stronger tribe.  Jack strives for power throughout the whole book.  At a point Jack goes out by himself into the rocky and adventured side of the island which is very rocky and dangerous.  Jack and his whole tribe move to this rocky side and set up their camps on that side.  Sawyer also goes off by himself to explore the island and even set up his camp away from the others further down the beach.  Although both Sawyer and Jack are tricky and power hungry antagonists characters they have some differences in how they achieve power.  Sawyer is alone in his tricky ways and does not let many people get close to him which could eventually be his downfall.  Jack however has his whole tribe behind him that if it grows large enough could just overthrow the old authority which could also be his downfall because letting that many people get close to him could collapse his tribe.  Jack is a stronger authority figure just because he does have numbers and a group of turned savage boys around him.  Sawyer is cleverer but is more likely to be overthrown since he has no one to watch his back.

All of these characteristics can be found in both Lost and Lord of the Flies.  These characters are needed in a rise of civilization and are very impactful and centerpieces of the plot of the story.  The idea of an antagonist against the old authority will always rise up in a civilization.  Overall Sawyer and Jack share many characteristics that make the story more intense and suspenseful which keeps the viewer or reader wanting more.

A Broken Family and Misconstrued Future

In The Graveyard Book, a broken family and a lost future, it grabs you in with a compelling first paragraph that throws the writing style of Neil Gaiman for a loop.  In the opening scene the main antagonist, Jack, kills three of a family of four.  The fourth, who is nameless at the beginning of the book, escapes from death grasps and wanders into the cold night.  This grabbing opening sets the tone for a riveting and well written book.

The escape artist baby toddled his way into a graveyard where he is adopted by the ghosts of the graveyard and is protected from Jack by them.  The married couple that takes him in are Mr. and Mrs. Owens and give him the name Nobody (Bod for short) because nobody knows his name.  As the needs of Bod become very essential, Silas, a part ghost, part human creature, can get Bod the necessary sustenance he requires.  Silas becomes the guardian of Bod and can pass in and out of the graveyard whenever he wants.  As Bod grows up in the restraints of the graveyard he starts to gain more privileges in the outside world.  He makes a living friend named Scarlette and eventually even goes to regular school.  This book is chronologically following Bod and his own coming of age through an upbringing of ghosts and ghostly powers.  Gaiman does a good job on focusing on on Bod but maybe does too good of a job at it.  The book could’ve covered many more characters than just Bod and is very exclusive towards him.  

A positive aspect of Gaiman’s writing is his strong characterizations, scenery, and mysteries that are sometimes left unsolved and not fully explained.  The reader is never left short of a picture painted in the mind of where an event is taking place.  “He slipped down into it, behind the coffin, and down and down and still further down, down to the tiny stone steps cut into the center of the hill, and the he descended until he reached the stone chamber.  It was dark in that tomb, dark as a tin mine, but Bod saw as the dead see and the room gave up its secrets to him” (Gaiman 114-115).  Excerpts like that really show how Gaiman uses his words to paint a picture in the mind of the reader.  Having a picture in your mind really makes this book a page turner.  Another key aspect of the writing of Gaiman is his use of characterizations used to describe a character in such detail that you form a connection with each.  As he describes the characters he stays to the point at hand and is concise.  “His hair was dark and his eyes were dark and he wore black leather gloves of the thinnest lambskin” (Gaiman 8).  

This very visual type of writing and fun read does not go without it’s flaws.  At some parts during the book you are left wondering what happens to other characters as Gaiman only follows Bod.  The backstory of other characters could be very insightful but he does not give the reader this luxury.  “Her name was Scarlette Amber Perkins, she told him, and she lived in a flat with no garden” (Gaiman 41).  This can annoy the reader and keeps the reader wanting a prologue or a second book in the series.  As a reader finishes reading The Graveyard Book they are left with an impression of how good the writing of Gaiman truly is.  There will be a hunger for more of his works that are littered with great plots and writing styles.  The Graveyard Book is a great and easy read that never pulls up short of a scary and exhilarating ending.

Gaiman, Neil, and Dave McKean. The Graveyard Book. New York: HarperCollins Pub., 2008. Print.

Malcolm Gladwell

In the article “The Warren Harding Error: Why We All Fall For Tall, Dark, and Handsome Men” by Malcolm Gladwell he discusses how brains function and can make submissive decisions about someone just by seeing them.  Do our brains really make these unnoticed and unthoughtful decisions?  According to the article they do.  This really amazes me and makes me notice how I judge someone before I even talk to them or know who they are.  This is a shocking fact and makes you think about who you are as a person and how judgmental you are and just how you can put trust or distrust in someone just by appearance.  One of the take away messages from this chapter would have to be the classic “don’t judge and book by its cover” which sometimes you can’t control.  Submissive decisions are uncontrollable and unnoticed by us and are natural.

These unconscious biases can greatly affect the way that we choose a leader.  Just by looking at someone you can tell whether they could be a good leader or not.  Whether it’s their physical attractiveness or self confidence there is usually a characteristic that we notice subconsciously that make us see them as a leader.  Once we see a certain type of person in a way for a long time those submissive decisions of categorizing can be hard to erase or change. When we see a physically attractive person we could categorize them as a leader.  This could be a very influential factor but not all leaders need to be physically attractive.  A leader should also be honest, knowledgeable, reliable, and a good speaker.  All of these factors cannot simply be be taken in just by a look at a person.  For a good leader to be successful they need to have these characteristics and not just get past the submissive categorization.

After taking the IAT tests have come up with some results.  The first test that I took was the race test.  These was to see whether I had a preference to white people or black people.  My results for that test actually surprised me and it said that I had a slight automatic preference for African Americans compared to European Americans.  I was actually expecting the results to be vice versa since there are not many black people in the area I live and my image of them may be misconstrued.  The next test that I took was the Old vs. Young test.  This test was to see if i had any unconscious biases towards old people or young people.  My results were what I thought they would be and showed that I had a slight automatic preference towards young people compared to old people. I thought that this would happen because me, being a young person, would like my own age over an older person.  These tested revealed some unconscious biases that were completely unaware to me.

Monday Bell Schedule

This years Monday schedule is far better than last years Tuesday schedule.Some may argue that Tuesday is better but really the lack of confusion, easier transition into the week,and the fact that teachers can help kids after school all make Monday superior.  For example, everyone knows that Monday is usually the day of the week to get up and go to school.  With the Monday schedule the late start makes Monday morning bearable.  Since on Mondays it is a late start it starts of the week on a good note.  Monday schedule is also simpler.  Instead of flopping around A period, A period stays at the start of the day which keeps confusion to a minimum.  With A period staying at the start of the day that means that kids can see their teachers after school if they have questions.  Last year on Tuesdays teachers without an A period could leave early and leave students stranded with questions that will have to wait.

Some may argue that Tuesdays schedule. Mostly people without an A period and don't mind getting up think this.  Since on Tuesdays classes got out at different times it made the traffic in the parking lot significantly less.  There are alternatives to going into the parking lot though.  People could get picked up off campus or carpool to reduce traffic.  Others bring up points that when the schedule was last years Tuesday schedule it made the week go by faster.  Even though it is nearer to the middle of the week, on Mondays students get to sleep in a whole hour more!That makes Monday go by faster and starts of the week on a good note which makes the week go by faster.  While in some ways last years schedule could have some good attributes, this years schedule is better for the vast majority of students, teachers, and parents.

Introduction

Hello readers, my name is Grant Carver and I am a student at San Ramon Valley High School.  I am 15 years old and enjoy many hobbies in my life. One of my favorite hobbies has to be knitting. I really like to make some crazy cool hats as well as sweaters. When I'm not knitting I like to sit down with a good book. One of my all time favorites has to be James and the Giant Peach. It has a great plot and easy to follow story line. English is one of my favorite classes so I am very excited to be in such a great class. One of my goals this year is to become a better writer and get good grades. Through reading I have learned some very inspiring quotes. One of my favorite quotes is "Today I will so what others won't, so that tomorrow I can accomplish what others can't." -Jerry Rice