Non Fiction Critical Analysis

 The article "Vaping may harm the lungs" by Janet Roloff and Beth Mole is about how many people think that vaping is healthier for your lungs because there is no smoke. But really, they are just as bed becuase the chemicals in them can destroy the tissue and cells in your lungs.they show this is many ways. For exmple, they say that teens are doing it becuase they won't get hurtand they are unaware. Also, they say that they are actually suppose to help stear tobacco smokers clear of tobacco, not to be a healtheir alternitive.

I think that the authors' oppion is that people need to be more carefull when they are doing these things becuse  they give examples such as that people don't and they are uninformed.

I agree with this becuase people are doing this and they are unnowinly desrtoy themselsevles. They are comvinced that nothing is happrning to them. I think people need to be more careful.

ya book blog post

Ya Book Blogpost

In the book “Sorta like a Rock star” by Mathew Quick, the main character, Amber Appleton is a homeless teen living in a school bus with her mother. She has a group of friends who she calls “the freaks” because they all have something different about them. Nobody knows why Amber herself is a freak, but she knows why. Her friends who really do have something wrong with them, keep her going strong. In the book “Sorta like a Rock Star” by Mathew Quick, the freaks are a sign of hope for Amber because they are all so different.

One of the freaks who’s name is Ricky, has autism. Ricky is a sign of hope for Amber because he can push through. For example, when they mean football player at their high school makes fun of Ricky, but it is ok, because he is really smart. He is a math wizard, and that makes him happy. Also, Ricky loves Amber. This makes Amber feel good about herself, showing that her friends, the freaks, are a sign of hope for Amber because they are all so different.

Another example of Amber’s friends giving her hope is her black friend, Ty. He is the only black person in the whole neighborhood. He doesn’t get to learn about his heritage in the school curriculum. Him and Amber can connect to each other because Amber’s dad left her, so she can’t learn about her past, just like how Ty can’t learn about his past because he is the only black person in the neighborhood. Also, when Amber’s mom died and she was depressed, she didn’t leave her room and she lost almost all of her friends. Ty was the only one who came to visit. He grew a friendship beard that was really long and he wouldn’t cut it until she became friends with the freaks again. This encouraged Amber to get back into the groove, and out of her state of depression. This shows that the freaks are a sign of hope for Amber because they are all so different.

The book “Sorta like a Rock Star” by Mathew Quick show how friendships are important to people to help them through tough times. This book clearly shows that through these characters. This book shows that the freaks are a sign of hope for Amber because they are all so different. Everybody needs some freak friends to guide along the way through the hard path of life. 

ya blog post

Ya book blog post

                In the book “Sorta Like a Rock star”, the main character, Amber Appleton goes through many struggles, such as living on a school bus with her mother, her mom dying, her dad leaving her, and her dog needing a $3000 surgery that she definitely cannot afford. Even so, she continues to keep hope throughout the book. Especially in rough times such as living on a school bus and her dog needing a $3000 surgery.

                One situation in which Amber keeps hope is when her and her mother were living on a school bus. Amber and her mother always said they would eventually get out of the school bus, even though they clearly wouldn’t. But, Amber believed they would one day. Also, Amber kept doing nice things for people. She would teach the Korean Divas for Christ how to speak English, and go to the nursing home to make the dying old people smile, even when she was the one who needed the most help. This shows how when nothing was going right for Amber, she was still able to keep head up high .

               

                Another example of Amber keeping hope when she was in the worst situation is when her dog, Bobby Big  Boy,  needs a $3000 surgery that she clearly couldn’t afford. When this happens, all she does is plan a big show to raise money for him so that she could pay for it herself. She also goes back to the nursing home to make the old people smile and apologize for her behavior and not coming because her mom died and she was depressed (but she overcame it!) This shows that she kept hope.

               

                The main character Amber Appleton keeps hope throughout the book no matter what happens to her. We can use this in the real world because bad things happen to people everyday and we should be able to help them and ourselves. 

non fiction critcal analysis

Non Fiction Critical Analysis

In the article “return of the measles” from upfront magazine, it talks about hoe people are surprised that the measles are coming back. And that some people choose to have shots for it.  I noticed that the author uses many things to convince the reader that this is happening. One very strong way the author does this is by using statistics. This helps the reader understand the text because it helps us understand the dangerousness of the measles.

In the article, it talks about how the measles are a real thing and that they are coming back. They start off by the reader that America thought that it was eliminated in 2000, but we recently got a surprise that they were in fact, not eliminated, and are coming back. It all started with in an outbreak in popular amusment park, Disney world. Many people were concerned. Also, some people with terminal illnesses would be in a lot of danger if they were infected the measles. The article really talks about how some people choose not to get shots because “they don’t like the chemicals going in their/their kids bodies” the author uses statstics to show how these people are affect themselves and others, and how that is bad.

The strongest way the author shows the dangerousness of the measles is statistics. Statistics help the reader understand the text because they make the problem seem worse. Without statistics, the reader would never get an actual sense of how bad the measles are. They would just know that they are bad, but they wouldn’t have a rating of how bad the situation is. They would only be hearing someone else’s opinion of the sickness. When people are given statistics, they are alowed to heave their own opinion based on facts.

To conclude, using statistics is very different than just using facts. Statistics are cold numbers that have no opinion whatsoever, so that people can base their own thoughts off of that. This can help the reader understand the text better and the whole claim of the article, which was the measles is a very dangerous disease, and people who choose not to get shots, are putting themselves, and other people’s lives in danger. And that isn’t fair.

ya book blog post 3/15/15

Ya Book Blog Post 3/15/15

            In the book “The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things” by Carolyn Macker, the overweight, Virginia Shreves goes through many problems. Towards the end, she learns to stay strong, notices many horrible things about her family members, and gains confidence. Virginia goes through many changes.

            One change Virginia goes through is she learns to stay strong. Virginia goes on a diet to make her parents proud, which is something she didn’t even want to do in the first place. Food was like a friend to her when she was having hard times, which was a lot. For her to give it up like that just to impress people, was very strong of her. Another reason Virginia is strong is because when her brother, Byron, who she looks up to as a role model called her fat, she wanted to cut herself, but she didn’t. This is strong because she had such an easy opportunity to. Also, she had been going through a very hard time, and it was brave of her to not cut herself.

            Another change Virginia goes through is she notices many horrible things about her family members. For example, she notices that her brother is an awful person, not only because she raped an innocent girl, and didn’t feel bad, but because he is even mean to her. He knows that that’s what she hates most about herself. That was really the moment she noticed that her brother is not only a cruel brother, but a cruel person in general. She also notices a bad trait about her father. That he only thinks skinny women can be beautiful. He doesn’t have to think everyone is beautiful, but to say everyone who is fat is ugly, is really rude and mean. This fact really hits Virginia when she proudly tells her father she is going on a diet, and he says “You’ve got a pretty face. Just think of how much pretty you would be if you were skinny” this shows how her own dad thinks that she’s ugly, just because she’s fat.

            Finally, Virginia goes through a huge change by gaining confidence in herself. One way she does this, is her best friend (and only friend) moved to Washington from New York in the beginning of the year. For Thanksgiving, her best friend, Shannon invites her to Washington over the break. Virginia asks her mother if she can go, but her mother says no, meanwhile, her brother is going to Paris over the break, and that’s a “completely different story” since her mother doesn’t let her go to Washington, she decides to go to a ticket seller herself, and use her savings account to buy her own non-refundable ticket to Washington. This took a lot of courage, because that was her own, hard earned money that she spent half of, and if her parents said no, it would have gone to waste. But, Virginia felt happy, because it gave her a sense of power, like she could do things on her own. Another way Virginia gains confidence is when she is in Washington, she gets an eyebrow piercing. This is going completely against her parents. Also, as Virginia says in the book, she doesn’t like anything drawing attention to her face because she thinks it is ugly. Doing this made her more self-assured with her face. Also, many people notice and compliment her new piercing, which boosts her self-esteem even more.

            Virginia goes through many changes throughout the book, such as realizing her brother is a bad person, her father is demining to women, and she gains confidence. Noticing these kinds can really  make a person’s life turn upside down, like Virginia Shreves’ life did.

revised blog post

NEW AND IMPROVED VERSIONS OF: “The Fault in our Stars” by John Green blog post By Nubia Phillips 805

            I think that the author, John Green was really trying to use setting as a big part of the story. For example, when they had dinner in Amsterdam, when they were in Anne Frank’s house, and finally, all the days when  Gus was dying. This really shows John Green was using setting to shows  how nothing else mattered because Gus and Hazel were so in love.

            The first place I think the author used setting to show Gus and Hazel’s love is when they were eating dinner in Amsterdam. For example, although they were in a public, outdoor restaurant they were still in a very much in a privet environment. (Green 94) For example, they gave many examples such as “cyclist pedaled fast, well dressed men and women on their way home from work…”(Green 100) they described the surroundings, but not very well. They were also doing things that may seem like they are very pritvate such as sharing secrets and things like that. This shows that the setting is not very important. Only Gus is important in Hazel’s eyes, and the other way around. If the setting really was so important, it would have been elaborated more, or Gus and Hazel would have talked about it more. 

            The second place I think the author used setting to demonstrate the lack of importance in anything else other than Gus to Hazel is when they were in Anne Frank’s house.(Green 102) This is because they kissed. This was a museum and there were many other people there. The text says that “My hand let go of the oxygen cart and reached up for his neck…” (Green 103)Hazel’s oxygen cart is very important to her. It is essentially what keeps her alive. She just dropped it in a minute for Gus. Also, other people in the museum were looking at them, but they didn't care. This is also really importnat becuase Hazel is kind of shy and difinitley doesn't like drawing attention to herself. Doing something like this that could easily draw attention to herself shows that she doesn't care about anything or anybody else  becuase Gus is what is really important to her. 

            The final example of John Green using setting to show how intimate Gus and Hazel’s love is and nothing around them  can hinder that, is when Gus was dying. When this was happening, Hazel would come over to Gus’ house everyday and just keep him company.(Green 215) This shows love becuase Gus didn't do much of anything when he was dying. Yet, Hazel still enjoyed his company and the other way around. The text says “When I got his face so nose-touchingly close so that I could only see his eyes, I couldn’t tell he was sick” (green 223) this shows that even if he was sick, it didn’t matter because she loved him so much. It didn’t matter that the location wasn’t as romantic as it was in Amsterdam because they were in Gus' basement,  but all that Hazel cared about at that moment, was Gus.

            I think that John Green did this in a lot of scenes because setting can be important anywhere if you are with the person you love. Even if you aren’t in the best conditions, it doesn’t matter. Hazel and Gus weren’t always somewhere where it was like in Amsterdam, but they always enjoyed there time together no matter what, and nothing or nobody makes a difference about that. It is basically the same if you are with the right person.

link to first one: https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5078032428573056279#editor/target=post;postID=682588086806330850;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=7;src=postname

An Abundance of Kathrines YA book blog post

Why Colin and Lindsey Should Date

                Colin Singleton has been dating (and getting dumped by) only Kathrines all his life. It has made him a very sad person. So when Colin goes on a road trip and meets a girl named Lindsey he may like, them dating might make him happier, Lindsey happier, and his best friend along with Lindsey’s mother a lot happier as well. Colin and Lindsey should date because it will make a lot of people happy.

                One reason Colin and Lindsey should date is because it would make Colin happy. He might be able to stop his dating theorem and not stress him out. Also, if he keeps doing the theorem, they could do it together and then he would be happy. Colin dating someone who’s name is not Kathrine might help him not be so weird so that more people will like him and that will make him feel better about himself. It would also take Kathrine 19 out of his head, therefore making him not depressed anymore. Also, Hassan wouldn’t be mad at Colin and Hassan is Colin’s only friend, therefore making Colin happy.

                Another reason Colin and Lindsey should date is because it would make Lindsey. Lindsey has had a hard childhood with trying to find herself. Now she is a fake popular person. She should date Colin because she is herself around him. For example, she bites her thumb, which is a privet habit. Also, she lets out her secret love for science and math around him. She even took him to her special spot and almost kissed him. She hasn’t even taken her boyfriend there! This shows that she has a stronger connection with Colin than she does with her boyfriend.

                Colin and Lindsey should also date because it would make Hassan, Colin’s BFF happy and Hollis, Lindsey’s mom happy. It would make Hassan happy because they would both have girlfriends for once and then Hassan wouldn’t have to feel left out whenever Colin finds another Kathrine. Also, Colin would stop complaining about not having a girlfriend and Kathrine 19. This would make Hassan happy because he feels that Colin is selfish and only talks about himself. This would make Colin talk about himself more, therefore making Hassan happy. It would also make Hollis happy because she doesn’t like Lindsey’s current boyfriend. Colin is smart and that might encourage Lindsey to leave Gutshot and do something with her life. This would even make everybody surrounding the protagonist happy.

                There are many reasons why Colin and Lindsey should date, but it would mostly just everybody around them including themselves a lot more happy. And that is very important. 

blog review

f yoBlog Review

                I read Megan’s blog and it was good. I think this because she used many intriguing quotes that really convince the reader of her point. For example she uses quotes that are surprising and will really brainwash the reader into thinking she is right. For example “there are nights where I go to bed and I’m starving” this quote is very convincing because nobody wants to be starving. Also, the word starving  makes it seem like the person who said that is going to die or something, making it seem more extreme.

                Megan also uses her own opinion at the end which makes it seem more convincing. This is so because it shows that this is a real person’s opinion. This can really effect the reader’s thinking because it shows a real person just like you. Also , Megan really sounded professional when she stated her opinion. This makes the reader want to trust her more because she sounds smart.

                I think I learned from this that being professional when stating your opinion is important. Before, I didn’t really realize how important it was to sound important as long as you just have the right facts. But, I learned that it is most important that you sound like you know what you’re talking about, because that in itself could convince somebody our point.

critical analysis

Nubia’s Fabulous Critical Analysis for non-fiction book

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            I think the author wants the reader to know that youth homelessness is a problem that can only be solved by the kids themselves, and that most kids choose to live on the streets. The main idea of the text is that most homeless kids don’t want to be felt bad for because they choose to live on the streets and live a dangerous lifestyle despite the other safer options there are for them. For example, people often get attacked by a loved one on the street because the loved one blacks out. This is when someone gets so drunk, that they don’t remember anything at all and they don’t know what they are doing. This shows that they are choosing to lie a dangerous lifestyle and stay with these people who are hurting them because of petty issues such as being too drunk. Another example of this is jewel, who “…used the blackout excuse for her boyfriend’s attack on her..” jewel was attacked so hard that she had a seizure. Her boyfriend was afraid he would get in trouble for hurting her, so he just left her there having a seizer for a whole day. Jewel stayed with her boyfriend after that. This shows that even though he was a danger to her life, she stayed with him. Also, many kids who have the  option to go live in a homeless shelter don’t because they think they have too many rules and they want to be free. One teen even said straight up that he chose the street lifestyle for a reason and that he doesn’t want to live in a shelter.

            I think the author wants us to not feel bad for homeless youth because they clearly chose that lifestyle and are very happy with it. One way the author does this is by making it seem like the kids know a lot of things. For example, when she goes to the squat, the kids tell her not to go in because it is dangerous, and she takes their advice, showing that the street kids  know best. Another way the author does this is by including quotes from the street kids. This is really helpful because it shows directly what the kids say. Another way the author makes us not want to feel bad for homeless youth is by showing how they refer to themselves as: “travelers”  calling themselves this, makes it look like they like being homeless because most people like traveling. She could have just called them homeless. But, she called them travelers, making their lifestyle sound more appealing.

            I think that the author wanted us to not feel bad about homeless youth because they don’t feel bad for themselves. I used to think that homeless youth were living horrible, loathsome lives that they hated, but now, I think that they are completely ok with the lives they are living, and choose not to go anywhere safer than the streets. I would like to learn about what the kids in homeless shelters think about their situation.

YA Book Blog Post

YA Book Blog Post

                In the book “Ali’s Pretty Little Lies” by Sara Shepard, Courtney pretends to be Ali for a year. Throughout the book, we learn that she has been deprived of a normal life. Her twin started torturing her in third grade and it ended with her in a mental house. She came back to visit her family one day and ended up switching places with her twin. I think she did this because she missed her old life.

                One reason I think she misses her life is because when she goes on her dates with Nick. On her dates, there is always something that reminds her of her old life. For example, when they are on the merry go round, the text says “Ali’s heart beat along with the bass drum that accompanied the carousel’s old timey song.” When it says old timey, this shows that it reminds her of old times. Also before that, it says that she used to go on the carousels with her sister, before things went wrong. Also, Nick reminds her of old times because he used to know Ali, and this is a direct connection with her once loved sister. This shows that she could have admitted to being somebody else for a year, but she loved her life in Rosewood so much that she decided to stay.

                Another reason she switched places with Ali because she misses her life is because all the things that happened to her when she was as the preserve and Radley. For example, when she was talking to Nick, she said that at Radley, she had a pet hamster. She said that he was her only friend. When things her normal with her and her sister, her sister was her best friend. She wanted to feel like she had a friend again. Also, in the prologue the text says “Off Courtney went, away from her family, away from everything she knew.” I think that when she came back to Rosewood to be Ali because she missed her family, and the only way she was able to be with them was being somebody else. For her it was worth it because she missed them so much and long for a normal life. Being somebody else, was the closest thing to it. She was not used to being locked up and her parents never visited her.

                The final reason I think “Ali” switched places with Ali because she missed her life is because she was depressed in Radley and the preserve. For example, the text says that the first few months she was in Radley, she just sat in bed and didn’t do anything. It said that the workers at Radley tried to get her to participate in activities with the other kids, but she didn’t. This shows that she didn’t want to do anything. That she instead of trying to do something that might make her happy, she decided to stay sad. Also, I think “Ali” was depressed at Radley because she got a pet hamster. Although this is a good thing, and the text says that she was one of the most behaved kids at Radley, there had to be another reason for her to get a pet. I think the workers at Radley gave her a pet because they felt bad for her. I think this because you don’t just give someone a pet. They probably gave her the hamster because they thought she needed a friend.

                Poor “Ali” had been deprived of her family for years, and didn’t have a normal one since she was in third grade. Her only option was to switch places with her perfect twin when she had the chance. She only had a year to live the perfect life she dreamed for years until she dies. If you were longing for a perfect or even just normal life, would you do something so horrible?

argument essay about ya fiction

Why Young Adult Fiction Should have warnings

“…It was all… suicide and self-mutilation, this dark, dark stuff” says Amy Freeman, a highly

concerned mother of three in the article “Darkness Too Visible” by Megan Cox Gurdon. In young

 adult

 fiction these days, extreme violence such as rape, murder, and other awful things are normal. This is concern for many parents, and to others, not so much. This is why teens should not be limited to YA fiction, but there should be an age rating or a warning of some kind for sensitive readers.

                One reason YA fiction should have age ratings is because past suffering kids might want to divert themselves from dark YA fiction to avoid getting apprehensive about frightening topics covered in these novels. For example, in the article “Darkness Too Visible” by Megan Cox Gurdon, it says that a library in Kentucky challenged a gruesome book called “Scars”, because it could cause a previous self-mutilator to harm themselves again. An age rating could help solve this problem, because a person who cut themselves before would know not to read this tempting book because they would get sensitive. Also, not everybody would have to suffer. Comparatively, another example of age ratings working for this cause would be in the previous article, it says “books focusing on pathologies help normalize them and, in the case of self-harm, may even spread their plausibility and likelihood to young people.” This shows that not only kids with previous problems, just kids in general can be affected by these scarring novels. For example, characters in book that found joy or relief in hurting themselves, might encourage kids or give them new ways to commit self-harm.

                Not only kids, but also parents should be considered in the decision of why shady YA fiction should have age ratings is because if kids want to read it, but their parents are uneasy about letting them, the parents can decide what is admissible for them to read. Also, since some parents are a little looser about what their kids read, they will have a different standard. Take relaxed author of the article “Has Young Adult Fiction Become Too Dark?” and mother, Mary Elizabeth Williams, takes her kids to the library very frequently and has yet to find a book she wouldn’t let them read. This shows a kind of parent that would ignore ratings. And then there’s the concerned Amy Freeman. A poor mother of three who couldn’t find a seemly book for her daughter. “Nothing, not a thing I could imagine giving my daughter. It was all vampires, suicide and self-mutilation, this dark, dark stuff.” She says in the article “Darkness Too Visible” by Megan Cox Gurdon. This shows a parent that would probably need an age rating on books to know what is tolerable for her kid to read. These two very different parents show two very different types of child situations as well. It could be possible, that a kid wants to read something, but the parent knows what is right for them to read and what is not. In another example from, “Darkness Too Visible” it says “’We like to have the adult perspective, but we try to target teens because that’s who’s reading it’ the book stayed on the shelves.” This is a bad idea because they are basically putting a less experienced child’s opinion first instead of an adult, who is responsible for the child in the first place. This could result in many dreadful things for the child such as self-harm or grotesque images in the child’s mind imprinted forever.

                Although many people say an age rating will not cover all the topics and reasons why parents would not let their kids read a book. They may say that an age rating is only going to determine what is appropriate for kids. This is counterfactual. Like a movie, an age rating would include why this book is challenged or rated the way it is. Parents or even kids have many different reasons why they would like a book to be banned. For example, the video “Book Under Fire” which took place in Conrow, Texas, told the story of a girl named Diana who was upset a book she had to read for school. The main reason she was upset was it degraded christians. This is an example of only someone from this religion getting upset. If someone from this religion sees a warning, they will know to ignore it because it won’t offend them. Correspondingly, like the library in Kentucky from the article “Darkness Too Visible” by Megan Cox Gurdon, banning the novel “Scars” might only benefit the people who self-harmers. And for the readers who never self-harmed, nor have ever thought of it, would only be deprived of a novel that they might have wanted to read. That wouldn’t be fair. An age rating would help fix this problem because someone who used to self-harm and thinks that this book might cause them to relapse, wouldn’t read this book based on the rating. Someone who know that it won’t affect them negatively, would ignore the rating.

                Overall, a warning of any kind would help people who have a problem with some books and people who don’t. It will help people that do, because they will know what and what not to read. Age ratings will make it fair for everyone. Taking a book away from a small group that has a problem with it isn’t fair to the people who wanted to read it. YA fiction can teach lessons, and taking those lessons away from the people who want read these books, won’t get to connect to characters, and learn about life. Yes, people think they are too young and should save their innocence, but they need to find out what it’s like in a book, before it happens to them in person so they can prepare for life. And if they feel that they  don’t want to read this book, then they don’t have to based on the rating. But it is not fair to take it away from everybody else by just strait up banning it.

Non fiction critical analysis

Non-Fiction critical analysis

                In the article “Should Young Adult Books Have Age Ratings?” by Husna Haq, Haq wants us to know that G.P. Taylor and Patrick Ness had an idea to not ban books, but to make them have age ratings. In Haq’s eyes, this is a great idea because books will not be limited to kids, but they can make the decision for themselves whether or not they wanted to read these books or not based on the age rating. One example Haq uses is the quote “This is the most frightening thing that has ever been written for kids.” By G.P. Taylor. To show that even an author can write scary things for kids unknowingly and that is why books should be rated by an expert. She also tells the story of how Disney channel is supposed to be for kids, but it shows kids disrespecting their parents, whereas YA fiction teaches lessons. Some, some parents might not approve of. She also compares the internet, which does not have ratings and has a lot more worse things than YA fiction, to YA fiction, which with age ratings, is a lot better than the internet.

                Haq hopes to persuade readers that if YA fiction had age ratings, everybody would be happy. The people who don’t want their children reading this kind of literature will not read the books that are for their age and the people who just don’t care, their kids can just read anything. One way she does this is by using quotes from real writers that are a little bit exaggerated as well. This helps her argument because to most people, authors are a reliable source. This is because they are the ones who write the books, being the experts. She uses the quote: “This is the most frightening thing that has ever been written for kids.” This is probably not the most frightening thing for kids, but this language helps scare the readers into believing her claim. She also says in the article that Taylor went to scholastic to propose the idea of age ratings on YA fiction after that she says “Given the less-than-warm response…” this shows that scholastic was less than warm to giving age ratings and that shows a negative rate to scholastic.

                At first, I thought that age ratings on YA fiction was a stupid idea because kids would ignor them, but now I think that they would be good because it depends on what kind of kid is reading the book. For example, when Taylor says “This is the most frightening thing that has ever been written for children” that was his opinion. Another child may have this opinion as well. Whereas another kid might have a completely different opinion. That is where age ratings come in. if a child sees an age rating that they don’t think will affect them, then they will just go along and read the book. But, if someone who thinks that this book will scare them or affect them in a negative way.

YA book blog post

“The Fault in our Stars” by John Green blog post By Nubia Phillips 805

            I think that the author, John Green was really trying to use setting as a big part of the story. For example, when they had dinner in Amsterdam, when they were in Anne Frank’s house, and finally, all the days when  Gus was dying. This really shows John Green was using setting to shows  how nothing else mattered because Gus and Hazel were so in love.

            The first place I think the author used setting to show Gus and Hazel’s love is when they were eating dinner in Amsterdam. For example, although they were in a public, outdoor restaurant they were still in a very much in a privet environment. For example, they gave many examples such as “cyclist pedaled fast, well dressed men and women on their way home from work…” they described the surroundings, but not very well. They were also doing things that may seem like they are very pritvet such as sharing secrets and things like that. This shows that they are not very important. Only Gus is important in Hazel’s eyes, and the other way around.

            The second place I think the author used setting to demonstrate the lack of importance in anything else other than Gus to Hazel is when they were in Anne Frank’s house. This is because they kissed. This was a museum and there were many other people there. The text says that “My hand let go of the oxygen cart and reached up for his neck…” Hazel’s oxygen cart is very important to her. It is essentially what keeps her alive. She just dropped it in a minute for Gus. Also, other people in the museum were looking at them, but they didn't care.

            The final example of John Green using setting to show how intimate Gus and Hazel’s love is and nothing around them  can hinder that, is when Gus was dying. When this was happening, Hazel would come over to Gus’ house everyday and just keep him company. This shows love becuase Gus didn't do much of anything when he was dying. Yet, Hazel still enjoyed his company and the other way around. The text says “When I got his face so nose-touchingly close so that I could only see his eyes, I couldn’t tell he was sick” this shows that even if he was sick, it didn’t matter because she loved him so much. It didn’t matter that the location wasn’t as romantic as it was in Amsterdam because they were in Gus' basement,  but all that Hazel cared about at that moment was Gus.

            I think that John Green did this in a lot of scenes because setting can be important anywhere if you are with the person you love. Even if you aren’t in the best conditions, it doesn’t matter. Hazel and Gus weren’t always somewhere where it was like in Amsterdam, but they always enjoyed there time together no matter what, and nothing or nobody makes a difference about that. It is basically the same if you are with the right person.

"Faithfull Elephants" by Yukio Tsuchiya

“Faithfull Elephants” by Yukio Tsuchiya

                The story “Faithfull Elephants” by Yukio Tsuchiya is a tragic story about what comes along war. In the story, World War II caused the zoo keepers at the Ueno Zoo to kill all the animals. Including three very symbolic elephants named John, Tonky, and Wanly. Yukio Tsuchiya uses John in the story to symbolize strength.

                John was a big sign of strength in the story because no matter how many times and ways they tried to kill him, he wouldn’t die. For example, they tried to kill him by poisoning his food. This didn’t work. The text says “He ate the good potatoes, but each time he brought a poisoned potato to his mouth, he threw it to the ground…” This shows strength because John is showing that he can last longer than that and that he won’t go down so quickly.

                Another reason John symbolizes strength is because when the zoo keepers found that trying to poison John with potatoes was impossible, they tried to inject poison into him. This really represents strength and toughness because the text says: “…John’s skin was so tough that the big needles broke off with a loud snap one after another.” This shows that instead of the needles killing John, john is killing the needles.

                The final reason John symbolize strength is because the author used forceful onomonopia to make john seem more strong. For example, when the zoo keepers tried to kill him with needles, they went “snap!” and when he threw the potatoes to the ground, they went “kerplunk!” this shows strength because the loud noises really emphasize strength and power over the war.

                The story “Faithfull Elephants” by Yukio Tsuchiya displays through animals how in a situation that may seem like is has no bright side, there is a sign of strength to keep you going. That sign of strength may even be in the thing that seems to be bringing you down.

               

argument essay

Youth homelessness is becoming more and more common nationwide. Many may be also saying that the child is to blame. This is not the case. Most of the reason is either the state’s fault or even the parent’s.

            One way it’s the parent’s fault is because many parents struggle with addiction. Take twelve year old Brianna DeMaio, for example. Her mother had an alcohol problem. The article “I’ve Been Homeless for Six Years” says that after loosing her job, DeMaio’s mother moved in with her boyfriend, leaving twelve year old Brianna to fend for herself on the streets. DeMaio, eighteen now sleeps under the bleachers of her old high school. This shows how caretakers not always being responsible leads to situations that children may not be able to or know how to handle.

            It could also be the state’s fault. First of all, homeless shelters have lots of people. This leads to lack of space. For example, the article “I’ve Been Homeless for Six Years” says: “Lots of demand, little supply: a shelter for homeless youth in Seattle assigns available beds by lottery.” If the lottery get filled up, there is not going to be any other space for more people. After all “There are only 4000 shelter beds for accompanied homeless across the U.S.” the article also states that in more rural areas, you have to walk a lot more to find a homeless shelter because of lack of public transportation and how everything is so spread out. This shows that if the state just put a little more effort into this such as more soup kitchens, more homeless shelters or more public transportation, we could minimize the amount of youth homelessness.

            Many may say that it is the child’s fault because they break rules. For example, Joey Perrins-Lane, fifteen was kicked out of the house by his mother when he was caught doing drugs. Although Joey should not have been doing drugs, there were so many other things his mom could have done to have him stop doing drugs or get help. But instead, she decided to kick him to the curb. Also many kids run away. Yes, kids should not be running away, but some are running away because they are being abused by their parents and feel unsafe.

            Child homelessness is not the child’s fault. Children can’t always handle the situation that they are put into. Its not their fault because they don’t make money so they can’t get back up off their feet. If you were a scared, homeless child, what would you do?

Summer Reading Response

         

Summer Reading Response for "If I Stay" By Nubia Phillips 805                                                                 This summer I read the book "If I Stay". This book was about a girl named Mia who gets in a car accident and her whole family dies. She is in a coma and has to decide whether or not to wake up from her coma. At the end of the book, she decides to live.
          There are many reasons why I think she did this. One reason is near the middle of the book, Mia asks her boyfriend, Adam to write a song for her. He said that he wasn't good at writing about things that make him happy. Mia had always wanted Adam to write her a song. At the end of the book, Adam ends up writing a song for Mia because he was sad that she was going to die.
          Another reason why I think Mia decided to stay was because she found out that she got into Julliard. This may seem like a petty reason to live. Just because she got into the school of her dreams, but there are other reasons that connect to this. One is she realized that life is an opened door and there are so many opportunites in the world along with Julliard. Also, playing the cello was her passion, and would miss it if she died.
           My final reason why I think she stayed was she needed to be strong for her family, friends, and boyfriend. Her grandfather said it would be okay if she decided to go or stay, but then he started to cry so she thought she should stay for him. Also, when she went out onto the balcony, Adam and Kim were crying together this made her want to stay for them as well. Kim and Adam were also throughout the book trying to sneak in even though they weren't family. This shows their  love for her and she returned the love to them by coming back to life.
            These are the reasons why I think Mia decided to stay. Mia could have given up on life and just not lived, but she was strong and went with the pain that comes with once having a family and in seconds, not. I think it was a good idea on her part for her to stay.