"On Dunpster Diving"

Sydney Rose
Mrs. Parkinson
English IIIB
13 April 2016
     The author reduces the stigma of poverty throughout the article. Towards the end the author says, "by far the best way to go through a Dumpster is to lower yourself into it" (Eighner 723).  To most people, the thought of lowering yourself into a dumpster is repulsive. To Eighner, it's the best way, as he explains further on in the paragraph when he says, "most of the good stuff tends to settle at the bottom because it is usually weightier than the rubbish" (Eighner 723).
     The author also knocks on those who don't dumpster dive. He says. "perhaps everyone who has a kitchen and a regular supply of groceries, has, at one time or another, made a sandwich and eaten half of it before discovering mold on the bread or got a mouthful of milk before realizing the milk had turned. Nothing of the sort is likely to happen to a Dumpster diver because he is constantly reminded that most food is discarded for a reason" (Eighner 714).  He is explaining that dumpster diving has its benefits, which not all people realize.

     While everyone else is throwing away perfectly good food and getting sick over spoiled food, Eighner is eating happily.

Kindness

“’If I was a relative of yours I’d shoot myself’” (Steinbeck 24) George says to Lennie in Of Mice and Men.  Is he really being mean or is it just a joke?  I think it’s a little bit of both.  George and Lennie are an inseparable duo that look after each other.  When Lennie gets himself into trouble, like with the dress in Weed, George protects him and bails him out.  Although I think George is thankful to have someone to travel with and be his friend, I think he beats himself up a little bit for it being Lennie, who he constantly has to look out for.  George wants a little more freedom than he gets with Lennie, and it causes him to make mean jokes that aren’t actually true. 

            Although the jokes aren’t returned, it could also be the kind of friendship that George and Lennie have.  I have friends that make fun of me and I make fun of them, but it’s not harmful in any way because we know the other person is joking.  Lennie could know that George doesn’t mean what he says about him, so he doesn’t care George isn’t kind to him.  All the nice things George does for Lennie outweighs the “harmful” things said.  

Harlem Renisance Poetry

When studying historical poems, it can be hard to interpret the meanings within them.  But, when given a closer look, these deeper meanings become evident.  Countee Cullen’s poem “Tableau” mentions “That lightning brilliant as a sword / Should blaze the path of thunder” (11-12).  At a glance, one might miss the deeper meaning within this metaphor.  But, this metaphor is what gives the student an ability to take something away from the poem.  The poem previously talked about two biracial friends walking together, and the toll it takes on the people around them.  When this metaphor is added to the end, it allows the reader to see the significance within the poem by showing the reader that a small spark, such as two biracial friends walking together, can pave way for an even bigger boom, such as the end of segregation.  The smallest of acts can lead to the biggest of outcomes.  

George Saunders, “The Importance of Kindness”

They employ techniques of narrative.

     George Saunders does this especially well in his speech. He starts off by describing this girl that moved to his school.  The imagery is strong when he says, "Ellen was small, shy, and she wore these blue cats eye glasses that, at the time, only old ladies wore.  When nervous, which is pretty much always, she had a habit of taking a strand of hair in her mouth and chewing on it" ("The Importance of Kindness").  Sharing this information with us allows the listener/ reader to get a mental picture what Ellen looked like and how she acted, adding to her characterization.
     After Saunders is done describing her, he moves on to the fact that she was bullied.  He supports this claim with dialogue from other kids and what they'd say to her.  For example, the kids would say, "your hair taste good?" ("The Importance of Kindness").  When Saunders shares this piece of evidence with us, we, as readers, feel more sympathetic for Ellen.  The fact that he gave an example of what the kids would say gets our attention and is more powerful than just saying she was bullied.  It was previously mentioned that she chewed on her hair, but now we know that she was bullied for that reason, furthering Ellen's characterization.
     The greater idea is apparent by the end of the speech.  Saunders says, "what I regret most in my life are failures of kindness.  Those moments when another human being was there in front of me, suffering, and I responded sensibly, reservedly, mildly" ("The Importance of Kindness").  The moral of his story was to not be a bystander-to help others in need when they need it, instead of just letting it happen.

They offer surprising information and observations.

     Saunders surprised me when he said that what he regretted was that he failed to help Ellen and be kind to her.  You would think that'd he would regret something that seemed bigger, like where he went to college or something, but instead he regrets not standing up to people and not being kind.  He used a matter-of-fact tone when he said that's what he regretted, since he gave examples of why he shouldn't regret how he treated Ellen.  He says, "relative to most of the other kids, I was actually pretty nice to her, I never said an unkind word to her, in fact I sometimes even mildly defended her" ("The Importance of Kindness").  

     

Vignette from Catcher in the Rye

The vignette that I chose was from chapter 16, when Holden is talking about the museum.  Within this vignette, Holden says, "the floor was all stone, and if you had some marbles in your hand and you dropped them, they bounced like madmen all over the floor and made a helluva racket, and the teacher would hold up the class and go back to see what was going on" (Salinger 134).  This moment within the vignette was especially powerful, because you get to see a character trait of Holden, through showing, not telling.  By dropping the marbles, you can tell that he is not one to follow rules, and that he wants to do his own thing. It also shows that Holden wants to be funny to others, because his classmates probably laughed when this happened.

Catcher in the Rye 9-10

Option 1

As the article says, "you just might have a rattle, as well" ("Your Rattle No One Else Can Hear?").  For Holden, this rattle is the death of his brother, Allie.  Although he died a few years ago, Holden is still sensitive about his death and is depressed that he no longer has anyone to talk to. Allie's baseball mitt that Holden keeps helps him deal with his death in its own way. The article is really about things that shake up our lives that we're dealing with, but maybe other people aren't dealing with and/or can't relate to the pain you're feeling.

Not many people know about the baseball mitt; Holden keeps it to himself and doesn't share it with others unless he's really close with them.  He says, "all I had to do was change Allie's name so that nobody would know it was my brother and not Stradlater's" (Salinger 44).  In the article, the salesman couldn't hear the rattle.  This is symbolizing people that aren't close to the author, and how the salesman doesn't share the same pain as the author does.  Then, there are also people who do know about the baseball mitt, just like the husband in the article, since he heard the rattling of the car, and it affected him, too.

The author of the article uses the simple rattle of the car to push forward the greater idea of other people not understanding pain in our lives to help simplify it.  Most of us have experienced how annoying a car rattle is, and we know what it's like to try and show the rattling (or something else) to someone and it's gone.

The loss of his bother has left Holden without anyone to talk to.  In chapter 9 we see him trying to communicate with the taxi driver when he says, "by any chance, do you know where they go, the ducks, when it gets all frozen over?" (Salinger 67). This proves that the death of his brother has rattled up his life.  

Looking for Alaska- Summer Assignment Post 4

I chose to read this book because I read The Fault in our Stars, also by John Green, and loved it.  When I saw another John Green story was an option to read, I didn't even give the other books a second thought.  I had also heard good things about Looking for Alaska from friends and online reviews.  I knew I'd love the book and I wanted to make my summer reading as enjoyable as possible.

Like I said in my earlier post, I would recommend Looking for Alaska by John Green to anyone.  For people who like romance, there's romance.  For the people who like pranks, there are pranks.  For the people who like stories they can relate to, there's real issues that many people can relate to inside the book.  Sure, some guys may not like the romance side of the story, but it actually is a really good book (but then again, what John Green book isn't?).  

If the people that don't like romantic stories look past that one small detail, I think everyone would like it.  There are some points brought out within the book that really make you think about your views, other people's views, and how they relate and how they're similar.  John Green does a really good job of incorporating a lot of religions when talking about religions and a lot of societal issues when talking about societal issues, but he never sways towards one viewpoint or another.  Everyone can agree with at least one point or thought brought out in the book and you may be able to form new opinions after reading.  

I think that if I did have to recommend this book to one group of people in particular, I would recommend it to people who enjoy romance, laughing, and like thinking about the deeper meaning in things, not just thinking at surface level.  

I just want to mention this one point:  the entire story does not require deep thinking.  Most of the story is easy to understand and a light read.  So don't be turned away by me saying that there's deeper meaning and you just want a story to read, not a story you have to think about.  There's a good balance.