Fatelessness Book Trailer

Written Task

Why Us?

I was at school when the teacher called my name and told me the principal was looking for me. As I entered his office he told me my mother needed me back home because father was feeling sick. I was glad to be asked to leave school because my classmates were not being so nice to me. Second World War had started and they said it was the Jewish’s fault. So I ran back home with the schools permission and got to my house, luckily, I had my keys, or I would have been waiting a long time since no one really hears the door knock. Father was lying on the couch and looked very happy to see me. I asked him where mom was, I could barely hear him so I had to look for myself, it’s like he couldn't even speak because of the fever, so I searched the house and found her in the kitchen.

She said she needed some ingredients and she couldn't leave father by himself, so she made a list and asked me to go to the market as fast as I could. On the way to the market I felt stared at by many people. I went inside the market and got the ingredients mom needed, I only needed some potatoes that were dad’s favorite on mom’s homemade soup, unfortunately an old man took the last ones a few minutes ago. I paid the cashier and later head home to give mom the ingredients. After doing my job It was already 6:00 pm and school finished between 2:00 and 3:00 pm. I still didn't have something for lunch so I decided to have mom’s soup leftovers for dinner. I had to eat by myself as mom was helping dad on the couch to hold the spoon in order to eat. After dinner it was already time to go to bed, and I had school next day so had to rest a lot.

It wasn't my alarm the one who woke me up in the morning; it was my mother who by the look on her eyes seemed very worried. She was shaking me and telling me several times to get dressed and go to the living room.  In the living room there was mom and dad as usual and 3 German officers who didn't look so friendly. Each one of them had a cloth with a yellow star, they called it a yellow badge, and told us we should always have it on ourselves in order to be identified as Jewish. If we didn't use the yellow badge it was against the regulations and it was not convenient to be against them.

It was just a month ago since the Second World War started, and Germans were already making us do things we had no interest on doing. Mother said it was better to stay home and skip school; we should wait until people on the streets have a clear idea of what is happening to the Jewish community, they could still think it was our fault. So I obeyed my mother and skipped school. I had rest plenty on the last few days, so I decided to get up early next morning and get a good shower. When I went back to school using the yellow star, it was like everyone respected me and was a better person with me. I wasn't the only one wearing a yellow badge, there were a couple of classmates who were also Jewish and had to use the star because of the regulations. Classes were normal, on break I decided to spend my time with the other Jewish kids. One of them was about my age, his name was Amir, he lived very lose to our house and was very friendly. After school I spent the day on his house, Amir’s father died when he was 5 years old and he lived with his mother and both of his grandparents. I almost forgot that the curfew was until 9:00 pm so I had to leave in a hurry.

Years have passed and everything has been almost the same here, but from what I have heard on other radios it’s been awful, they have been separating families and sending some of them to concentration camps. Here in Budapest it has not been that bad. We just follow the regulations such as the curfew and wearing the yellow badge and everything seems okay. Today there was something different. Mother told me we were moving, she said we couldn't take all of our belongings; we should just pack the right amount of luggage. As I went through the living room, I could overhear mom and dad’s conversation. They were talking about how it was not our choice, we didn't decide whether to move or not, or even where to move. It was the Germans decision and we could not say no. We had to follow the rules and keep up with the regulations. We were not the only ones, Poland already went through this and all the neighbours who were Jewish were also moving to the Ghetto.

I went to Amir’s house to say goodbye and also to see if he knew something that I didn't  but no one answered the door. I peeked in the window, everything was messed up, the luggage they were packing, the bags were opened and all their belongings on the floor.

Rationale

I have chosen to write a new imaginary chapter that comes before the first chapter, in other words a new opening to the novel “Fatelessness”. My written task is an exploration of the effects on the way that the Jewish community In Budapest lived before and during the beginning of the Holocaust which is between 1938 and 1945, and how it affected their daily life. The purpose of this new chapter is to provide some historical context to the novel.

I decided to write this chapter between September 1939, when Second World War began, and the spring of 1944, when the Jewish community in Budapest were sent to live in the Ghetto. The narrator continues to be Georg Koves, in a first person point of view. To give the audience the opportunity to have a better approach towards Georg Koves perspective and life in the Jewish Community, I used an informal language on my new opening.

The title of this new imaginary chapter is called “Why Us?”.  It’s called like this because it shows a innocent question asked by the Jewish community in general towards the effects they had to go through and suffer because of the Holocaust during the Second World War. It is based on a global discrimination towards them.

Fatelessness: Chapter 2 Analysis

Title of Selection: Fatelessness

Author: Imre Kertész

Genre: Autobiographical Novel

Setting: Budapest, Hungary. 1944. Gerog Koves neighbourhood

Historical Context: World War 2 Holocaust

The author wrote this piece to (author's purpose): Show us the change on Georg's life from being with his father to his new life without him

The main idea of this piece is: Georg's change from a boy who went to school to a working young man.

The message (theme) of this selection which 
the author would like us to "take away" is: We shouldn't be affected by being different.






Characters (major)
Protagonist(s): Georg Koves
Antagonist(s): Nazi Regime
Static Characters: Mr. Suto and older Steiner daughter.

Dynamic Characters: Annamarie.
Did the author use any special literary devices in this selection such as: personification, metaphor, simile, foreshadowing, suspense, flashback, imagery, irony, humor, poetic sound devices such as rhyme, etc... List and give specific examples: 
Allusion, in the part when Georg is discussing about Jewish disadvantages and some Flashbacks during the story, "The incident occurred the day before yesterday, ..."

What was the author’s “tone” toward the subject/person/idea he wrote about?
An informal telling of the story.

What “point of view” was this piece told from? List word clues that indicate this.
Its from Georg's perspective  in a first person point of view narration. ("from which I could see straightaway that the Levente ..." Page 27)

List the conflicts in this selection (internal and/or external):
A internal conflict of this selection (Chapter 2) would be the dilemma or difficult choice Georg is facing after talking to his mother.
A external conflict of this selection would be the problem between the Jewish community and the Nazi Regime.

Fatelessness: Chapter 3

The problems with the Jewish people started with a very low profile, until a moment they killed them for no reason, “… any Jewish passenger who happened to be on the bus should get off.” (PAGE 40) This proves that Jewish people were trying to be separated from the rest of the people; in this case the example is the same as we saw on “THE HELP” movie.

 In order to be separated from the rest, the Jewish people had to wear a Jewish badge, also known as the yellow star or yellow badge. “This did not exactly conform with the letter of the regulations, it’s true, since it meant the yellow stars would not be visible on us…” (PAGE 46) They would not let them take the shirt off at work because they would take off the yellow badge to identify them as Jewish.
"They led us on into a maze of gray building, ever farther inward, before we suddenly debouched onto a huge open space strewn with white gravel..." (Page 56) This is when they take Georg to the concentration camps.

7 Pillars of Jewish Life

Mezuzah: it is a Jewish
household that is affixed to the right side of the door as one enters the room. It is of Biblical origin and therefore carries great weight.

Tefillin: It is a set of small black leather boxes containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the  Torah. The strap is wrapped around the arm.

Shofar: It is a horn blown in synagogues to mark the end of the fast at Yom Kippur.


Hanukkah: It is an eight-day Jewish commemorating the rededication of the Holy temple

Kosher: Kosher foos are those that conform to the regulations of the Kashrut.

Tzedakah: Seen as a religiuos obligation, the Tedakah consists of giving anonymously donations.

Sabbath: Is a weekly day of rest or tiem of worship observed in Abrahamic religions.

Summary of Literary Terms + Tone vs Mood

Tone: Is the author’s attitude towards the writing (his characters, the situation) and the readers. A work of writing can have more than one tone. An example of tone could be both serious and humorous. Tone is set by the setting, choice of vocabulary and other details. Words to Define Tone:: Amused, Humorous, Pessimistic, Angry, Informal, Playful, Cheerful, Ironic, Pompous, Horror, Light, Sad, Clear, Matter-of-fact, Serious, Formal, Resigned, Suspicious, Gloomy, Optimistic, Witty.

Mood: Is the general atmosphere created by the author’s words. It is the feeling the reader gets from reading those words. It may be the same, or it may change from situation to situation. Words to define Mood: Fanciful, Melancholy, Frightening, Mysterious, Frustrating, Romantic, Gloomy, Sentimental, Happy, Sorrowful, Joyful, Suspenseful.


1. allegory: story or poem in which the characters, setting, and events stand for other people or events or for abstract ideas or qualities. Can be read for a literal meaning and on a second, symbolic meaning.
ANIMAL FARM is a tale of animals who take over a farm and an allegory of the Russian Revolution. MOBY DICK is an allegory for America in an imperialistic mode

2. alliteration: repetition of the same sound in a sequence of words, usually at the beginning of a word

• descending dew drops
• luscious lemons

3. allusion: a brief reference to a person,place, thing, event, or idea in history or literature
Wondering if a woman was beautiful enough to “launch a thousand ships” would be an allusion to Helen of Troy in the Odyssey. Also, “Old Scratch” in American literature refers to the Devil.

4. climax: The point in the plot that creates the greatest intensity, suspense, or interest. After this point, nothing can remain the same; greatest turning point in the story.
The climax in THE SCARLET LETTER is when Dimmesdale finally confesses his sins to the crowd

5. connotation: Associations and implications that go beyond the written word
“Eagle” connotes liberty and freedom that have little to do with the word’s literal meaning of describing a bird. In PUDD’NHEAD WILSON, David Wilson is called a “pudd’nhead to connote his foolishness..

6. denotation: dictionary definition of a word
“buying a ranch” denotes purchasing land on which to raise crops and livestock

7. flashback: scene that interrupts the normal chronological flow of events in a story to depict something that happened at an earlier time
When Hester remembers her early life with her family and her honeymoon with Chillingworth, it is a flashback.

8. foreshadowing: use of hints and clues to suggest what will happen later in the story, often used to build suspense or tension in a story
Pudd’nhead’s repeated fingerprinting of Tom and Chambers foreshadows its later importance in the book.

9. gothic: use of primitive, medieval, or mysterious elements in literature. Gothic writing often features dark and gloomy places and horrifying, supernatural events
Edgar Allan Poe’s “Fall of the House of Usher” is a gothic story featuring a large, dark, gothic mansion.

10. hero: a character whose actions are inspiring or noble. Tragic heroes are noble and inspiring but have a fault or make a mistake which leads to their downfall.
Some critics claim that Dimmesdale in TSL is a tragic hero who falls is society due to poor decisions.

11. hyperbole: boldy exaggerated statement that adds emphasis without intending to be literally true.
He ate everything in the house.

12. lyric poem: a melodic poem which describe an object or emotion.
“Heart, we will forget him” describes a woman trying to recover from heartbreak

13. metaphor: a lterary device in which a direct comparison is made between two things essentially unlike
“You are the sunshine of my life.” Here, “sunshine” is being compared to a person. “Death is a long sleep.” Here “death” is being compared to “sleeping.”
14. narrative poem: a narrative poem tells a story in verse.

“Upon the burning of my house” by Bradstreet tells the story of a family coping with a burned home

15. onomatopoeia: use of words that imitate sounds.
“buzz,” “hiss,” “rustle”
16. personification: a literary device in which human attributes are given to a non-human such as an animal, object, or concept
The wind cried through the night as it moved through the trees.

17. plot: sequence of events in a story, usually involves characters and a conflict
Think of the storyline of THE SCARLET LETTER or another book, and name 5 things that occurred in the story in order.

18. point of view: the perspective or vantage point from which a story or poem is told. Three common points of view include: first-person, omniscient, and third person limited.
“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” was told from a third person limited point of view. The narrator of the story told what happened in Peyton Farquhar’s mind, but no one else’s thoughts.

19. setting: the time and place of the story or poem’s action, it helps to create the mood of the story
Poe’s use of dark, mysterious settings helped readers to feel the anxiety he wanted to create when people read his stories.

20. simile: a literary device in which a direct comparison is made between two things essentially unlike usiing the words “like” or “as.”
The dusty road twisted like a snake around the lake. Here, a road is being compared to a snake.

21. soliloquy: A long speech made by a character who is onstage alone and who reveals his/her private thoughts and feelings to the audience.
Romeo, as he is about to kill himself in ROMEO AND JULIET speaks to the audience.

22. stanza: a group of lines in a poem that are considered to be a unit. They function like paragraphs do in prose writing.
The whiskey on your breath
Could make a small boy dizzy;
But I hung on like death:
Such waltzing was not easy

23. symbol: something that means more than what it is; an object, person, situation, or action that in addition to its literal meaning suggests other meanings as well.
The Liberty Bell is not only a bell but a symbol of freedom in the United States. Hester’s scarlet letter symbolized her sin of adultery.

24. theme: an insight about human life that is revealed in a literary work
One of the themes if PUDD’NHEAD WILSON is that everyone suffers in some way in a society that condones slavery.

25. thesis: the organizing thought of an entire essay or piece of writing and which contains a subject and an opinion
“Of the three scaffold scenes in TSL, the third one best encapsulates the theme that self-punishment is the harshest outcome of sin.”

26. tone: the writer’s attitude toward the story, poem, characters, or audience. A writer’s tone may be formal or informal, friendly or anxious, personal, or arrogant, for example
“Hooray! I’m going to get married today!” (ecstatic tone)

27. understatement/litote: literary device that says less than intended. Oppositive of hyperbole. Usually has an ironic effect, and sometimes may be used for comic purposes.
Steinbeck gives Lennie the last name of “Small.” Lennie is a huge, tall man. Lennie is physically oppositive of “small,” yet he is called by this name to draw attention to his real size, and perhaps to 
his small amount of intelligence.

Fatelessness: Chapter 1 Analysis

1. What characters are introduced in this chapter? 
Georg Koves (main character), both of his parents, stepmother, Mr Süto, family relatives (Uncle Willie, Uncle Lajos)

2. Choose two characters and select a quote to describe them physically or psychologically. 
Character: The Baker. "He did not bother returning my greeting as it is well known in the neighborhood that he could not abide Jews"
Character: Annamarie: "She too is fourteen years old, or thereabouts. She has a long neck and is already starting to round out under her yellow star."

3. What is the narrative technique? Provide evidence.
Point of View: First Person. "I didn't go to school today." (page 3) He is the narrator of the story.
Narration: Indirect. "We were already on the upper floor when it occurred to my stepmother that she had forgotten to redeem the bread coupon. I had to go back to the baker's." (Page 12) The narrator is not talking to us but is talking about others.

Speech: free indirect speech (each character talks by their own, they can be described by the narrator but they talk by their own.) "When I was about to set off from the house, even my stepmother had a few private words with me in the hall, just between the two of us. She said she hoped that, on what was such a sad day for us, "she could count on my behaving appropriately." ".
Tense: Past Tense. (I didn't go to school today" (Page 3). The story already happened.
4. Describe the setting of this chapter.
This story takes place in Budapest, Hungary. It can be 1944 because he is in the Ghetto, and in Hungary they were moved to the Ghetto on spring of 1944.

Narrative Techniques

Each author has his own way of writing, this is because of the Narrative Technique they use, each narrative technique is different and makes an author who he is. Each component (4 of them) answers to a question.

Point of View: The point of view is the relation to who is telling the story, we have the narrator of the story, which corresponds to the first person point of view. The reader of the story, which is known as second person point of view. And someone else, and outsider looking in, which is what we call third person narration or point of view.

Narration: This answers to the question Who is the narrator talking to? It can be Direct narration, the narrator can talk directly to the reader, frame narration, a form of direct narration, this is where the narrator tells us someone else's story (although the story is technically told in the first person, we see more of the third person), and Indirect narration, the narrator may not be talking to us. The narrator may be talking to a nebulous or absent audience, telling for the sake of telling a story.

Speech: This answers to the question How does the narrator speak?, How does the narrator have character's speak? Direct speech, the characters speak for themselves. Direct speech includes the use of dialogue and quotations. We hear the character's speak directly. Nothing is summarized for us. Reported speech, opposite of direct speech. Here the narrator summarizes what others have said and done. We are retold a story. Free indirect speech, this is a clever device typical of third person limited narration, where the narrator slips from telling us about the character's thoughts to simple writing the character's thoughts.

Tense: This answers to the question When does the story take place? Past, the story is told in the past tense. Since events are already over, the narrator can decide in which order to tell them and which events are most important. Present, in the present tense, event unfold before the reader's eyes. The narrator is just as surprised by the events as the reader and has no knowledge of where the story is going. Sometimes the story really took place in the past but is told in the present for dramatic effect. This is called the historical present tense. Future, sometimes entire narratives are about events that will happen in the future. These take the form of predictions or instructions.

Anne Frank: Summary of Historical Facts

 Anne Frank is one of the millions of Jewish who suffered in the Holocaust. She was born in the city of Frankfurt am Main in Weimar Germany. She lost her citizenship in 1941 when Nazi Germany passed the anti-semitic Nuremberg Laws. She is known for her diary. In her diary there are her experiences hiding during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World War II. Her diary has been the basis for several plays and films. On the morning of August 4th 1944, the Achterhuis was stormed by German police. The family was transported to the Westerbork transit camp, after that, they were considered criminals and were sent to the Punishment Barracks for hard labor. Anne died in March 1945, when a typhus epidemic spread through the camp, killing 17000 prisoners.

Imre Kertész Interview

1. Before the interview, the presenter visits a monument to the Holocaust created by the American artist Peter Eiserman. Considering the shapes, architecture and general design, in what ways do you think he represents the reality in the concentration camps? 
He mentions that the monument of Peter Eiserman is an attempt to recreate the experience of the concentration camps, it is the main memorial and it makes you feel in a total vulnerability way, trapped on those walls.

 2. Which is the paradox the presenter mentions regarding Imre Kertész and the place where he lives? 
He lives on the same country that tried to kill him, but he lives there because he feels safe there.

 3. Refer to antisemitism before and after Auschwitz according to Kertész. 
He refers to the antisemitism as something else before Auschwitz than after. Those who are antisemitism after Auschwitz, want a new Auschwitz.

 4. In what way do reminders of the past in historical books make us "much richer"? 
It is a dead reminder that will give you different perspectives and therefor makes us much richer.

 5. Which metaphor does Imre use to exemplify the effect of FATELESSNESS on its readers?
People's souls were worried and will be worried when things like the Holocaust happen, that is why they read it.

Holocaust Timeline

Image Analysis

What we can see of the image is that one of the men out stands the other ones. He is much taller and is wearing what appears to be a cape, symbol of power. The Nazi symbol is surrounded by many guns, and is the center. I see a Nazi symbol on a globe, which could mean they rule the world. They are standing in a red floor that could be the enemy's blood. There are many Guns to show what they use to rule the world. By viewing this image I question myself Why do they feel superior? and Is the one wearing the cape Hitler? This image expresses a dark side, with fog, it makes the image look sad because you think of all the innocent people they killed. Jewish people were being murdered by Nazi's.

Men Writing as Women and Women Writing as Men

The activity is to do a research and find two authors, a female one that writes as male and a male one that writes as a female.
First example would be J.K Rowling, she is author of the famous Harry Potter fantasy series. In Harry Potter, the main character is a man, but the author is J.K Rowling, who is a woman.
Second example would be Roddy Doyle, Doyle is the author of "The Woman who walked into Doors (1996), this is a story of a battered wife, narrated by the victim (a woman).
The benefits of writing like this is that you have it from another perspective, a different gender. And the limitations are that you don't have enough experience to write in another gender.
This types of author try to change the perspective, it would be interesting to know how a woman thinks a man is and how a man think a woman is.

Dunkirk Evacuation: Historical Facts

The Dunkirk Evacuation also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk began in May 1940, it consisted in evacuating 338.226 Allied troops from Dunkirk, France between May 27th and June 4th 1940, because they were cut off by the German army on the Battle of Dunkirk. French, Belgian, Dutch and Norwegian ships took part in the evacuation alongside the ships of the Royal Navy. People who were hostile to Hitler thought that Dunkirk was a success, but Hitler thought it was a disaster. Most of the people was evacuated. The evacuation consisted in saving the people, therefore all the guns and tank had to be left behind, and were captured by German forces. Rescued soldiers were able to fight again.

Dunkirk Evacuation

1. What is happening? 
They are evacuation the Allied soldiers from the beaches and harbor of Dunkirk.

2. What ideas or feelings are being suggested? 
Confusion on the soldiers, and hope.

3. Who is the narrator? 
Ian McEwan pretending to be Briony as an old woman.

4. Who is speaking in the passage?
Robbie.


5. Who is seeing the events taking place?
Robbie.

6. What is the setting? 
Dunkirk, France, 1940.
7. What do you know about what is going on?
The Allied soldiers were ordered to evacuate and leave everything behind.

8. Do you think that the passage about the evacuation of Dunkirk would fulfill McEwan's desire to write about the war? Whose vision of the war is depicted: Robbie's, Briony's, McEwan's, or those of his sources?
I think that the passage about the evacuation is the vision of all of them. (Robbie, Briony and Ian.)

Atonement by Ian McEwan

1. What sort of social and cultural setting does the Tallis House create? What emotions and impulses are being acted upon or repressed by its inhabitants? 
The Tallis house seemed to be an old and big house, with a big yard. It showed that the family had power and money, they were a high class family. In its inhabitants, the high class family does not allow Cecilia to have a relationship with Robbie.

2. A passion for order, a lively imagination, and a desire for attention seem to be Briony's strongest traits. In what ways is she still a child? Is her narcissism her inability to see things from any point of view but her own unusual in a thirteen-year-old? 
As she believes that she is an adult, she thinks to know what is happening between Robbie and Cecilia, and trying to help her sister she lies about who was guilty. I think as she thinks to understand everything that is happening, she doesn't see the facts from another perspective.

3. Why does Briony stick to her "version of the story" with such unwavering commitment? Does she act entirely in error in a situation she is not old enough to understand, or does she act, in part, on an impulse of malice, revenge, or self-importance? 
Because she is still a child, although Briony doesn't believe that, she doesn't see everything that is happening, and for example, when she is watching from the window, the doesn't see what really happens and thinking as an adult believes other things. This makes her think that Robbie is dangerous for her sister, so she tries to keep him away from her.

 4. As she grows older, Briony develops the empathy to realize what she has done to Cecilia and Robbie. How and why do you think she does this?
Just by growing up and maybe putting herself in the place of Cecilia, from an older point o f view she realizes that what she did to Robbie and Cecilia was wrong.

Jane Austen and Women's Emancipation

1.- What degrees of emancipation and/or conservative reinforcement of 18th-century family values does Elizabeth Bennett's marriage to Mr. Darcy support?
In those times, women would usually marry people of a high class instead of a mid-class, they were very influenced about this, and the main goal for a women would be getting married, but she was proud of herself and lived the way she wanted, not the way everyone else wanted.

2.-What attitudes to marriage does Pride and Prejudice convey? What other options did Elizabeth Bennett have?
For a woman, the most important thing is to get married, it is the women identity and professional ideal. She had two options, to marry the one he loved or to marry another man of a higher class.




3.- How does this introduction affect your reading and approach to the novel?
It helps us understand the context of the novel, its setting and the main themes.

4.- How could the social circumstances and contexts of Pride and Prejudice apply to different cultures and contexts today?
I think that Pride and Prejudice has and will always been present in human life.

Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice"

1. Why do you think "Pride and Prejudice" continues to be a referent for modern tales?
Although Pride and Prejudice is a story from the early 19th Century, it's topic and themes are still present in our society, therefore it still catches the attention of readers.

 2. What do you think is the effect that these different authors (film directors, producers, modern writers) want to achieve in today's audiences?
I think they are trying to connect those differences between the old day's marriage and today's marriage. 200 years ago the woman was influenced by her family and almost forced to marry a hopefully rich man.  It somehow mixes both different times to a new romance story.

 3. If you had to choose one of the previous versions to analyse, which would be the one and why?
I would choose the original version because it is closer to the classic way. It is more original in the sense of a 19th century romance story. We would have many things to analyse.

P.E.E and Use of Quotations

We can have many ideas but if we don't write them in the correct way, they wont be understand by the reader. That is what PEE is for, PEE stands for Point, Evidence and Explanation. PEE is a very effective way to answer a question.

Point: This is the first step for the PEE structure. This step is based on stating your main idea for the topic or for our answer to the question.

Evidence: In this part we support, or proof out point or ideas. This is quoting to give some evidence of your point being right.

Explanation: As a final step we must explain with our own words our idea or point. Why are we answering this and why do we believe this.

Quoting is a essential part for your evidence. When quoting remember that if the quote is short, you can put it in the same sentence as your text, if it is a long quote it has to be on a line of its own.
After quoting there are certain phrases that are helpful when you explain it, such as: this implies, this suggests, which gives the impression that, possibly, perhaps, this indicates that, this shows, obviously, etc.
Connectives are also useful to help move on your argument, such as: however, therefore, in contrast, because, but, and, furthermore, also, then, later, etc.

Literature "The Leopard" & "Notable American Women"

What is Literature?

Literature is a highly developed use of language in that is the stylized manipulation of language for larger effect (purpose) and/or affect (emotional response)" (L&L Course Companion p.9)

The Leopard Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa (1958)

"Is there any possibility that its a translation that affects the comprehension?"

"Why is there so much difference between the year it was written and the year its based?"

"How is it related to the mythological reference?"

Notable American Women Ben Marcus (2002)

"If Ben Marcus is the author why does he talk about himself like if it was someone else?"

"Related to the first question, if the character has the name of the author, is it a novel or a fiction book?"

"What happens with the father of Ben Marcus, is he in jail?"

To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 12, 13, 14 Analysis Questions

Ch. 15 
1. What is the Ku Klux Klan? What do you think of Atticus' comment about it? 
Ku Klux Klan is an extremely racist group of people, "The Ku Klux's gone, It'll never come back" I think that Atticus is right because Maycomb is a town and Ku Klux Klan is just a group of racist people and if they come there is nothing to do but hide.
2. How does Jem react when Atticus tells him to go home, and why?
He refuses to go home, and stands by his side. He know he is in some sort of danger because of defending Tom Robinson, and the white people just wont stop until Tom Robinson is dead.
3. What persuades the lynching-party to give up their attempt on Tom's life? 
Scout starts talking to Mr Cunningham, Walter Cunningham's father, she tells him to say hi to Walter for her, he then tells the rest to leave.
 Ch. 16 
4. What sort of person is Dolphus Raymond and what is your opinion of him? 
He is a white man that lives with black people and enjoys more time with black people than white, he has to drink so that people believe he is like that because of the alcohol, but he really believes most of white people are just trash.
5. How does Reverend Sykes help the children see and hear the trial? Is he correct in doing so?
As Atticus was helping a black man, all the other black man admired him, they were in favor of Atticus and saw him as a "hero", Reverend Sykes takes the children to the black peoples seat, so that they would hear bad things of his father, and only the truth.
Ch. 17 
6. Choose three quotes from chapter. Explain the context of each, the characters involved, and their relevance for the story, themes and overall message of the novel.

1.- "Did you call a doctor, Sheriff? Did anybody call a doctor? asked Atticus" I think this quote is very important, Atticus asks this several times to both Heck Tate and to Mr Ewell, and both say it was not necessary to call a doctor because she was already beat up, I really don't understand this because if the was really beaten up, they would have more intentions to call a doctor.

2.-"The right side, Mr. Finch, but she had more bruises" This quote said by Heck Tate is referring to the side where the girl was beaten up, this is very important for Atticus in order to defend Tom Robinson, this quote has a relation to my third quote.

3.- "You’re left-handed, Mr. Ewell,” said Judge Taylor." This quote said by Judge Taylor, he is saying what Atticus is trying to say, Mr Ewell is left handed, and it should take a left handed man to beat up Mayella in the right side of the face, so in this way Atticus proves that Tom Robinson cant be the one who beat up Mayella.

To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 12, 13, 14 Analysis Questions

Ch. 12 
1. Comment on Jem's and Scout's visit to First Purchase Church. What does Scout learn about how black people live? 
Calpurnia is the one that takes them to First Purchase, Scout is impressed of how poor they are and didn't have money for hymnal. She realizes that she can already at her age read and there are adult "Negroes" that don't know how to read.
2. Explain why Calpurnia speaks differently in the Finch household, and among her neighbors at church. Ch.13 
She somehow talks with her people, she may think that speaking other ways in the house in front of the children may upset Atticus. The First Purchase Church must be one of the places in Maycomb were Afro American people had their privacy and time away from white, and maybe that is why Lula got angry at Calpurnia because of breaking that "tradition", so it may not be appropriate to talk like a white person in there.
3. Aunt Alexandra thinks Scout is "dull" (not clever). Why does she think this, and is she right?
She believes that Scout is not acting like a real lady and this is why she decides to stay with them.
4. How does Aunt Alexandra involve herself in Macomb's social life? 
She meets new people in the town and has good relations with them, making herself very proud of the Finch Family.
5. Comment on Aunt Alexandra's ideas about breeding and family, in contrast to Atticus' visions. Who's right, do you think? Why? 
Aunt Alexandra believes that every member of the Finch family must act as she would say, a Finch, and this is why she tries so hard on making Scout look like a lady. While Atticus, believes that Scout is a girl who can take care of herself and as she is a girl she must act like so, and not be under so much pressure.
 Ch. 14. 
 6. Comment on Atticus' definition of rape. How suitable is this definition as an answer to Scout?
"He sighed, and said rape was carnal knowledge of a female by force and without consent." Scout believes Atticus but still doubts of what it is, because Calpurnia tried to hide it from her. I think Calpurnias decision of not telling Scout and telling her to ask her father is really good, she is not the one to decide if it is appropriate to answer it to Scout. 

Essay To Kill a Mockingbird

We were given 4 Samples. I chose sample 2, that said, "What impact does setting have on your understanding of the central ideas or themes presented in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird?" I began with a short introduction about the novel and its main idea, the essay had to be based on information and knowledge of the Part 1 of the novel. I choose to use as a Thesis "The issues that occurred on Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird setting affect the way we understand or comprehend this novel." I continued by explaining 3 of the main issues of 1930s. The first one was the Great Depression, I mentioned how this affected the country and its people. As a second issue I mentioned the Dust Bowl, who it affected and why did this happen. As a last issue i mentioned the black community and racism issue during this time, and how it affected both white and black people. I developed each argument with one of the issues, making a relation to the book and quoting important parts were we could see the issues. I finally concluded that the issues that were presented in Maycomb during the 1930s change the way we understand the novel. If we would not have knowledge of the crisis or the dust bowl, or even having no knowledge of how racism was during these times, we would find the book written with a very weird ideas.

The Help

1. In your own words, write what was meant by "separate but equal." How did people in Jackson, Mississippi - including the ladies of the Junior League in "The Help" - try to apply this principle? 
I believe it tries to cover up the truth. If it would be equal it wouldn't have to be separate. People in Jackson Mississippi were told that they had to have a bathroom that would be equal in the meaning of how it is, the bathroom would be the same "construction" but it had to be separate because white people should not use the same bathroom as the "Negroes" because they would catch infections.

 2. Do a simple online research about Jim Crow Laws. Identify what outcomes - forced upon domestic workers - were present in "The Help". 
They are in the movie because of the years that this movie represents. Examples of the Jim Crow Laws on the movie could be the transportation. If we see closely when the maids went home to work, they all came in a same bus that was only being used by black people. And when they use a normal bus they make them leave because a "Negro" just got shot.
 3. Explore the themes in "The Help" and develop your ideas by continuing the following sentence: 
 "The maids in The Help took a risk by telling their stories. Even though they knew they could be shot to death in their front yards, they went ahead with the project. If people are not willing to take risks, no one will understand them and support their cause to solve their problem.

Boo Radley's Secret Diary October 31st

Today I went into the forest because I could hear Scout screaming, it was nearly 11 o clock. Once I got there I could see one of the Ewell’s trying to kill both of Finch’s kids. I had with me a kitchen knife and I was hoping I didn’t have to use it, but Ewell’s only intention was to hurt the boys, so I had to stop him. I just reacted and stuck a knife on his chest, and took the kid who was hurt back home. Once I left the kid on the bed I had to hide. The girl saw me and told Heck Tate that I saved both kids. Heck insisted to let me free, and say that Ewell killed himself.

Boo Radley's Secret Diary August 23rd

Today it was snowing the whole day, I could see that Jem and Scout were taking Miss Maudie´s snow and they built a Snowman. I haven't seen a Snowman in years.
Something interrupted my joy of the day, I could hear firemen coming to town and I could see Miss Maudie´s house on fire. Everyone stand there watching how the house burned to the ground, but thanks to God nobody got hurt.
I could see that Scout was freezing watching the house burn to the ground so I went there and put a coat on her back, she could not notice it was me, if she knew, she could freak out. And after being a ghost on the town I cant just appear out of nowhere.

Boo Radley's Secret Diary July 17th

July 17th
Today three shouting kids woke me up while they were playing. I could recognize two of them from the Finch's home, they are both Atticus kids, Jem and Scout. But there was a third one, its the first time I've seen him, and I believe he has some family relation with Miss Maudie, because the kid is staying at her house. I could hear Miss Maudie telling the kids that old story about me as a child. I think the boys are scared, one came to the house and touched it, but within seconds he was already back at his house without breath. It seems that it was a challenge to touch the house, but the kid ran like if someone was chasing him. I think they dont know I can hear what they are doing.

To Kill A Mockingbird Part 1 Analysis

1. What is the reason for the author's choice of a young narrator? 
He uses a young narrator, Scout, to give a innocent point of view.

2. How does Jem and Scout's views of Boo Radley change during part 1 of the book? 

At first, Jem and Scout believe that Boo Radley is a malevolent phantom who peeped in windows while you were sleeping. But during the first part the way that both kids view Boo Radley changes, because of what he does, for example the gifts on the tree or the time that Scout is very cold watching the house of Miss Maudie burn, Boo comes from behind and puts a coat on her back. They realize that if he really exists, he is not a bad person.

3. Atticus tells the children several times that they need to walk in someone else's shoes before judging the person. Describe times when Atticus, Scout or Jem walk in someone else's shoes. How does this change how they view the situations? What role does this advice play in sympathy and compassion? 
When Jem invited Walter Cunningham for lunch, Scout yelled at him because of drowning the food in syrup, Scout was called into the kitchen by Calpurnia and she punished her, not in a bad way, but she told Scout that Walter was a guest, and she must not treat different people in that way. Here is were Scout "walks" in Walter's shoes, and the realizes the tough life of a poor boy.

 4. How do you think Atticus managed his role as a single parent? 
Atticus had to work almost all day, but he still mad time to spend time with both of his kids and even teach Scout how to read before she went to school. During the day while he is at work he has the help of Calpurnia, their cook.

 5. Discuss race issues in part 1 of the book. 
The race issues come when Atticus has to defend Tom Robinson, a "negro" who is being accused of raping a  white girl. When Atticus accepts to defend Tom, a lot of people in Maycomb start bothering or seeing the Finch family as inferior because of defending the Afro American people.

6. From your reading of part 1, What does To Kill a Mockingbird teach us about how people cope with issues of race and class? Do you classify people in your world as different "folks?" Do you see those sort of distinctions today? 
People were very worried about what others talked about them, but a clear example of fighting against this is Atticus, who, being criticized by the town still defended Tom Robinson and did not cared that he was a negro, he had to have the same rights. At one moment we all classify people, even if we mean no intention at all, there are the stereotypes.

 7. Who is your favorite character from part 1 and why?
My favorite character from part 1 would be Atticus, he is shown responsible of his kids and the whole town. He accepts that poor family's like the Cunningham's pay him with other things than money, and he is the only white man to defend the innocence of a black man trapped in a white society.

Gender Ads Activity

Advertising is a form of communication that is used to persuade people to take some new action. The idea behind the advertising is to persuade a costumer to buy the product. It mostly used images with a few words to persuade.








We had to get in pairs and create two ads, these ads had to be Gender Ads, so one had to be directed to women and the other one to men. My partner was Nicolás Gastó, at first we didn't know what product we could use for each gender, but we finally agreed to use a Beer Advertising directed for men and a special Shampoo that would make your look better for women.

Voice Thread Activity

Contexts and TKM Context of Production

What are Contexts?
During the week we have been preparing To Kill a Mockingbird novel, and we need to learn about the contexts. Context can be defined simply as the circumstances that surround a given text and help to specify its meaning. Context is best expressed as CONTEXTS (plural) because of the wide variety of external forces that affect the general reception or understanding of a work. Context of Production: Critical positions, historical facts, biographical aspects of the author's life. Context of Reception: Once you approach a work as a reader, the meaning that is communicated, that is sent from the text to you, is influenced by everything that you bring to it, from your reading to your personal experiences and biases.



Nelle Harper Lee Biography

Writer. Born Nelle Harper Lee on April 28, 1926, in Monroeville, Alabama. Lee Harper is best known for writing the Pulitzer Prize-winning best-seller To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)—her one and only novel. The youngest of four children, she grew up as a tomboy in a small town. Her father was a lawyer, a member of the Alabama state legislature, and also owned part of the local newspaper. For most of Lee’s life, her mother suffered from mental illness, rarely leaving the house. It is believed that she may have had bipolar disorder.

The Great Depression 1930

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in 1930 after the passage of the United States' Smoot-Hawley Tariff bill (June 17), and lasted until the late 1930s or middle 1940s. It was the longest, most widespread, and deepest depression of the 20th century. The Great Depression had devastating effects in countries rich and poor. Personal income, tax revenue, profits and prices dropped, while international trade plunged by more than 50%, due in large part to the Smoot-Hawley Tariff. Unemployment in the U.S. rose to 25%, and in some countries rose as high as 33% .                                                                   

Dust Bowl

Afro-American Community

The Dust Bowl, or the Dirty Thirties, was a period of severe dust storms causing major ecological and agricultural damage to American and Canadian prairie lands in the 1930s, particularly in 1934 and 1936. The phenomenon was caused by severe drought coupled with decades of extensive farming without crop rotation, fallow fields, cover crops or other techniques to prevent wind erosion.





During the 1930s black were already discriminated against and when the country hit the Great Depression it only got worse. White male employment was the first priority to many so blacks would have a hard time finding jobs. They often lived in the poorest districts and were paid less than white people doing the same job.

To kill a Mockingbird Chapter 1 Analysis

1. What do you learn in this chapter about Maycomb, Atticus Finch and his family? 
Maycomb is a small town in Alabama, it has a very poor condition, especially because of the great depression that was during the 1930's. Atticus Finch is Scouts father, his wife died when Scout was 2 years old. He also has a son, Jem. He is a lawyer and his family were immigrants from England.

2. Describe Calpurnia as Scout depicts her in Chapter 1. 
Scout describes her as near-sighted, squinted, and her hands were as wide as a bed slat and twice as hard. Always ordering Scout out of the kitchen, and Scout mentions she could not discuss with her because Atticus would always be by Calpurnia's side.

3. What does Dill dare Jem to do? 
Dill dares Jem to go and touch the Radley place, this is were Boo Radley lived, they wanted to see how he looked like because of the years that he has been inside.

4. The townspeople of Maycomb have some fears and superstitions about the Radley place. 
Describe these fears and superstitions. 
They were afraid that on the Radley place lived a "malevolent phantom", Boo Radley.

5. How important is bravery to Jem? 
Very much, as Scout's only brother he had to prove that he could protect her at all cause.

6. What do you notice about the narrative voice and viewpoint of the story?
It is narrated by Scout, to give a innocent point of view or perspective of the story.

English Variations Mispronunciation - Sofia Vergara

Sofia Vergara is a Colombian actress and comedian, very well known for her role at Modern Family as Gloria, we can clearly see the mispronunciations of Gloria in the show, this is because of the English Variations, Sofia Vergara as I said is Colombian, therefor she has Spanish as her main language, and English as a second language, so every time she speaks she makes some mispronunciations or changes the words into Spanish words making it confusing for the people who don't know some Spanish.
When we as a class saw the video there were some mispronunciations that we didn't understand but only in English, when she finished some sentences in Spanish or mixed a bit of both, we could understand just fine because we know both Spanish and English, but as we can see in this video, they are having a lot of problem understanding Gloria, creating some issues due to the communication.
Sometimes we can easily identify people who are not native speakers in English because of this mispronunciations. We can see at the end of the video when Gloria yells at them because they were probably making fun of her accent, so she tells them that they try to speak in another language, this making fun of the accents or the English Variations may cause some people to be embarrassed when using them.

Text Analysis "A Language Without Limits"

 The text "A Language Without Limits" refers to the variations that the English language has, its the language globalization, some sort of syncretism in both languages, using English Language and Hindi/Chinese/Arab language to make Hinglish, Chinglish and Arabizi. The author mentions that this "code switching" is liked by language experts, they say "It is perfectly normal and linguistically fascinating..". Instead of being incomplete or just a "copy" of the English Language, experts mention that this language is really a sign of resiliency and creativity.
Maybe the author tries to somehow motivate people who uses this variations by making them read this and letting them know how good and creative, and how it will be used on the future because of using other dominant languages like Hindi or Chinese, this way he tries to get the attention of people with interests in English Variations or people who maybe already use this variations, as he mentions, some people find it embarrassing.

By using a formal language the author tries to inform us and somehow persuade us of the use of the globalization of the language, in this case the English variations, and using not only native English speakers opinions but also experts on language such as Jack Chambers, a professor of sociolinguistics at the University of Toronto, and to mention, that the expert is the one that somehow is approving the use of this language.

Source: Kamel, Deena. 2008. "A Language without Limits."
Toronto Star. 19 August 2008

Reading Comprehension Activity

"Teenagers Internet Socializing Not a Bad Thing" and "How using Facebook could raise your risk of cancer"

1.-What are the opinions expressed by the researchers in texts 2 and 3?
In "Teenagers internet socializing not a bad thing", the researcher talks about how it is good for teenagers to use the current internet and technology, that teenagers will learn the right method to use them and in the future will be able to use the devices in a more advanced way. In "How using Facebook could raise your risk of cancer", by Tamar Lewin, he talks about how kids use it all day, spend the hole day on the internet, specially Facebook, and do not communicate with their parents enough. Kids are isolated, and will have a risk to die because of spending too much time on it. "Blood clot victim, Chris Staniforth, 20, died after spending up to 12 hours at a time playing on his Xbox."
2.-What are the differences in the ways the researchers view community?
One of them views the learning process that we acquire by the technology and the other one the health damages that this technology brings.
3.-What kinds of distinctions do the researchers make (or not make) in relation to communication?
Lewin says that the online communication or messages are almost the same as face to face, he also mentions that with online communication you are able to communicate at all time, while face to face you have to be there. The other text says that if you don't communicate face to face you may have serious health problems, "increased isolation could alter the way genes work and upset immune responses, hormone levels and the function of arteries."

Social Media

1. What's the role of Social Media? 
Improve in this case the product thanks to the possibility for everyone to share their opinions.
2. What's the role of people? 
Rate, share opinions to improve the product.
3. What's the role of fans? 
Make it more popular, more people will be interested.
4. What's the benefit of Social Media to people and/or organizations? 
It is a simple and easy way to communicate what they would want, how they would like it more, etc.
5. What online community do know you it's based on this system? 
The most known, FaceBook and YouTube.
6. Is Social Media the same as a Social Network?
No, Social Media is a way to share information with a audience, everyone is able to do this with an Internet connection.
But Social Network, is where a group of people with common interests, or like-minds, communicate and build relationships through the community.

Online Community

1. What is the issue with identity on the Internet? 
When you access Internet pages and you communicate with someone you don't really know, you cant know for sure who he really is. Many cases of Pedophile are because of the Internet, people access pages were they lie about their age, they have a fake identity and no one knows.
 2. Can you be anyone you want on the Internet? 
Yes, in social networks or communities you just Sign Up with a name and age, there is no way of knowing the truth, although some pages like YouTube now ask for a phone number so they can send a verification code stopping the multiple accounts for each people.
3. Can you be identified by your use of language?
When you talk, depending from where you are people will know, if you are from Latin America and speak English they will probably know, or the Russian English accent. The thing is that when you are writing, there is no way to identify from where is the person you are talking to.