Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

          The book Sarah's Key had two main protagonists. The story shows the life of a young girl named Sarah, and an older woman named Julia. The two stories connect when Julia decides that he wants to find out more about Sarah's story. The story revolves around the holocaust. While I was reading the book, I focused on the archetypes. I focused on the feminist, shadow, and the herald because that is really what the story revolves around.

          The feminist in my story was Sarah for a number of reasons. One example of how Sarah is the feminist in this story is when she put her brother in the closet. When the French police came to her door to take the family, she didn't want them to take her brother because she already had to lie to them about him not being present. Because they had to lie about him not being there, Sarah had to hide her brother in a closet for his well being. While he did die in the end because the family never came back home to help him survive, she did think it was the right thing to do. Another example of how Sarah is the feminist is that, she tried to save her family. When the police came to their house, she wanted to save her brother and dad because they were the only ones that were not present. She and her mom were, and therefore were more in danger. Also, she wanted to run away so that she could be safe and save herself.

          The herald in the book Sarah's Key, are the police that take Sarah and her family  in the beginning of the book. They were the ones who broke her family apart because of the holocaust and brought the family to a camp where the conditions were very bad. Sarah's family thought that the french police were trust worthy, but those were the people that broke her and her family apart.
          The shadow in my book was Julia's husband Bertrend. He was the shadow because of the negative relation ship he had with his wife. Towards the middle of the book, they started to get further apart from each other. Julia had a lot of miss carriages during her lifetime. One day she found out that she was pregnant, and when she told her husband, he told her to get an abortion. Considering she was trying to have a baby for so long, that made her feel very bad, and put a negative impact on her. In addition he is considered the shadow because when Julia was trying to find out more about Sarah's story he discouraged her.

          All in all, the book Sarah's Key was very good. i did think that the writing was not the best that I have ever read. The archetypes though were very clear and I think it allowed for a better understanding of the book.

Non- Fiction Reading Response: Growing Up Saudi

"Saudi Arabia is one of the most powerful nations in the Middle East and important U.S. ally in the region" (Elliott 15). The article Growing Up Saudi by Karen E. Elliott, is about how children in Saudi Arabia grow up, and how and why it is so important to the U.S. saudi is a very strict place, and women don't have nearly the same rights as women. Boys can leave their house and ride their bikes with loud music all around town, but a girl can't leave the house without a chaperone. In addition, dating os forbidden, movie theaters are banned, and concerts are outlawed. Ny boy or girl that is unrelated basically have no relationship with one another at all. There was one woman who worked in a store, but before she could work there, her husband has to inspect it first.  Now, there are some women that are taking a stand, and fighting for what they believe is right.

This makes me think and feel a lot of different things. To me, it is unfair that amen don't have the same rights as men. Women are so underestimated, and I don't think that it is at all, right. I think that there are many people that don't think that women have the same potential that men do. There are many women that have so much more than what they are allowed to do. They want to work, make money, and be able to have the same privileges as men do. I feel that if I was to live in Saudi Arabia, then I would like to make an impact, but I would be very scared to do so. I wouldn't want to mess with the people that have power over me, and I wouldn't want to get arrested fort dying to make a difference for all of the women who want to have the same rights as men do. People take it fro granted every day that they are able to go outside without somebody stuck to their side all day. Even young adults in the U.S. are able to go out and do whatever they want to do. I feel that there are a lot of people that are immigrating to the Untied States for a better future, and life for them and possibly, their future families.

I think that the women in Saudi Arabia really want to have the chance to be able to experience the things that men get to do. If they were able to do things that  were "out of the box" would be so happy   because it would be a different experience for them. In addition, I think that they are very underprivileged, and they need to have opportunities that they are not usually allowed to have.

In conclusion, I think that women in Saudi Arabia have the capability to condor everything. They can vote, go outside without somebody stuck to them, and be able to have jobs and make money. There are people that don't think they have the potential to stand up for themselves and take care of themselves. In addition, I think that if there was a woman to try to make a difference they would get in tousle for going against orders. To me, that is one of the reasons that women are not standing up as much as they would like to. There are a lot of women that can do a lot of things and it is very unfair that there are people that underestimate them.

Reading Response Essay- Poetry

Poem Title; “Please Don’t Take My Air Jordans”

By: reg e. gaines

Asia Di Bari 804                                                                                                  February 13th 2014

A lot of people will commit crimes and harm others in order to get what they want just so that they can look good. In the poem, “Please Don’t Take My Air Jordans,” by reg e. gaines, the speaker steals and shoots somebody so that he can have new shoes and new gear in order to look good and have new things like his friends do. He does this so that he can be accepted by his peers. This shows that he doesn't care about how other people feel about what he does. He will do anything so that he can get what he wants.

The speaker in the poem has no money, and wants to steal things from the mall so that he is able to get good gear. One important observation that I made while reading this poem was that he steals things in order to look good, this is an example of one of the crimes that he commits. This is shown in the quote, “and I gots no job no money at all/ but it’s easy to steal fresh gear from the mall” This shows that the speaker knows that there is no other way to get what he wants because he has no money at all. In addition this shows that the speaker needs to have the newest things, and he will get them even though he has no way to pay for what he wants.

The main character in the poem needs to have the freshest clothes and shoes, or he will be judged by his piers. He gets better things by not paying for them so that he can have a good vibe. This is shown in the quote, “but I really must get some new gear soon/ or my ego will pop like  a ten cent balloon” This quote shows that whatever he has now is going out of style and if he doesn't get something new soon he will be “lower class”. His peers judge him because he doesn't have the newest things, and his looks are very important to him. If he doesn't have new gear than it is like he is not up to par. That is why his looks are so important to him.

The speaker in this poem shoots somebody that is wearing the Jordan's that he wants to have. One important observation that supports my focus is that he commits crimes just to get what he wants. This is shown in the quote, “I fired (POW) he fell between two parked cars/ he was coughing/crying/blood dripped onto the street/ and I snatched them air jordans off his feet.” This shows that when the main character in the poem realized that those were the Jordans that he wanted, he decided to do anything that it would take in order to get what he wanted. In addition, it shows that anybody at any given time will do harmful things to get what they want. They don't care about the impact it will have on the person that is getting harmed.

All in all, this poem showed me that there are many people in the real world that we live in, will do all that they can so they can have what they want in order to look a certain way. This related to me in a few ways. For example when I wanted the  Iphone, I fought for it. While I didn’t steal or shoot anybody, I wanted it because everybody else had it and I was the only one out of my friends that didn’t have one. I couldn’t get it myself because I didn’t have the money for it. This relates to the text because the character in the poem wanted things so that he wouldn’t be judged. He wanted to have the newest gear, and be like his peers. I think that when the reader is reading this poem, he or she should think about how this happens in the real world and how it can affect them. People do a lot of crazy things such as shooting and stealing to get everything and anything that they want. If it makes that person look and feel good, that everything is okay...to them. Also, as long as they have whatever is in style, then they are happy. They don’t care about how it can hurt others.

Creative Writing Marathon! Craft a story with the following first line: I slowly backed up and sat in the nearest chair.

I slowly backed up and sat in the nearest chair. It was 3:30 in the morning. I couldn't sleep that night because it was so hot in my room, and when I opened the window all I heard was construction. There was no medium.
When we got to the hospital, I knew at that point that there was a lot of waiting that would have to be done before she came. I was exhausted. There was a very small TV in the far corner of the waiting room that my dad put me in, while my step mom was in the Triage. About fifteen minutes later I saw someone signaling for me to come. At that point her IV was done and her hospital gown was on as well. At least we are making some sort of progress I thought. We had, had so many false alarms, but I guess that is common for first time moms. Everything they feel is alarming, so I've heard. My dad was in the room with a nurse that just by looking at her, I didn't like.
I saw a baby come down the hallway, there were nurses everywhere. It looked like a preemie. I felt bad considering that I was waiting for my overdue sister. I looked at the nurses name tag. Her mane was Precious. She put the bag of IV onto a stick with wheels. Thats what I called it at time. She was kind of rough. This is going smoothly, I thought. I could barely stand up.
A while later, they wheeled my step mom into Labor and Delivery. My dad said see you later, and sure enough, I saw him a lot later. I didn't want to take a nap because I didn't want to miss anything.  About twelve hours later I was starting to get hopeless.
My dad came out at 3:10pm, one minute after Jada Qiana Di Bari was born. He came out crying. I dint remember the last time I saw him cry. There was one doctor who had wheeled Jada to where the waiting room was. When I saw her, I could feel what my dad was feeling. My heart pounding a few pulses faster, and my throat tightening. I started crying too.

Independent Reading Book Response- Character

In all of the books that I have had to read in the past years, the main character named Claireece goes through some kind of change or changes. The book Push, by Sapphire is about a young girl who goes through a lot, between her dad raping her, and her having to raise her children with minimal help from her mother. She changes from being a small girl who didn't like to share her feelings to somebody who was determined and open minded and engaged person. 

In the beginning of the book, Clarice  was very introverted and insecure. Whenever somebody asked what she was feeling, or why  she was the way she was, or even why she was pregnant she would not feel very good about herself.  "'Come on now, you are pregnant, aren't you Claireece?'…'Claireece, I'm talking to you. I still don't say nuffin.'" (Sapphire 7). This is an example of how she feels insecure about being pregnant. When somebody asks her a question that is personal, she doesn't like to answer, especially if they already know the answer.  Another example of Claireece is introverted and insecure is when her mother discourages her when she is in pain and when her mom finds out that she had a baby. "'Thank you Miz Claireece Precious Jones for fucking my husband you nasty little slut!'…'He done quit me!'…I'm laying on the floor shaking, crying, scared she gonna kill me." (Sapphire 19). Claireeces mom doesn't know that her dad raped her. All she knows is that she got pregnant because of him. She dent appreciate her daughter at all, and when she is in pain, she doesn't care. By the ways her mother treats her, Claireece feels put down. These are ways she feels insecure and introverted. 

As the book goes on, Claireece starts to be more and more open to teachers and other people around her that are sort of in the same situation. In addition, she begins to feel more dedicated and determined. "'Well Precious, how about you, do you feel you're in the right place?' 'Is I Miz Rain,' I axes, 'is I in the right place?' She hand me a tissue, say, 'Yes, Precious, yes.'" (Sapphire 48). This shows that she is curious and wants to know that she is secure. Also, it shows that she has some sort of dedication because she transferred schools to be in a better pace, and she wants to make sure that is true for her case. This is a big change because when she was in her old school, if the guidance councilor asked her this question, she would either not talk, or give her an attitude. Another example of when she was more dedicated is when she said that she wanted to learn. When she transferred schools she said she wanted to learn without being judged. This school gave her the liberation to do just that. This shows that she is more dedicated to learning, and she is more open to the people around her. 

All in all, Claireece went from being introverted to determined. She went from being judged to wanted. I think that she only wants to have a guid future and the best for her two children. She is a very complex character and went through a lot of emotions. Clarieece is a very inspirational person because she is so young and willing to do anything. 

Non-Fiction Reading Response: The End of Extreme Poverty?

"Imagine having to pick just one of your children to save, while leaving the others to face death" (Kristof 16). The article The End of Extreme Poverty? by Nicholas D. Kristof is about the life threatening decisions people have to make on a daily basis, and how it is being resolved. In Cambodia, there are people that have to make very agonizing decisions everyday because of viruses in their environment. There are a lot of people that are living in poverty that have very little money and education. The author wants me to know that poverty is a huge problem, and it is getting better because of new vaccines and technology. Since 1980, the rate of poverty has reduced from 1 in 2 to 1 in 5. All of this improvement is due to new vaccines, farming techniques, schools, clean water and technology. "The goal is to end extreme poverty by 2030- and we're close" (Kristof 17).  According to the article, with all of the new technology poverty will soon end.

Poverty makes me think and feel a huge array of emotions. To me, poverty is something that a lot of people just look over, and don't really see how bad it really is. I think that is something not to take lightly. I don't believe that people are doing enough on a daily basis. They focus on poverty when there is a huge natural disaster, and they realize that people are even worse off then they already were. I think that the author of this article wrote this mainly to say how poverty is improving due to all of the new ways people are doing things. In my opinion, poverty is a very depressing think about. A lot of people are persecuted and or punished for things that they believe. While it is similar to poverty in that people are left on their own, it is very sad and people look for hope all of the time.

I think that the author of this article really cares about poverty because he was so positive about all of the improvements that are being made. The author stated that a man by the name of Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft has a foundation that donates vaccines and medicine to save children and adults. I think Kristof added this to show what different organizations are pitching in to help people from dying in poverty. "…in his lifetime the number will drop bellow 1 million (Kristof 17). This shows by Microsofts donations the amount of lives that will be saved in his life will be at or above one million.

In conclusion, poverty is a very serious problem worldwide. While there are many people that are slowly starting to get out of poverty, there are many that are still facing the struggle. I think that it is very good that people are helping out in as many ways as they can, but there is still a lot of work to be done.

Critical Thinking Question- REVISED

        In a typical day, you don't really think so hard about how fair or unfair this world is. You usually think about what you are going to do the next day, or what you are join to wear. It usually takes a while to discover all of the problems on the inside, when all you see is the good on the outside. The book Lunch-Box Dream, by Tony Abbott deals with justice and racial issues. In this book, the main character Bobby and his brother are betrayed and teased because of their race. These charters' deal with a lot because of the color of their skin. That lead me to think about how it related to justice in our world today. People get treated differently because they "are not like other people."

        One way Tony Abbott shows how this book deals with justice in the world is racism. Bobby, and his brother are called names because of their skin color. "They called them chocolate men, Bobby and his brother"(Abbott 7). This shows that people of the opposite race don't want to accept the fact that they are a different color and they are not like them.  Another example of racism in this book is when Bobby asked if a black person dug graves for people. "Did chocolate men dig graves?"(Abbott 17). This shows racism in a not so obvious way. Bobby asked this question to see if a white or black man dug his grandfathers grave. He was wondering if a white man would dig a grave for a black man, and the other way around. He wanted to know that a black man would provide a resting place no matter what color they were. A lot of the time, people don't accept people for who they truly are because they are different. In this case, the characters in the book are being judged because the whites and the black are different. People need to think of everyone the same because we are all unique in our own way, but that doesn't make us anymore  different than anybody else. These are the reasons that racism in this book makes me think about justice in the world in the present day.

        Segregation in this book is another theme that makes me think about justice in the world. "As long as we don't have to take the bus. Chocolate people always sit behind you"(Abbott 24). Bobby and his brother Ricky were talking about how they didn't want to sit on the bus because they don't like that people have to be separated. They were happy when their mother revealed that they were going to take the plane back home. They didn't want to deal with the drama of having to sit in the back of the bus for a long time with a lot of whites in the front. To him it wasn't fair. Another example of segregation is when Louisa is explaining how Jacob and her husband are going to their grandmothers house. "Hershel sat on the inside of him. Then the white passengers got on, then the driver." (Abbott 27) This shows segregation in more ways than one.  One way this shows segregation is that the whites didn't want to get on the bus at the same time black people did because they didn't want to mix. Another reason is that during that time period, there was a lot of segregation going on, and there was very minimal mixing of races. To me, this shows that justice in that time period was very little. I think today, we take it for granted that we have come so far. We need to be aware that people are different, but that doesn't mean we are to treat them  any differently.

        All of the people who acted during the civil rights act were very brave, and did an amazing job of helping our country unite as one. Now, there is a surplus of justice. Segregation was a very difficult and bad time. Now we have so much more and a lot more to be thankful for. During the time when there was a lot of chaos there was also a lot of people doing as much as they could to have change. In the book, there was a very strong racial issue that effected the main character in a lot of different ways. He didn't like it. Just because someone is a different race doesn't mean that they are any less powerful then anybody else. Segregation and racism are problems that people wanted fixed. Although there is some of this left, we are almost to where we want to be. In perfect harmony.