March 5, 2011
I Am Poem
I Am
I am absentminded and insightful.
I wonder what life is really about.
I hear the birds chirp.
I see the sun rise waiting for the bus.
I want to be asleep in my bed instead.
I am absentminded and insightful.
I pretend that I’m somewhere else.
I feel the summer breeze kiss my skin.
I touch the sand with my feet.
I worry that I’ll never see the world with different eyes.
I cry when I get frustrated.
I am absentminded and insightful.
I understand that life can be very complicated.
I say “suck it up!”.
I dream about love.
I try to do my best in almost everything I do.
I hope that all my dreams will come true.
I am absentminded and insightful.
February 14, 2011
Acrostic Poem
Poetic
Laced
And
Cracked
Existing
Soundly
December 20, 2010
Six Passages
1) page 8
“We drank, we ate, we sang… We wished the feast were over, so that we should not have to play this comedy any longer.”
I was in a way affected by this passage from the story. Elie felt like they were playing a comedy. That they wished Hanukkah was over because of their fear. I have never been in such a situation where I’ve wanted a feast meant for happiness and rejoice to end because of the possibility of something really bad happening to me and my family.
2) page 11
“How avid we were at the moment for one word of confidence, one sentence to say that the meeting could not have been more commonplace, more routine, that it had only been a question of social welfare, of sanitary arrangements! But one glance at my father’s haggard face was enough. “I have terrible news,” he said at last. “Deportation.”
I felt really sorry for them when I read this. They were so desperate for a different answer, something that had nothing to do with what was really going to happen to them. They were being deported because they were Jewish, they were going to a concentration camp because they were Jewish. That’s racist and just plain wrong.
3) page 31
“For the first time, I felt revolt rise up in me… What had I to thank Him for?”
At the beginning Elie is so serious about his religion and now he starts doubting his God because of what was happening to him and his family. At the end he might just end up not believing- or even hating God for having to go through such events that were so inhumane.
4) page 32
“Never shall I forget that night, the first night in the camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed… Never.”
I couldn’t believe what I had just read after reading this passage. He says that his dreams, his soul, and his faith were gone after having to go on with his life after the holocaust. He says that he will never forget what has happened to him during that time. It’s sad and if it were me I would try to forget everything that happened to me in there even if I couldn’t. He pretty much lost everything during the holocaust. Elie lost his family, his possessions, his soul, his faith, and his dreams. I just can’t imagine something like that happening to me.
5) page 42
“Some talked of God, of his mysterious ways, of the sins of the Jewish people, and of their future deliverance… I did not deny God’s existence, but I doubted His absolute justice.”
I think at this point Elie wasn’t exactly that fond of God at the moment. He was doubting God’s justice, of course I would too if I were Elie. What the Germans were doing to the Jews and anybody else who was there because they didn’t qualify in Hitler’s eyes was absolute injustice. I think I somewhat understand how Elie was feeling about God at this point.
6) page 52
“I had watched the whole scene without moving… That is what concentration camp life had made of me.”
I was upset when I read this. Elie was angry at his father and not at the Kapo for beating his father or himself for thinking this. He was thinking of getting farther away so he wouldn’t get hit like his father was. I didn’t like that at all.
December 19, 2010
Reading Guide Section for Section 3&4
1. Why do you think the Germans chose to hang a few prisoners in public at a time when they are murdering thousands each day in the crematoriums?
I think the Germans chose to hang prisoners in the public of other prisoners instead of just cremating them so that they could show the inmates an example of what would happen to them if they did something wrong. So instead of sending them to the crematorium they would be hung in public.
2. Give examples of the way Elie’s relationship with his father changes throughout the book. What causes those changes?
Elie’s relationship with his father does change throughout the book. At the beginning he doesn’t want to be separated from his dad in fear that they would be killed. Later, near the end of the book, his dad gets ill and close to the point of death so he tries to help him as much as he can by giving him some of his food without actually really wanting to.
3. After Elie’s father was chosen for selection, he gives his son a knife and a spoon. Why is this a significant act? What does Elie mean when he says “the inheritance”?
Giving Elie his knife and spoon was a significant act because it was all he had left after everything that has happened which is probably why Elie called “the inheritance”.
4. At the beginning of the book Elie described himself as someone who believed “profoundly.” How have is experiences at Auschwitz affected his faith?
Elie’s experiences at Auschwitz affected his faith in God. At the beginning he describes himself as a profound believer of God but as he experiences brutal events in Auschwitz he begins to doubt whether He exists or not. He begins to question God and if He really loves them or not.
5. At one point on the cattle train trip to Buchenwald, a German workman causes a “stampede” in the wagon. How does he do this? What do his actions suggest about him? What does this incident suggest about the prisoners?
The German workman throws a piece of bread in the wagon which causes a “stampede” inside. His actions suggest that he might have felt some sort of pity for the Jews in the wagon. This incident shows that the prisoners must have been so desperate for something to eat that they must’ve gone mad because of hunger to the point where they would’ve gone so far as to kill their “brothers” for a piece pf bread.
6. What conflict arises in Elie regarding his father?
He starts to realize feelings of rancor towards his father for having to help him. Deep inside himself he starts to think whether or not he should continue helping his father.
7. What happens on January 28, 1945? What was Elie’s emotional state at this point?
On January 28, 1945 Elie’s father is beaten to an almost death and the last word he spoke was “Eliezer”. At this point Elie’s emotional state is bad, he can’t shed a single tear for his father and he starts feeling as though there is no hope left.
8. In the next to the last sentence in the book, Elie says that when he looks in a mirror after liberation, he sees a corpse gazing back at him. He ends the book stating, “The look in his eyes, as they stared into mine, has never left me.” What does that statement mean?
Elie sounds like he is actually talking about another person but in reality he is talking about himself as he sees his reflection. When he says this I think he means that he has become a new person and after all this time he finally sees his reflection and he doesn’t like what he sees.
9. How has Elie tried to keep you from responding to his story the way he and his father once responded to the one told by Moshe the Beadle? How successful has he been?
He tells us what really happened to him during his time in Auschwitz. It’s a sad and true story that a person can’t just come up with like everyone thought Moshe the Beadle was crazy and that he was lying about what happened to him. He has been very successful because these events in his life are real.
10. What is the meaning of the title Night? If you were to give another title to this book what would it be and why?
I think that the title of this book was supposed to mean that his time in Auschwitz was like an endless night of sorrow, pain and running. If I could change the title, I wouldn’t because I think that “Night” is the perfect title for this novel.
Reading Guide Questions for Section 1&2
1. How does Elie describe himself?
He describes himself as a young Jew from Sighet and the third child in his family.
2. Who is Moshe the Beadle?
Moshe the Beadle was a poor man who worked at a Hasidic Synagogue and everybody was fond of him.
3. How did the town respond to Moshe and his stories?
The townspeople didn’t believe him at all and just thought he was crazy.
4. Why do you think Elie Wiesel begins Night with the story of Moshe the Beadle?
I think Wiesel begins the story with Moshe the Beadle because at the start Weisel was very religious, he wanted to study the cabbala and he got Moshe to be his master. Later on Moshe is perceived to be crazy by his fellow townspeople because of what he was saying so I think Weisel started the story with Moshe the Beadle to explain who he was and how he changed from before he was deported to when he escaped and came back to Sighet.
5. Explain how the German soldiers slowly took over Sighet.
The Germans first expelled all of the foreign Jews from Sighet and killed them. Then there were no synagogues left open and on the seventh day of Passover, the Germans arrested the leaders of the Jewish community. Jews would not be allowed to leave their houses for three days on pain of death. Jews no longer had the right to keep gold, jewels or any objects of value in their homes. After the three days there was a new decree that “every Jew must wear the yellow star.” They were no longer allowed to go into restaurants or cafes, to travel on the railway, to attend the synagogues and to go out into the street after six o’ clock. After that came the ghetto. The Germans set up two ghettos in Sighet. A large one in the center of town and a smaller one in the outlying district. Then the Jews in the ghetto were forced to leave Sighet street by street.
6. How was Elie’s family separated?
Elie’s family was separated when they got to the concentration camp.
7. Why do you think the Germans take away the inmates’ personal belongings? Their clothing? Why do they cut their hair? Tattoo a number on each person’s arm?
The Germans took away the inmates’ personal belongings and clothing because they wouldn’t need them in the camps or just to see if they had something they liked. I think they cut their due to the purpose of cleanliness, like if someone had lice or something like that. The Germans tattooed a number on each person’s arm so that they didn’t have t0 call them by their real names so they gave them numbers to call them by or maybe they gave them numbers to keep track of how many Jews they captured.
8. Elie, in recounting the first night in the concentration camp, says, “Never shall I forget that night, the first night in the camp, which has turned my life into one long night…” What does it mean for a life to be turned into “one long night”?
I think that for a life to be turned into “one long night” is like having your life seem to be one event happening in one night.
9. Please write a personal reaction to the novel so far. (should be at least one paragraph)
The novel ‘Night’ was very intriguing. I thought that how the Germans treated the Jews was unbelievably brutal and inhuman. It’s amazing how Wiesel wrote this book with such detailed writing about his life during the holocaust after so many years. I couldn’t believe that what he went through was real and not just some made up story. This novel was very interesting and i wouldn’t mind reading it again. =)
December 13, 2010
Response to “Bullied” – SAT LAP
One of my first thoughts to the film “Bullied” was, “Oh my God, how could these people just let these things happen to Jamie just because of his sexual orientation?” I think it’s wrong how people treat a person the wrong way just because of how they identify themselves. In Jamie’s case, he was bullied because he is a homosexual. I was relieved to know that Jamie won his case against the school district. If he hadn’t sued them, other students in the schools he went to, would also been bullied because of who they are and these three school officials would have done nothing.
Jamie Nabozny’s experiences do not remind me of any moments in my life, solely because I have never been bullied in such a malicious way like he was because of my sexual orientation. I’m pretty sure there is bullying in FLC even though I haven’t seen it yet. I think this because bullying is everywhere so why wouldn’t it be in this school. Also because from what I’ve heard from other students in Mr. Patel’s class, there is bullying in FLC. I just haven’t witnessed it happen or even maybe experienced it here yet.
Since I haven’t noticed someone get bullied at FLC, I don’t think it might be one of the biggest problems at school but according to the data, it is. So, I suggest that a potential solution to this particular problem is that as school officials you should get students to be able to confide in you, to be able to tell you that they are getting bullied and believe that you will help them, not just because it’s your job, but also because you really care about what is happening to them. I think that’s what would help kids tell their teachers if they are getting bullied or if they know someone who is.
October 25, 2010
“The Necklace” Activity 1
Mme. Forestier, quite overcome, clasped her by the hands. “Oh, my poor Mathilde! But mine was nothing but a mere imitation. Why, at the very most it was worth five hundred francs!..”
Mathilde was heartbroken. All along the necklace was a fake. After ten years of hard work and paying off debts, it was all for nothing. Thirty-six thousand francs down the drain and all because of the necklace. Overwhelmed with the information, Mathilde could not conjure up the energy to respond. Instead she cried. First one tear, then another and soon she was bawling her eyes out.
“Mathilde,” Mme. Forestier started, “Why didn’t you tell me what happened?” She reached out towards Mathilde, her child forgotten. The child who had no idea who this strange woman was or why she was crying.
October 22, 2010
10/22 Five Years Later Katrina Article
Where were you during Hurricane Katrina?
I was at home.
What issues does “If God Is Willing and da Creek Don’t Rise“ address?
It’s a four-hour documentary about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Who directed the documentary?
Spike Lee directed it.
When did Spike Lee produce his first documentary about the disaster?
A year after Hurricane Katrina.
How have the “structure and the wavering tone of ’Creek’… been affected by the random but momentous events that have buffeted New Orleans more recently”?
‘Creek’ opens with with the celebrations surrounding the New Orleans Saints’ Super Bowl victory this year that were scenes of joy that were eventually undercut when the activist M. Endesha Juakali, invoked the team’s minstrel-show slogan that said said, “I was going to have to get up and figure out how I was going to eat the next day, how I was going to pay my bills, how I was going to be able to survive. I’m not a Who Dat. I’m a Who Is Dat.” Near the end of the documentary, Lee focuses on the oil spill in the gulf for almost an hour and in another shorter section he compares the response to Katrina with the response to the January earthquake in Haiti. ‘Creek’ talks about the damage to the health care system and the prosecution of police officers in post-hurricane shootings and other strands of the New Orleans story.
Why do you think Mr. Lee wanted to revisit New Orleans for a second documentary?
I think Mr. Lee wanted to go back to New Orleans for a second documentary because of the somber question of wether the developers and friends in government are taking advantage of the destruction caused by the hurricane to build a new wealthier and whiter city. A city without the affordable housing or the public services needed by the 100,000 or so former residents that still haven’t returned to New Orleans.
September 30, 2010
Article of the Week Sept. 27 – The Future of the Electric Car
Personally, I would be interested in buying an electric car. The car would definitely be great for saving money on gas and it wouldn’t pollute the air with carbon-dioxide. Of course there is also a significant number of concerns with this car I wouldn’t mind buying one for the right price. I’m not sure if the electric car will be a “false dawn” or if they will last. Although I think that the idea of an electrical car is great, the issue of the price and recycling the battery could be a problem with sales and such.
I definitely think that Congress should mandate “vroomtones”. Hybrids and electric cars are infamously quiet and this can pose as a threat to the blind on any person who just happens to not be looking for any cars coming their way. So if these cars had any sound to them this wouldn’t be a problem for people.
September 16, 2010
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