Blog Post 3: Raisin Character Reflection

Walter:
I believe that Walter's dream is to own a liquor store. On page 33 he says, "Yeah. You see, this little liquor store we got in mind cost seventy-five thousand and we figured the initial investment on the place be 'bout thirty thousand, see..." I don't think Walter will achieve his dream because from what we've read, Mama already went out and spent the money on buying him a new house and when he came home drunk one night, they all got mad at him and I don't think they'd want him to be like that all the time.

Mama:
I believe that Mama's dream is to help Beneatha through school and make a good life for her family. On page 44 she says, "Some of it got to be put away for Beneatha and her schoolin' -- Been thinking that we maybe could meet the notes on a little old two-story somewhere." I think that she does achieve her dream but only on the part where she helps the family have a good life. She does end up buying a new house for Walter and Ruth and the rest of the family.

Ruth:
I believe that Ruth's dream is to live in a bigger and better house. On page 27 she says, “It ain’t his fault he can’t get to bed no earlier nights ‘cause he got a bunch of crazy good-for-nothing clowns up running their mouths in what is supposed to be his bedroom…” I know that she does achieve her dream because from what I've read so far, Mama did go out and buy a bigger and better house for her and her family.

Joseph Asagai:
I believe that Asagai’s dream is to be with Beneatha and teach her all the things she wants to know about where he came from. On page 63 he says, "For you—I would do much more… Well, that is what I came for.” I think his dream will be achieved because it seems like Beneatha really likes him and wants to know more about him and so he'll be able to be with her and share all his experiences.

Benetha:
I believe Benetha's dream is to become a doctor. On page 50 she says, “Get over it? What are you talking about, Ruth? Listen, I’m going to be a doctor. I’m not worried about who I’m going to marry yet – if I ever get married.” I think that she will achieve her dream because she is with Joseph Asagai and I think that he could help her achieve her dream with his money and with the encouragement he gives her.

My Play

Mom (Yvette): The mom has long blonde hair down to her waist. She has blue eyes and full red lips. She puts other people’s needs before her own and is always trying to help. She get’s frustrated when people don’t listen to her or consider her ideas.

Dad (Kevin): The dad has short hair that is black and gray. He has hazel eyes and facial hair. He too puts others people’s needs before his own. He doesn’t listen well and doesn’t change his mind once he’s made his choice.

Son (Carlos): Carlos has short black hair with pretty blue eyes. He has his right ear pierced and wears his clothes baggy. He doesn’t voice out his opinions very often, but when he does their usually honest. He see’s the good but more importantly the bad that could come out of any situation.

Daughter (Gabriella): Gabriella has long brown hair that is naturally curly. She has big hazel eyes and is only 5 feet tall. Like her mother, she cares about other people and considers how her actions would affect other people. She does well in school but thinks she should start to experience the joys of life, even though she’s only 15, because life is too short.

Stage Directions: The family is sitting in a large sized dining room that is round. The table is made of wood and is oak colored with four matching the chairs. The walls are a light dark red color with a picture frame of a beach against one wall, and candle holders hanging up on another. On the table top, there are four clear bowls, four glass cups, four forks and four spoons. In the center of the table is a big glass bowl of chili with a big white spoon inside of it. Inside the four bowls is chili and the cups are filled about half way with Pepsi. Above the table is a lamp that is dimmed, which hangs down about half way from the white ceiling. The lamp is a beige color with red designs on it. Also in the middle of the table is another clear bowl filled with cheddar cheese and another filled with chili crackers. The mom (Yvette) is wearing a pink t-shirt and blue jeans. The dad (Kevin) is wearing a long sleeve white shirt with blue jeans also. Carlos is wearing blue jeans and a blue sweatshirt and Gabriella is wearing jeans with a long sleeve green shirt.


Dialogue:
Mom: -walks to table and set’s clear bowl of chili onto center of the table – Enjoy!
Dad: Wow that smells good.
Mom: Thank you. So kids, how was school today?
Carlos: Boring like always.
Dad: Of course. Gabby, how was your day?
Gabriella: Good! I got an A on my Spanish test and a B on my English test.
Mom: Well that’s good.
Gabriella: Yeah, but I was sort of wondering if I could ask you guys something.
Dad: -sarcastically- No!
Gabriella: –laughs- You don’t even know what I was going to ask!
Dad: But I’m sure I’m going to say no.
Gabriella: Well, just hear me out.
Mom: Then ask.
Gabriella: Okay, well this summer my friend is going to Florida with her brother and boyfriend and I was kind of wondering if you’d let me go with them.
Dad: What friend?
Gabriella: Vanessa.
Mom: How are they getting there?
Gabriella: Well her brother is 18 and her boyfriend is also, so he was just going to drive down there to see some family.
Carlos: Drive, All the way to Florida? Don’t you know that the majority of car crashes are from teen drivers that drive long distances?
Gabriella: Be quiet, you’re not helping.
Carlos: Yeah I am, look at the danger that could come from that.
Dad: He’s right. Four teenagers shouldn’t drive all the way down to Florida by themselves.
Gabriella: But dad! We’ll be okay. Her boyfriend drove down there by himself once before and he’s okay.
Mom: Yeah because he was alone and nobody was there distracting him. But now there will be you, Vanessa and her brother.
Carlos: And you know you guys won’t be quiet the whole way there.
Gabriella: Well no but –
Dad: But you’re not going.
Gabriella: Dad! Think about it. Im half way through high school and I haven’t been to any other state except Pennsylvania and that wasn’t too fun.
Mom: Well what if Vanessa’s parents went with you?
Dad: Yvette, I said no.
Mom: Oh okay, because you have all the say in this now?
Dad: No, but our daughter is talking about driving to the other side of the country with two teenage boys and one teenage girl. Don’t you see a problem there?
Mom: Of course I do.
Gabriella: Mom!
Mom: No. I agree with your dad honey. I’d love to let you go to Florida but I just don’t think it’d be a good idea to have four teenagers driving all the way down there, alone.
Carlos: Especially at night. And don’t you see all those movies where the friends go on a road trip and someone ends up stalking them?
Gabriella: Shut up!
Dad: -laughs- Carlos, those movies usually happen somewhere in the desert.
Gabriella: Okay back to me... Can you guys please let me go?
Dad: Sorry Gabby, but the answer is no.
Mom: We don’t want to loose our little girl at such a young age.
Dad: Yeah, children should be the ones burying their parents, not the other way around.
Gabriella: But if you guys don't let me go, Vanessa's parents probably won't let her go with just two boys, even if it is her brother.
Mom: Well then it wasn't meant to be for you guys to go. It's not safe.
Gabriella: But she'll be so mad at me...
Dad: She'll get over it eventually. You're not going, and thats the end of it.
Gabriella: Ugh, fine. Can I go when I get older?
Dad: We’ll see.

A place of Sorrow

As me and my dad enter through the rusted doors of the cemetery in Detroit I feel the sadness flow through my body like the waves on the ocean shore. The cemetery is still with the many headstones, except for the blowing of the wind, throwing leaves all around. The smell is a mixture of flowers and gas from a broken down car on the road next to the cemetery. I’ve only been going there since I was about 5, because being younger than that, made it hard for me to comprehend what our purpose for being there was. My dad had been going ever since his he was little, and lost many members of his family. Almost every mothers day, or birthday me and my dad drive the 30 minute drive to the cemetery to spend time with his mom, and baby sister in particular. We sometimes bring flowers or things to clean off the graves with. The terrible feeling of sadness that being there brings increases when we drive past the fountain and up the long hill to the section where babies are buried. My dad’s sister had died when she was born, so we visit her on her birthday or sometimes on Valentines Day. The feeling of sitting there on the cold hard ground with all the sadness flowing around me makes my body weak and thinking of all these lives that never got to be lived out, brings an even sadder pain to my heart. I sit there crying and he comes and gives me a big, strong hug and ushers me back to the car. We drive away and down the long road slowly, not saying a word to each other, but thinking about the loved ones we’ve lost, and how they’re still with us. This place represents sadness to me, but in a way, a sense of celebration to celebrate and to hold close the people that we’ve lost in our lives. This place isn’t a house, or a coffee shop, but a place that’s dear to my heart and the hearts of many other people, for it holds the spirits of mine, and their departed loved ones.

Chapter 22 chart

Summary ( 8 )

• The towns people marched to Sherburn's house to lynch him.
• Sherburn steps out from his roof with a double-barrel gun in his hand.
• Sherburn talks about how the towns people are only half a man, and how they're a mob.
• Sherburn tells them that a lynching will only be done in the dark.
• Huck goes to the circus and enjoys it.
• A drunk man stumbles from the audience and the audience attacks him.
• The drunk man get's on the horse and ends up taking his clothes off, but after we find out that he was part of the circus act.
• The Duke puts up handbills telling about a play thats going to be happening, and at the bottom puts LADIES AND CHILDREN NOT ADMITTED, thinking that would catch the attention of the people or Arkansaw.
  
  

Vocab (8)
palings ( page 110)
grit ( page 110 )
acquit ( page 110 )
heeled ( page 111 )
parasol ( page 111 )
gaudiest ( page 113 )
lunkheads ( page 113 )
handbills ( page 113 )

Key Phrases & Quotes (5)
"Why, a man's safe in the hands of ten thousand of your kind - as long as it's day-time and you're not behind him" ( page 110 )
"The average man's a coward." ( page 110 )
"Why don't your juries hang murderers? Because they're afraid the man's friends will shoot them in the back, in the dark - and it's just what they would do." ( page 110 )
"You brought part of a man - Buck Harkness, " ( page 110 )
"A mob, they don't fight with courage that's born in them, but with courage that's borrowed from their mass, and from their officers." ( page 111 )

Questions (5)
Why would they let children march with them to lynch someone, they don't have cops to do that?
Why did they have to tear down Sherburn's fence?
Who is Buck Harkness, and why is he only half a man?
When the people are laughing at the drunk man, why isn't Huck, does he care about people now?
When the man was on the horse did he take ALL his clothes off?

Post 2: Huck Finn Response (Ch. 13 - Ch. 17)

In Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the protagonist, Huck, is greatly influenced by four people: Widow Douglas, Tom Sawyer, Pap, and Jim.

Widow Douglas directly affects Huck because she teaches him the importance of him getting an education, and the values of the bible. She indirectly affects him because when she’s not around he still thinks about his actions and whether or not they were good for him and the people around him. An example of the Widow affecting him indirectly can be found on page 56 when Huck says, “I wished the Widow knowed about it. I judged she would be proud of me for helping these rapscallions.”

Tom Sawyer also affects Huck but in a more negative way. Directly, Tom Sawyer encourages Huck that doing the wrong things is okay. Indirectly, Huck thinks about his actions and thinks of how “proud” Tom would be if he was there with him. An example of Tom Sawyer affecting Huck directly can be found on page 6 when Tom says, “Oh certainly. It’s best. Some authorities think different, but mostly it’s considered best to kill them.”

Pap directly effects Huck by telling him that he doesn’t need to get his education and is criticizing him on anything good he has in his life right now. Indirectly, Pap doesn’t really affect Huck anymore because he never meant that much to him in the first place, and his opinion never brought Huck down. An example of Pap effecting Huck directly can be found on page 15 when Pap says, “And looky here- you drop that school, you hear?”

Finally, Jim only has a direct effect on Huck when he gives him helpful advice, and helps him start to believe in the good and bad things that could come of luck. An example of Jim giving Huck advice can be found on page 14 when Jim says, “You wants to keep ‘way fum de water as much as you kin, en don’t run no risk, kase its down en de bills dat yous gwyne to git hung.”

Without these key influences in his life, Huck would be a very different person.

Post 1: Huck Finn Response (Ch. 1- Ch. 12)

So the book started off with Huck Finn living with widow Douglas. He ends up running away from her and then goes back to live with her. Only when he returns, his pap is sitting in his bedroom. His pap goes to the judge and demands that he can have his son back to Huck is forced to go and live with his pap again. While he's living there, his pap locks him up in the house and one day he manages to escape and cuts up a pig to make it look like he was killed by robbers. When in reality, he really runs away to Johnson Island and finds a runaway African American named Jim and they become friends.

This book is okay so far. The beginning was sort of boring for me but it's getting better. I like how the chapters are short but big things happen in them. I don't like how the author writes the same way as Jim would talk. Like, he doesn't spell things the right way. It takes me a while to read that and understand it when I'd rather just be able to read it and understand it right away. I think its similar to Of Mice And Men cause its a story of a friendship, even though George and Lennie have been friends for a longer time. In of mice and men, Lennie has the disability of being slow. In Huck Finn, Jim is African American and even though that's not a disability, African Americans were treated with less respect than a white man was.