Burning House Post

Name: Nick Fahey
Age: 15
List (from left to right kinda):

• my guitar
• my tennis trophy
• iPod headphones
• wallet
• my Aviators from the Bahamas
• my dog (Darla)
• my Red Sox hat
• phone
• picture of me with my siblings and grandparents
• my iPod Touch

Jane Eyre project

For my Jane Eyre project I am thinking of comparing the life of a mentally ill person in Jane's time to one of present day. I would include their treatment, diagnosis, and people's attitude towards them.

End of Ender's Game

After finishing Ender's Game, there are many comments I would like to make. First off, Ender's Game was an amazing book with exciting twists at the end. When I learned that Ender had been killing off the bugger population without knowing it, I thought that that was very unfair and cruel. Then I realized why the I.F. had tricked Ender into killing the buggers. They knew that despite his similarities to Peter, Ender would have never been able to kill an entire population. He was not that cruel. This was what made Mazer's trickery the worst. Ender was very distraught when he learned what he had done. Another fascinating twist at the end of Ender's game is when Ender finds the pupa of a queen bugger. Ender must have been even angrier when the queen tells him that the buggers didn't want to murder the humans. I think Ender would have realized that he killed an innocent civilization. This must have spurred him to help bring back the bugger population. I found the last sentence in the book interesting and it accurately described the human race. At the end of the book, Ender was looking for a place where the bugger population could grow in peace and without being killed by humans.The sentence in the book is, "He looked for a long time." (324). To me, this shows that Ender had a hard time finding any place where humans would not kill the buggers, even if they knew that the buggers just wanted to live in peace. Overall, Ender's Game was a great book worth rereading because of its complex lessons and surprises.

Going Back to the Conspiracy Theory

Because I am approaching the end of the book, I have decided to go back to the conspiracy theory that Dink first mentioned to Ender. When Dink first brought up that Battle School is only there to keep the I.F. in power and that buggers were not attacking, Ender, for the most part, believed him. I also thought this theory sounded reasonable. As the story continues, however, evidence for and against this theory arises. At one point in the book, Ender says that the real enemies are the teachers and not the buggers. I think at this point that Ender is fully convinced that Battle School is a fake. Then, evidence arises against this theory. The first piece of evidence is when they send Ender to Command School. If Battle School and the buggers were not real, then the I.F. wouldn't bother to send people to Command School, because they could stay in power without having a Command School. Another piece of evidence contrasting Dink's theory is Mazer Rackham training Ender. Mazer Rackham has fought the buggers before, and he wouldn't take the time to tutor Ender if the Third Invasion was not real.

Ender and Valentine's Talk

In Chapter 13, Valentine talks to Ender for the first time since Ender has been home. Ender refuses to have the Colonel listen to their conversation. I think he does this because he doesn't want them to analyze the talk and use it against him. Ender explains that he is very good at understanding how people think. I found it interesting when Valentine is frightened by this comment. I found out that Valentine is afraid of Ender knowing too much about her, even though Peter understands her, too. We learn another interesting thing about Ender in this chapter.  The reason that Ender does not inflicting physical violence is because the moment he is about to beat someone, he loves them. This explains many actions that Ender has taken throughout the book. One time where Ender was ashamed on his violent tendencies is when he brutally beat up Bonzo and then cried about it and was ashamed later. This is a very drastic difference from Peter. Ender is even able to love people who are trying to hurt him, whereas when Ender says that he wants Peter to love him, Valentine admits that Peter doesn't love anybody.

A Threat to Ender's Life

In Chapter 12, we learn about a plot against Ender's life. It seems as if some of the older boys are planning to kill or seriously injure Ender. I found this plan interesting for a couple reasons. One reason is that to kill Ender out of jealousy does not seem like a smart thing to do. The boys recruited into Battle School are supposed to be brilliant. To kill a fellow student is not something a genius would do because of the inevitable consequences. They seem to care too much about the glory of winning the game. That brings me to my next point. Battle School is supposed to be about preparing children for the war against the buggers so that the kids can "save the world". It seems to me that the children have got too caught up in the game played at Battle School. If they are willing to kill the best commander just because they are jealous of his skill, then they are missing the final objective of Battle School. If they were thinking about the future and the bugger war, then they would realize that Ender is going to be a very important person in the fight. Another thing I found intriguing was that Colonel Graff is willing to let the other boys attack Ender. This is more evidence that supports the conspiracy theory. If Battle School is really about saving the world from buggers, then Colonel Graff would probably not be so willing to let the jealous boys attack, and potentially kill, the best commander in the school.

Ender's Game Chapter 11

In Chapter 11, Ender's army's battles begin. Ender's strategy to not make formations is brilliant. This allows his army to adapt to anything the opposing army throws at them. I also found Ender's conversation with Colonel Graff very interesting. Ender basically tells Graff that he is tiring out Ender's army and doesn't care about their school work. Ender also tells Colonel Graff that he won the fantasy game. This tells us that Ender believes that once he kissed the snake instead of killing it, then his journey was over. The most intriguing part of this chapter is when Anderson sets Ender up for a battle with Bonzo's army. Not only is this the second battle Enders had in one day, but Bonzo's army also got a head start into the battleroom. Yet another showing of Ender's commandeering abilities and his brilliance is when he manages to defeat the army even though they are hiding behind a wall waiting to ambush him. I think that Ender will continue to be the most outstanding commander and will thwart any tricks other armies try to pull on him, especially with his new addition of Bean's special army.

Ender's Game Chapter 10

In Chapter 10, Ender gets his own army, the Dragon Army. Graff informs Ender that Dragon Army has not been around for many years. I think the reason that Graff brings out the Dragon Army for Ender, is that Ender is unique and needs an unique army to raise. I found it extremely intriguing when I realized that Ender was treating one kid in his army in the same cruel way that Graff and Ender's commanders treated him. Ender immediately tries to isolate the kid that seems to be the brightest. This is the exact same thing that Colonel Graff did to Ender. I think Ender is again showing similarities to Peter, and Ender realizes it. At the end of the chapter, Ender says that he is angry enough to defeat his real enemies: the teachers. This is the point where Ender realizes that his greatest enemies are the teachers and not the buggers that he is supposedly saving the world from. I believe Ender is using the anger that he felt when he realized the teachers had used Valentine to manipulate him, and redirecting it to bring down the teachers' lies and find the truth behind Battle School.

Ender's Game Chapter 9

In Chapter 9, Valentine and Peter hatch a plan to gain more political say. They decide to made pseudonyms that they will use on the internet, because if people knew they were children then their ideas would not be taken seriously. So far, Valentine and Peter's plan seems to be working. This was interesting because if Battle School really is a fake, then Valentine and Peter are doing more to save the world than Ender is. I found this ironic, because Battle School is supposed to prepare kids to save the world and both Valentine and Peter were rejected from Battle School. Another thing that happened in chapter 9 is that Colonel Graff comes down from Battle School and tells Valentine to write a letter to Ender. Ender receives the letter but knows that they made Valentine write it. I believe this makes Ender angry, and convinces him even further that Battle School isn't real. Because the teachers at Battle School underestimated Ender's intelligence, their plan to make Ender happier did not work.

Similarities between Peter and Valentine

In Chapter 9, some similarities between Peter and Valentine become obvious. Up to this point, Peter and Valentine have, for the most part, been described as total opposites. I found it interesting when it said that Valentine could control people by finding what they liked most about themselves and flattering them. The author then contrasted her with Peter by saying that Peter could control people by finding what they feared most and exposing that fear. This shows how Valentine and Peter can each manipulate people to their points of view. Although the two siblings seem like complete opposites, this is just one similarity that becomes clear. I think throughout the book more cases of Peter and Valentine's similarity will show up. I am hypothesizing this because Valentine thinks "There was more Peter in her than she could bear to admit..." (128). This quote shows that even Valentine, as much as she doesn't like it, is similar to Peter.

Is Battle School a Fake?

In Chapter 8, Dink reveals his idea to Ender about a conspiracy in Battle School. Dink tells Ender that there is really no buggers and that the I.F. only pretend there are buggers to stay in power. He is saying that the Battle School teachers are "just screwing around" with the kids there. Dink claims that the buggers are gone forever. He is appalled Ender still believes that he is there to save the world. Ender does not fully believe this theory because he knows lies don't last long in America. Therefore, Ender keeps a seed of doubt against Dink's theory. I do not think Dink is correct. One thing that he said to convince Ender that there was a conspiracy is, "If the buggers were coming back to get us they'd be here." (110). Although this may be true, the buggers might be biding their time and preparing a larger army. Also, Ender is a brilliant child and I feel that he is right in having a little bit of doubt in the back of his head. Throughout the book Ender will, most likely, closely observe everything happening at Battle School and try to figure out the truth. I think he will eventually succeed.

Ender's Game Chapters 6-8

In the next two chapters of Ender's Game, Ender is just starting to get the hang of Battle School. I think one very interesting thing we learn in these chapters is that Ender is only going through Battle School so that buggers won't kill Valentine. This shows how much Ender cares about Valentine and that he doesn't really want to be at Battle School. In this chapter, Ender shows his tactical genius side once again, by outsmarting just about every army commander. We also meet Bonzo in this chapter. The interactions between Bonzo and Ender are another thing that fascinated me. Bonzo seems to be a very incompetent leader and Ender knows it. When Ender stands up to Bonzo about letting Ender practice with the other Launchies, Ender shows an unmatched confidence. What I didn't understand is that Ender was respectful of Bonzo's leadership and pretended that he had lost the argument,     so that he did not weaken Bonzo's control of the Salamander Army. Ender did this even though he did not think Bonzo was a good commander, at all. I guess this might be part of Valentine coming out in Ender.

Ender's Game Chapters 4-6

In the next couple chapters of Ender's Game, a lot happens. In chapters 4-6 we see how smart Ender really is. Ender showed this by breaking into the desk's security system and showing the ability to double large numbers in his head. We also see how Ender really is a tactical genius when he easily beats one of the older kids at a game they play. When Ender breaks a kid's arm on the shuttle, I think he fears he is becoming more and more like Peter and doesn't like it. There are also many scenes where Ender thinks about his family and misses them. When he is eating lunch by himself he imagines his parents and siblings eating with him. Ender thinks to himself that he is stupid for coming to Battle School and that he should have stayed home. I think this uncertainty about his decision may prove to be a flaw in his training, later in the book.

Ender's Game Chapters 1-4

I have just started reading Ender's Game. So far, it has been an interesting book. Because of the way Ender acts and talks in the very beginning of the book, I was surprised to learn that he is only six years old. He seemed much older to me. Although not much is explained in the first couple chapters, I still really enjoy this book. It appears that most families choose to have only two children or are not allowed to have more than two children, so it seems as if the population of this time and place is trying to be controlled. Ender is one of a small amount of exceptions of this two children rule. He is called a Third and is not as accepted as the other kids. In this time period every child born has a monitor implanted into them. This monitor is used to see if the child has the potential to go to Battle School. Since Ender's brother and sister showed promise of going to Battle School, his parents were allowed to have a third child. Ender's brother acts as if he is very jealous of Ender and seems to not like being in Ender's shadow. I assumed that Ender's sister would act the same way, but I was mistaken. His sister acts lovingly towards Ender and doesn't like the way Ender's brother treats Ender.

Reflection on TKAM movie PART 3

In response to your comment on my previous post, I think I would have kept in the scene when Ms. Maudie's house burns down and the scene when Jem and Scout have to read to Ms. Dubose. In the scene with the fire burning down Ms. Maudie's house, Boo Radley shows up. Apart from the end of the book, this is the only scene where we see Boo Radley's kindness. It is an important part of the plot, because the children describe Boo as a very  nasty person, when in reality he is kind. When Jem and Scout read to Ms. Dubose and we find out she had a drug addiction, two big things happen. One is that Jem is taking another step to becoming a man. Another is that we realize how understanding and considerate Atticus is. He says that she is the bravest person he has ever met, because he knows the trouble she is going through. Although I would have liked these two scenes in the movie, they didn't really make a huge impact on the plot. Overall, this movie was a great interpretation of the book and I really enjoyed it.

Reflection on TKAM movie PART 2

I think all the actors in this movie do a good job of displaying the emotions of the characters described in the book. When Mayella is at the witness stand in court she looks very nervous and you can tell that she is lying. It also shows Atticus' certainty and conviction toward the Ewells. Also, when Atticus stares down Mr. Ewell after Mr. Ewell had spit in Atticus' face, you could clearly see the fear in Mr. Ewell's eyes. 

It was interesting to see that the movie completely cuts Dolphus Raymond out. I thought he was a good character to use to explain to Dill, Jem, and Scout how most of the citizens of Maycomb County thought and acted. I believe it was a good idea to not put Aunt Alexandra in the movie. She added very little to the main plot and was not needed. Another thing I thought was interesting was the fact that the movie gets straight to Tom's death directly after the trial. Overall, this movie does an exceptional job cutting out what should be left out and leaving in parts that are crucial to the plot. 

Reflection on TKAM movie

In the To Kill a Mockingbird movie, I think Atticus Finch is portrayed perfectly as he is described in the book. You can tell that he is confident, wise, and considerate of most, if not all, of the people in Maycomb County. During the trial, I could see that Atticus was thinking hard and trying to piece all the evidence together. Scout is also a very accurate character. Her curiosity and innocence is conveyed perfectly.
The movie's plot is fairly different than the book so far. The movie, for the most part, cuts out unimportant parts that were present in the book. One part of the book that I believe was important that was omitted from the movie, is the scene with Ms. Dubose and her drug addiction. This scene shows why Ms. Dubose was always so cranky and shows the reader how compassionate and understanding Atticus really is. It also seemed as if it was a big part in Jem growing up. Other than that, the movie has been exceptional.