A Response to "The Giver"

With an extremely rich and complex text such as the giver, it's hard to choose where to begin. This novel has such an intense message to send its young readers, yet it does so in an approachable manner by starting off with the basics. For instance, informing the audience of the norms of the society of the novel, such as what ages get what and when they get it. Then, it displays how norms are challenged and broken. Simple, but brilliant. I related to this novel on many levels. Including the feeling that Jonas has of isolation when no one else can relate to him.  


After reading this novel again after many years, I noticed something I did not before: the political statement this book is making. A comment on corrupt government, this book relates to the science fiction novel, The Hunger Games. I noticed several similarities between this novel and THG actually. I noticed the amount of control and power both novels talked about. In THG, the government controls the amount of food you can eat and the lives of your children (interestingly, not that far off from our government). Although the audience sees this happening in The Giver as well, The Giver shows a government that is much more powerful mostly because of its subtleness with its power. The people (save the giver and Jonas) don't truly know what they are missing (color, for example, or the fact that "being released" is actually quite a horrible thing called death) because their government does not inform them of such things. One last similarity I noticed between the two novels was the community assemblies. Both assemblies determine the rest of these humans' lives at such a young age. There is also the communal aspect, which we don't experience in our lives as much. 


I found this book to be somewhat of a comment on communism. I do not know if this was Lois Lowry's intention, but there are aspects of the novel that suggest so. For instance, the attempt to mostly eradicate class through the eradication of difference. The government went so far as to erase feelings and relationships amongst its citizens, this way, (ideally) everyone is equal and no one has an advantage. There is an exception to this however, which challenges the question of whether or not Lowry was making a comment about communism and its faults, and that is the different titles in the town. Such as the laborers and birthmothers who are frowned down upon. 


Additionally, there could be a comment about the postmodern society we live in. For example, she flips society on its side, or rather makes situations extreme, in order to make a comment about our current society. There is also this idea of the citizens constantly being watched and talked at, with the speakers and the planes that fly overhead. In turn, this makes the citizens well aware that they need to act a certain way because they are constantly being watched. 


The most powerful, yet tragic, part of this entire novel is when Jonas discovers love (126-127). He realizes what it is and then asks his parents if they love him. His parents dismiss this question and tell him it is inappropriate to ask such things. It was in this moment that I saw Lowry making a comment on our destiny. Similar to The Eye, The Ear and The Arm, which is comprised largely of computers, robots, and inanimate objects, Lowry seems to be saying that we are destined to be emotionless beings if we try to block out any sort of emotions as a way of dealing with our problems. 

A Response to "The Ear, The Eye and The Arm"

It is clear that General Matsika is protective of his children because he is aware of what the outside world has to offer and the ways in which it can harm his children. It is clear that family means a great amount to him and he even realizes after they run away his mistakes, stating, "why, why didn't I let them grow up?" (51). He realizes that in his attempt to protect them, he only hurt them. The idea of, "love makes us do crazy things" is prevalent in the way the author portrays the Father in the book. This emphasis on family was something that helped me relate to this book immensely. 


Although this is a science fiction novel (and beyond the importance of family I couldn't relate to much) I noticed that I could relate to the nostalgic feeling felt by those who developed the country of "Resthaven." I appreciated the sentiment of wanting to hold on to a piece of history because of its certainty. Meaning, there is no wonder of how things will change in the society or how others will influence this society because this type of society has already lived that out and knows the answers. They know and dream of a "simpler time." They also know that the outside world has very little effect on them. Although somewhat a source of denial, I was able to connect to this desire to maintain a moment in time. 


One of the strongest characters in the novel was Rita. I truly enjoyed her strength as a young female. I appreciated that she had a strong female role model (her mom, having a good career and education) and the activities planned out for the children (such as martial arts) were not discriminatory towards her gender. I found that as the children went on the adventure they always wanted, they were able to truly see what the world was. The stories the Mellower had been sharing were that of fiction and only that. I thought the false pretenses through which the children entered the real world with ill-prepared them for the encounters they would make. I find this especially true with Rita, who was appalled at how she was treated because of her gender. In particular, Rita states: "It's alright for you...you're a boy . You get to lie around listening to stories. I have to scrub the floor, wash clothes...you may be in love with traditional life, but women and babies used to die in those wonderful old-fashioned villages" (126-128). I found that Rita was an extremely strong character. The irony of this story is that Rita, along with her brothers, is actually a really strong being and it is because of her upbringing that she were able to fight her way and survive. 

A Response to "The Underneath"

Next to The Book Thief, this was my favorite book so far. I connected to this book mostly because I am such a dog lover and a cat lover. This book reminded me a lot of The People Could Fly in that it read like folklore, mostly because of the talking and feeling animals. There were also clear morals in place. I therefore felt that adolescents would enjoy this book greatly because of its nature(pun intended). The moral that resonated with me the most was the paradoxical nature of humanity. Humans exist in a hostile world, yet, it is a world that is desirable. The snakes in the story wanted so badly to be apart of human nature, yet human nature is full of heartache, such as death. However, at the same time, the dog and cats experienced heartache, just as the humans did. I appreciated that it showed both the animals and the humans being cruel but what it really boiled down to was love. In the end (spoiler alert!) the snake sees love even though she is still miserable. This love causes her to not act on her bitterness and instead, to die, allowing others to live happily. This story seems extremely cheesy. A story about love, really? However, I would recommend this story for adolescents because of its storytelling abilities and the way it presents a story about love.


Although I found "love" to be the most prominent moral of this story, some other issues are here to study as well; issues such as class and race. The Underneath seems to be making a commentary on these issues and the ways the government deals with them (or doesn't).  


As I mentioned before, I am unfamiliar with the fantasy genre. I would not have placed The Underneath in this genre. Therefore, I was shocked when I started reading this book to find out that this was in the fantasy genre. Because of this book, I think I will explore this genre. To be honest, I assumed it to be filled with books that were only in the realm of The Lord of the Rings (not my cup of tea). 


Finally, another one of the merits of this book are the small chapters that bounce back and forth between the different situations or perspectives of the forest. Similar to the film, Crash (2004), the lives of these humans and creatures all find a way to merge in the end. I find this to be a very strong technique because it provides the message that we are all connected; we should help one another because we don't know when we'll need someone to return the favor. 

A Response to "Voices"

Voices had themes of resilience and resistance,these were themes I could appreciate and recognize. It was quite apparent that through this fantastical novel that Ursula K Le Guin was commenting on the oppressor and the oppressed. Similar to science fiction novels, such as The Hunger Games, there is a comment about corrupt government working within this novel. Fortunately, it becomes a tangible theme for students and adolescents because it is within the framework of the fantasy genre. In other words, put in a contemporary, realistic setting, some of these ideas or themes may not come across as easily to students. However, placed in an unknown or otherwise unimagined setting, students suddenly grasp the theme. 


I appreciated the idea that knowledge is power, which means knowledge is dangerous. The amount of control the Alds have just because they perceive something to be wrong is a frightening idea to explore with students. This was something that worked well with this novel and it is a theme I could potentially see myself using with adolescents. 


I was able to connect slightly to the female characters who were oppressed by the men in power in the novel. I could relate to Memer feeling the need to disguise her identity in fear that something unfavorable would happen should she choose not to. However, for the most part, this novel was extremely difficult to relate to my own life. 


Overall, I did not care for this book. As a newcomer to the fantasy genre (save Harry Potter) I was quite disappointed with my first encounter. I felt I did not understand a majority of the plot and I did not really find a point to it all. Yes, there are the themes I mentioned above. However, the plot was quite boring to me and it did not carry these themes well. After 341 pages, I was not really sure what I had just read. Although the names of the characters were interesting, I was unsure of how these characters truly related to one another. The character development was extremely weak in my opinion. Additionally, even after the government and the setting were explained, I was still confused about the motivations of the characters or why they were in the situations that they were in. 

A Response to "My Name Is..."

This collection of stories, "My Name Is..." was difficult to read. I found myself thinking about my childhood and the fact that I had one; mine was not taken away from me; stolen from me. I was appalled that these kids were (in most of the stories)in the middle of living their lives when they were attacked or forced to leave. I cannot imagine being uprooted like that. I appreciate that this text asks its readers to think about stereotypes that are associated with refugees, particularly those from Somalia. I found the female voices in this piece particularly powerful, especially Aways Naji's story (11). 


This novel was particularly memorable because of the repetition of the phrase "My name is," it really breaks stereotypes by giving identity to those who are struggling, instead of simply generalizing these refugees in a group by saying, "somalis are struggling." What is especially useful about this text, Tangled Threads, and The Absolutely True Diary of the Part-Time Indian, is that is offers a story about identity struggle. These refugees express the struggle with having to help their parents and protect their families once in America in addition to trying to figure out who they are as individuals in this new place or new country. I think this offers adolescents a lot to relate to, it offers a mirror in something seemingly unrelated to their lives. 

A Response to " Tangled Threads"

I loved that this story allowed for the audience to truly see the journey of a refugee. Although the audience did not see the entire struggle of Mai, the audience did see her in her original camp and then witnessed every step of the way as she endured her journey. The theme that resonated with me most, was the theme of resilience. For most of the readers that encounter this text, and myself, this text does not reflect the world as I know it. Instead, this text acts as a window into the life of a refugee. As I read this story, I realized that I know so little about a community that lies within my own community and that is, the Hmong community. As I read this book, I started to wonder why there are so little memoirs, non-fiction, or fiction stories regarding this subject matter when it is such a large part of not only Minnesota's culture and history, but America's as well. 


This book is memorable because it deals with the horrors of war, including, rape, displacement, famine, hunger and violence. I think what makes this book especially memorable is that America was involved with this war and often times, we do not consider the repercussions, or are ill informed of the repercussions, of this war. This novel speaks very strongly to the culturally diverse literature. It allows its readers to see into a culture that seems so intangible, yet it is because as Americans, this is our history. I appreciated that the novel spoke about Minnesota, if I were an adolescent reader, I would appreciate the recognition of my community. As an educator that plans on teaching in the urban setting, I think this novel is extremely beneficial for students because of the Twin Cities' large population of refugees. This novel therefore offers both windows and mirrors for adolescent students. A lot of students will be able to relate and share their similar stories, whereas other students will be offered a window into a likely unknown struggle. 

Technology in Education 2

photo credit: public domain google image

As teachers, we need to recognize that there are resources out there that are not just "by the book." A lot of good information is (of course) on the internet but more importantly, information from our fellow teachers, scholars and colleagues from all over the world exists on the internet. Teachers help each other out; they want to share their wealth of knowledge. There are websites such as slideshare, discovery education, and ted that allow teachers to converse about education, share lesson plans and ideas for the classroom. 


Technology also helps us as teachers because there are many "how to" videos available. Such as "how to teach creative drama", there are also entire seminars available online through the youtube education site such as this one:

video credit: youtube user thenewschoolnyc 

Overall, I think it is important to recognize that there are resources for teachers from teachers and that there are websites used specifically for these resources. 

Technology in Education 1

photo credit: public domain google image 

I find that as teachers, one of our most important jobs is to stay up to date with technology so we can be well-versed in the language our students are speaking outside of school. One way to do this is to incorporate technology into our everyday classroom. More specifically, technology can be a huge part of our assessment strategies. By using models such as facebook® and wikispaces, as a way of creating summative assessments, students are more engaged because these are technologies they encounter in their everyday life. By merging things like wikipedia and facebook into classroom assessment, students are motivated to participate because they are familiar with these media literacies.