"1984" Blog Post

“1984” by George Orwell tells us about the story of a man, Winston, who is living in the time period of 1984. The government or the “Party” has made an attempt to take over all of what we call Europe and Asia. Winston is different than everyone else because he didn’t lose as much memory as everyone else and that makes him different. In the story Orwell is showing us that 1984 was supposed to be a dystopian era.

Throughout this story we are given many clues to the fact of how corrupt Winston’s 1984 is. One example is how every family has a television, but in Orwell’s version of 1984 the television is called a telescreen. Usually a television works where you watch it and you get to watch what you want, in the book the Party decides what you watch, when you watch it, and for how long. Also the telescreen watches you, it has a camera of some sort where it can watch you and also hear you. And this follows the motto of the government “Big brother is watching you.” And not only is this not reassuring of giving you your own personal space this gives one person absolutely no personal space. Another example of how Orwell’s idea of 1984 is messed up is how all the children love violence. “Why can’t  we go and see the hanging?’ roared the boy in his huge voice/ ‘Want to see the hanging! Want to see the hanging!’ chanted the little girl” Here we see an example where children are begging to see this act of violence that in our current time era it is illegal to do something like homicide, and also many people are repulsed by the thought of hanging someone. It is just horrifying to think about a world that would be so corrupt like this one.

This book has so many things that is wrong with it, as we read this book if we don’t notice what might be wrong with the society we might miss different key factors where Orwell is actually making fun of the way that we are living in our own society today.

"Sylo" Blog Post

“Sylo” by D.J MacHale is about an island that has a disease that is killing off the people on the island. This causes the United States government to come in a help quarantine off the whole island, the government claim that it is completely safe to be on the island, except for the fact that no one can leave. The story takes us through the perspective of a boy named Tucker who is just going on with his normal life and pretending that the soldiers aren’t even on the island. Although I’m not that far into the book I have a prediction that Tucker is going to make a huge difference to the way that the people of the island are living.

Tucker moved to the island with his family to get his “new start” and when his family moved there they never expected there to be such a crazy thing. I believe that while the whole island goes to hell Tuck is going to end up saving it. One reason is because he had previously met a guy who was advertising these salts that gave a single human super human powers that lasted for about 20 minutes. And the man who was advertising these got stuck on the island when the government placed down the quarantine. What will most likely happen is that Tucker will become this super human person that helps the island. Another thing that could lead us to believe that Tucker will save the island is because he knows a lot of people, this story could end up being, where there is a team of people who help the troubled people. And the people that Tucker know each have something about them that makes them special. This is why I believe that Tucker is going to be a major attribute to being a hero.

This story could be followed on any other person that was trapped on the island, but there was a certain reason that we, the reader, was put on the track  of tucker. And it was most likely to find out what is so special about Tucker.

"No One Else Can Have You" Blog Post (warning: spoilers)

The story "No One Else Can Have You” by Kathleen Hale is about a girl named Kippy who is investigating on who actually killed her best friend Ruth. Everyone in the town believes that no one else would do it except for the guy who they threw in jail. But when Kippy wants everyone to know that the man they threw into jail didn’t do it they deem her as crazy. Through all of these hard times Kippy is still able to stay really strong and never give up.

Kippy has gotten so many put downs from everyone around her, but she is still extremely perseverant. One person who is restricting her is her father.  He barely lets her go anywhere by herself, “Usually Dom’s [her dad’s] idea of ‘personal space’ entitles texting me every five seconds and sitting every close to me on the couch but not so close that our bodies are touching.” it is appropriate for a parent to worry about their child, and although there was a recent murder in the town, a parent with a kid of the age of 16 shouldn’t have to be so closely watched like Kippy is. Another thing that could stop her from finding out who actually killed her best friend is the fact that her best friend, Ruth, never actually liked Kippy. “Kippy is so pathetic it makes me nauseous… If we lived anywhere else, like any place remotely interesting, I’d have way more options, and she and I wouldn’t even know each other.” This is showing that Kippy never knew that she was so hated by the only person who she believed was her friend. And the still after reading this page in Ruth’s journal she still is determined to find out who killed her claimed to be “friend”. This shows how she was externally conflicted on how she could just break down.

Besides being conflicted from the outside she was also conflicted from the inside of her. Her mother had died many years before, but she is constantly thinking about her mom throughout the book and, by adding this Hale is showing us that Kippy has trouble dealing with death. Another example is how she started falling in love with Ruth’s older brother who Kippy has always known her own life. This an internal conflict because she could feel that it is morally wrong because after her friend dies, she goes and dates the brother, but she doesn’t find this to be morally wrong and that leads to making her life difficult. And these things could put Kippy down in her investigation because her brother might not enjoy the fact that Kippy has to investigates his sister’s death, and the mother’s death can bring her into a relapse of sadness.

Kippy has many challenges that she has to face. But Kippy doesn’t let any of these things stop her. She has these conflicts coming from inside of her and out. This can teach us the reader that we have to be perseverant, and face all challenges head on.