Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Never Give Up


Author's Note: I am writing about the conflict & resolution in the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. I am writing to show the main conflict and how it get resolved. I am working on organization. Feedback would be great.

Arnold is a kid on a Indian reservation, but through all the ups and downs in his life he has kept his hope unlike everyone else. Now he has to take his hope somewhere else, where other people have hope. Arnold always been in conflict with mental and physical problems, even with his tribe. That didn't bring him down and now he has to do something about that. 

First,  Arnold didn't have such a great life on the rez. He is a Indian on a reservation.  Born with a variety of medical issues. He is always made fun of on the rez. Kids his age, teenagers, and even adults would pick on him or beat him up.  Leaving to go to Reardan was probably the best thing to ever happen to him. Maybe it would be hard for some people to leave your old life but I don't think it was hard for him.

Reardan started off not so great but quickly got better. At first he walks into the school no one bothers to talk to him, which is probably better than getting beat up. You could probably tell he was Indian but no one mentioned anything. But as he meets Gordy(nerd, friend, and tutor), Penelope(semi-girl friend), and Roger(friend, star basketball player). His life starts to turn around.

I think Arnold has always battled society. So the main conflict is Person vs. Society. In the beginning he was always against the tribe, during the basketball game vs the rez. Arnold wasn't just playing basketball against the team, but against the entire tribe. When he started Reardan, some kids were kind of racially against Arnold, but all he wanted to do was to fit in. Later it seem like the tribe just back off and stopped trying to make his life miserable because his sister and grandmother died. Now he has found a new society that loves him.

As rough as Arnold's life was nothing ever brought him down. Brain problems, a lisp, a stutter, the tribe, and many, many deaths. Instead of staying at the reservation and not ever having a chance of ever fulfilling his dreams, he went out there and did something big and now has a chance to do anything.  

Thursday, February 16, 2012

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian Epilogue


Author's Note: This a creative piece about what I think would happen if Rowdy came to Reardan in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian.  This piece is from Rowdy's prospective.

Standing there, thinking. Twenty feet from the door of Reardan. Should I go, should I go home? If Arnold can do it so can I. Okay I can do this. No turning back now. No one has said anything thing yet. Then a teacher walks up to me.
"Welcome to Reardan," he says. "Here let me show you to your locker."
I follow him, but that is when I notice everyone around me is looking at me. Whispering and snickering. How could they possibly know….oh…the basketball game. Great, I already know how great my day is going to be.

Later I got surrounded by a bunch of guys. They were calling me names pushing me around. I was getting mad, real mad. I went on a rampage. I went crazy on all of them. It was like a hurricane of fists, but the weirdest thing was they just walked away. Oh well I have to go see Junior any ways.     

"Hey!" I say walking up to Junior.
"Hi, how's your first day going?" asked Junior.
"I don't know, it was weird. I punched someone and they just walked away." I say.
"Yeah, that happened to me too" says Junior, "But anyways are you going to join the basketball team?"
"Yeah," I say
"Well then I will see you at the game tonight," says junior.

I am all ready for the basketball game. Walking with Junior I feel great. Until I take a step into the gym. Everyone is dead silent. Just staring at me. Obviously the recognize me. I caused there only loss of the season. But this is ridiculous, because then they start booing. This isn't going to be fun.

The game started but the coach won't put me in because when he tries the crowd boos crazily until I am out. This is stupid! I want to just punch them in the face! I storm out of the school and all I am thinking is that I am done with the school. I am going back to the rez.

I think this would happen because Rowdy gets mad very quick and settles everything with violence. Really in the book I don't think Rowdy would have ever gone Reardan.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Hope


Author's Note: This is a creative piece about a quote in the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. If you could comment, any feedback would be great.

Arnold lives on a Indian reservation. He was born with many medical issues. All the adults on rez including his parents are drug addict or drunks. He is bullied every day by everyone, I mean adults, teenagers, and kids. But that isn't going to stop Arnold follow his dreams. 

"You've been fighting since you were born. You fought off brain surgery. You fought off those seizures. You fought off all the drunks and drug addicts. You kept your hope. And now, you have to take your hope and go somewhere where other people have hope." -Mr. P   pg. 43

That was what started everything. That was the line that made Arnold think, it lead him off the rez to basically start a new life. Arnold didn't give up unlike everyone on the rez. He had hope and so did the kids at Reardan Middle school.  Though Arnold was still the same kid, he was still Indian, he still medical problems, but that didn't stop him from turning his life around.

 It kind of makes you think if Mr. P hadn't of talked to Arnold what would have happened next. Probably would stay on the rez and there wouldn't be a story to tell. Mary probably wouldn't have died in the book. She only left because Arnold left. Everyone says that it was his fault but I don't think so. It made Mary leave but it was out of her stupidity that she died. If Mr. P didn’t come to Arnold's house would there even be a book?

I think this was an important quote in the book, it completely changed the story and Arnold's life.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Author's Note: This is essay on character development. I am writing about Arnold from the book The Absolutely True Diary of  a Part-Time Indian. I am working on organization. Feedback would be great.

Have you ever had problems at school, in your town, or just your life? Maybe because of bullies, mental/physical issues, or etc. Well, if you think you got it bad just look at Arnold's life. He may have it bad now, but can he turn this all around?

First of all, Arnold's life didn't really start off the best. When he was born his head was filled with water that damaged his brain (That's how he got the nickname Hydro Head). He lives on a Indian reservation. Doesn't really have any friends except for his best friend, Rowdy. Dog died, Father is a drunk, Mother is never there, his sister ran away and they are poor. Seems like a great life, right. But when Mr. P (Teacher) comes over to talk to Arnold, he might be able to change his life forever?

His life started terrible, but will it end that way? After Arnold smashed Mr. P in the face with a geometry book, he came over to Arnold's House to talk to him about leaving the rez. Arnold still has hope unlike anyone at the rez, everyone has given up. Mr. P says Arnold could have a future but can't stay here. He decides to leave and go to Reardan, an all-white school. But the people at the rez don't like that, they think he has betrayed the tribe and when Reardan plays the rez in basketball it's not a pretty sight. He will go to this new school and find that people won't be so quick to judge, unlike the people on the rez and they will give him a chance to really know him. Now he has more friends than ever and something good could finally come from his life.

This book kind of reminds me of Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Arnold and Greg both in middle school, having problems trying to fit in. Plus both of the main character's best friend is name is Rowdy. Both lost there best friend, but the Rowdy's are different one will never anyone and one will punch you in the face to get his point across.But the main character are pretty similar.   

His life might not started off so good, but look at it now. He has left the dying hope at the rez and has create some new hope that could last him maybe forever. No matter how bad his life was, you can always turn it around.


Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Thank You Ma'am-From her mind

Author's Note: This is a piece showing what the women was thinking during "Thank You Ma'am", by Langston Hughes. From her mind....


I worked late tonight just ready to get home and eat some dinner. What's that. Hey, my pocketbook! The thief fell down. Good thing it's heavier than this boy. I kick him "right square in his blue-jeaned sitter." He probably not more than 14. I pick him up and now am face to face with this boy. All I am thinking what is wrong with this boy. I am so angry at this boy, people are watching and I don't care. Maybe I should change the way this boy thinks. Yeah, I will take him back to my place right now.


In this piece the lady didn't seem like the victim. She didn't seem scared of the boy. She also didn't the cops, all she did was kick him and turned him into the victim. At most she was angry. Once she started dragging the boy I think that Roger most likely regretted ever take the chance of stealing the pocketbook.







Sopa & Pipa


Author's Note: This piece is to tell you that this not a good bill and we should do whatever we can to rebel against it. I am working on Sentence Fluency. Please leave comments below to tell me what you think should with Sopa & Pipa.

Have you heard of the Sopa & Pipa bill that the government is trying to pass. Basically they are trying to censor the internet.  There are so many reasons that we should deny this bill. This is why the Sopa & Pipa should not be passed.

Sopa and Pipa are acts that are trying to censor the internet. Sopa stands for Stop Online Piracy Act and Pipa stands for Protect IP act. They want control over websites and will shut down any website with illegal videos, music, and etc. on them. It might seem good but the government will most likely go to far and end up shutting down most of the Internet.

The Internet is huge source of information, but if this bill passes big websites like Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube will be shutdown. For example if someone were to post a video on Youtube that breaks any piracy laws, that means movie clips, songs, and video games, the government will shut down all of Youtube and blame it as Youtube's problem. Even if this bill does pass it will not stop websites from overseas, so it could end up failing anyways.

Overall, the Internet is a giant source for information and if they shut it down they country will takes a major step back in technology. They are not good bills and will end up failing anyways. So when you have a chance to help rebel this bill, do your part and save the Internet.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Dead-Man's Path


Author's Note: I am writing a Cause & Effect piece for "Dead-man's path". Feedback would be great.

26 year-old, Michael Obi, just became the new headmaster of Ndume Central School in the story "Dead-Man's Path." He wants to make the school more modern. All the village people have this superstition of Dead-man's path and it's right in front of the school. For thousands of years people have been walking across this path. He didn't think that should happen so he blocked it off. This event was the climax of the story.

Why did Michael Obi feel the need to block the path? Well, he thinks that he is the smart one and the village people are dumb for believing in this superstition.

 There were harsh consequences for blocking the path.  The priest came to say that he still has a chance to remove the fence. He refused and  kept it up. Someone died right after he refused to take it down. The next day the villagers trashed the school. Everything that happened wouldn't have ever happen as long as he didn't put up the fence.