Book Report: Alive By S. L. Marsh

I was not really into reading at the time, but I remember that my teacher made us read for at least fifteen minutes at the beginning of every class. If we did not have a book there were many books from her library to choose from. I believe this was one of the first books that I read in her class, and think I chose this book in particular because it stood out. I mean the title itself already piqued my interest. I honestly did not think that I was going to enjoy it as much as I did, It was such a bizarre read with all the strange events and abnormal characters. And in a weird way, the strangeness of the story was what I really liked. I do not think I would have liked it as much if it was not for that. It was one of the first chapter books that I did not have to force myself to finish. This was also one of the first books I read that really got me into loving to read. I just loved getting lost in another world and I wanted to keep reading books that did that for me.

James Rachels claims that morality is absolute. In his article Mortality is Not Relative, he discusses the fallacies of Cultural Relativism as well as the Cultural Differences Argument. Rachels believes that all cultures have some values in common and that there is way less disagreement between them than it seems. He brings up the example of the Eskimo’s and how they choose to kill the infants that they cannot take care of, “The Eskimo’s values are not all that different from our values. It is only that life forces upon them choices that we do not have to make” (Rachels). Another example of this would be how in some cultures it is wrong to eat cows because they believe that the souls of their ancestors and deceased are reincarnated into the cow. In our culture we would not eat our grandparents either, the only difference is we do not believe that they become cows, thus we would have no problem eating cows. “Now do we want to say that their values are different than ours? No, the difference lies elsewhere. The difference is in our belief systems, not in our values” (Rachels).

“You don’t get to choose how you’re going to die and when, you can only decide how you are going to live”. (Joan Baez). In the novel A Lesson Before Dying, written by Ernest J. Gaines, Jefferson doesn’t get to choose how and when he’s going to die, but he learns valuable lessons from Grant about how to live the rest of his life. This novel takes place in Bayonne, Louisiana, in the late 1940s. Jefferson is a twenty-one-year-old uneducated black man, who is accused of a robbery and murder that he did not commit. Unfortunately, the conviction led to his death by execution. While he is in jail, Jefferson’s grandmother wants him to die a hero, so she turns to Grant Wiggins, a black teacher at the local plantation school. During his time in

In the novel A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines, racism and prejudice are clearly evident and talked about throughout the novel. The novel expresses the oppression of the blacks under a white-ruled society through the narrator, Grant. Grant is a well-educated black man who struggles to free himself from the oppression he has felt from the white community. Despite the fact that he is educated and a teacher, he initially lacks the vigor needed to take the first step against black discrimination. He has all this intellect, but does not realize until later on that it is not only intelligence he needs to overcome the oppression, but self-assertion, too. Education does not prove your intellectual worth in society; rather, it is what you do during difficult times that define your intelligence and strong character not just to yourself, but to the world.

With that in mind no matter how I look at it I wish the book would have started in a more interesting manner. It was very hard to start the book simply because it sounded like a regular high school life. Maybe that makes it a more interesting read to put in the realism, and yes I do understand that the book needs to start somewhere; to me it was just a bad start and could have been executed better. Now some people will probably say that it was a better start then how some books start and I definitely agree on that. To me I just wish that the book would have distinguished itself a bit

The movie chosen to be written about was “Easy A” where the director, Will Gluck, directs a film about a student, Olive Penderghast, who feels bad for those who do not necessarily fit in. Therefore, she allows them to spread rumors about her and certain sexual exploitations. In doing so she becomes the school’s most talked about student, while jeopardizing her reputation, while at the same time making some financial gains. She first pretends to lose her virginity to a friend who is too afraid to come out and say he is gay, causing praise for him and humiliation for her. This rendezvous begins a whirlwind of endeavors and a chain reaction of situation she would soon regret. Luckily, in this movie, there is also a

Ryan and Avery’s story begins when they meet for the first time at a Gay Prom late one Friday night. They share their first dance, and at the end of the evening Ryan gives Avery his

May the 4th be With you: Keeping the Spirit of the 4th Alive 365 Days of the Year

In “Lives of the Dead”, O’Brien’s own innocence is preserved through the memory of Linda, a memory that remains untarnished by the inevitable corruption that results from life. O’Brien’s writings “save Linda’s life. Not her body--her life” (236). Storytelling and memories preserve the value of Linda’s existence while simultaneously allowing O’Brien to process death and destruction in a way that maintains a degree of optimism regarding his own life and future. Juxtaposing the images of body and life emphasizes his desire to save the idea of Linda while accepting the loss of her physical presence. O’Brien rejects the idea of death as absolute and final; instead he suggests that “once you are alive, you can never be dead” (244). Linda’s death solidifies her importance in O’Brien’s own development; she teaches him about life and real love as much as in death as in life. O’Brien’s paradoxical statement defines the lasting impact of Linda on him; her presence in his stories keeps her alive through memory; memories that even her death

It’s interesting watching each character develop for better or worse, especially the father who continues to incite the same emotion from you throughout the whole story until the end as well as the oldest daughter. But as much as you remember they are just characters in a book, you know that there are people out there that share the views as these close-minded characters. There are moments when I wanted to scream, cry and just throw the book across the room because of certain events that occurred, but I could not turn the book

Anyone who has ever been a high school student can probably find some way to relate to the characters in the film. The movie revolves around 5 students who for various reasons have been sent to Saturday detention by principle Vernon. The principle asks each of the students to write a one-page paper on who they think they are. As the day progresses, we see the teens begin to bond with each other and find out about each other and themselves.

reading it. There are things that stood out to me and things that made no sense

Todd Kessler’s film rendition of Keith, a novel by the same name, depicts the altering relationship of two vastly different high school students. Natalie Anderson (Elisabeth Harnois) and Keith Zetterstrom (Jesse McCartney) are two opposing personalities that are paired together as chemistry partners. Natalie is an academically-driven student, planning to attend Duke University upon graduation. Keith, on the other hand, is an easygoing person with a wayward way of life – who keeps his illness, cancer a secret in his life. As the pair become closer, it becomes obvious to Natalie that there is something wrong with Keith that he does not openly speak about.

Since there was no proper protection against such extreme temperatures, many of the passengers who were already injured from the plane crash developed frostbitten limbs which eventually turned gangrenous. The passengers of the Fairchild were stuck in a very horrible situation.

Philip has a lot to blame for the outcome in the novel. He was a distraction during the Star-Spangled Banner. In the beginning of class he didn't like Miss Narwin and wanted out of her classes. Philip would constantly hum during the National Anthem, he doesn't stop when Miss Narwin told him to stop. Miss Narwin said, “Is that you Philip?” Philip told her that he was just humming, Miss narwin then asked, “Please stop it,” (Wortis 43) . Philip also lied to his parents about not trying out for track. Philip would not share with his parents about his bad grade in