What do you do when you're a woman in the 1800s who needs to pay off debts post Civil War? You marry your sister's fiancée and run your own business, as Scarlett O'Hare does in Gone With The Wind.
The Tara Plantation is facing foreclosure, and after seeing the horrors of war, Scarlett can't bring herself to let the planation go, as it was once a safe place and is full of memories of her charming, southern life pre-war. She decides to head to Atlanta to pay Rhett Butler a visit, hoping that the rumors that he has a fortune hidden from the Confederate government are true. When she arrives, she finds Rhett in jail (allegedly for killing a man) and is told he has no money she can borrow. She is humiliated by him and vows to find some other way to get the money. Outside the jail, she runs into Frank Kennedy, her sisters fiancée, and learns that he is one of the few wealthy men left in the town, as he owns his own store. She quickly develops a plan to charm Frank into marrying her the take some of his money to give to the farm. Scarlett is a beautiful woman, and she and Frank are soon married. The debts for Tara are paid off for the year, but Scarlett is still uneasy about having enough money to pay it off for years to come. She pays a visit to Frank's store and discovers that he is a horrible business man, as he hasn't collect debts owed to him by many family friends because he feels bad. Scarlett is visited by Rhett in the store and finds out that he wasn't hanged because he blackmailed a high government official. She has had her eye on an old saw mill for months but doesn't have the money to buy it. Rhett then tells her he lied and has millions hidden away in England and he will loan her some to get the mill if she pays him back with some of the money she earns. She agrees, and much to Frank's dismay, buys the saw mill. Just as she is starting to feel more secure, the Ku Klux Klan emerges and she realizes that her world will never be stable again.
This section of the story is a little over half way through the book. So far, based on my blogs, who do you think your favorite character would be and why? To find out what happens to Scarlett, read the book!
Now, onto another epic love story. Romeo and Juliet is a classic, and for good reason. The story is beautifully crafted and the characters so deliciously detailed, its hard not to get lost in the romance. I have enjoyed reading the script in class, because I feel even though the story is almost ridiculously romantic, it is funny in its own way and still uses lessons and figurative language relatable to now. One thing I am concerned about after reading through Act 1 and part of Act 2 is Tybalt. He is vicious by nature and has been provoked by the Montagues one too many times for me to believe that he wont hold a grudge. I am also concerned about Romeo and Juliet. They fell in love so quickly and don't seem to have thought of the consequences yet. They are from opposing families and even today we know that when families don't get along, it always spells disaster in the end. I cant wait to see where young love and revenge will take this story, and I think things are about to get interesting!
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Can You Write About Cancer?
The book The Fault In Our Stars by John Green is a fantastic book. That can not be debated. The book is funny, smart, sarcastic, and makes light of dark situations. The book is about cancer. It is told from the point of a sixteen year old terminally ill girl who has accepted her fate. The story itself has an interesting concept and uses literary elements I havent seen before. It's not overly hard in terms of vocabulary or characterization, but it makes you think on a whole other level. It makes you think about mortality. This leads to a certain debate between readers. Does John Green have the right to write a story about cancer? I will present both sides to you in my opinion and tell you what I think.
Why he can write this story: The arguement for this side is simple. He is the writer. He is the person creating the book, therefore can write whatever he wants. The book may reflect his views on the disease, and though not everyone may agree with his views, they are his views for a reason. You also have to take into account that the narrater of the story is 16 and probably has a different idea of this disease than others. She is the one going through the painful process and has gone through many different stages of grief and pain to finally come to acceptance. Her circumsatnce is very usual and different from most people. John Green has also done volunteer work in children's hospitals and drew on alot of ideas for the story from there, so it can not be said that he has no expeirence with cancer or sickness first hand. In the end though, it comes down to his perspective. Everyone's perspective is different.
Why he can't write this story: Some of the bluntness and sarcasm in the book about cancer can be taken the wrong way by those affect by the disease. The characters attitudes and references to their condition could be seen as offensive by some. People who have commented on the book on Goodreads.com have had no problem stating that this is a great 4-5 star book. Many have criticized Mr. Green for making a story that has an issue so personal to them and trying to convey the feelings to other readers who have not experienced this pain. And a few readers who haven't experienced this situation in their lifetime hated the book for making them laugh about a situation such as cancer. They loved the book and reading it but hated their reactions to it.
How I fall: I believe that John Green had ever right to write this book. He has stated that when working at the hospital he got the idea to write a book about a child with cancer. He didn't want to make this child a huge poster child for cancer or a hero, but rather a normal child learning dealing with growing up and then having cancer thrown onto them. This book exemplifies this idea perfectly and is a very enjoyable story to read. Being a teenager, I am not offended by the book at all because if I was in the same situation as the characters, I feel like I would have a lot of the same feelings. I can understand why others may be offended though. At the end of the day I believe that as a writer, John Green can write whatever he wants. This argument is all about the perspective of the person reading it. What side of this debate would you take and why? Why do you think perspective is so important?
Why he can write this story: The arguement for this side is simple. He is the writer. He is the person creating the book, therefore can write whatever he wants. The book may reflect his views on the disease, and though not everyone may agree with his views, they are his views for a reason. You also have to take into account that the narrater of the story is 16 and probably has a different idea of this disease than others. She is the one going through the painful process and has gone through many different stages of grief and pain to finally come to acceptance. Her circumsatnce is very usual and different from most people. John Green has also done volunteer work in children's hospitals and drew on alot of ideas for the story from there, so it can not be said that he has no expeirence with cancer or sickness first hand. In the end though, it comes down to his perspective. Everyone's perspective is different.
Why he can't write this story: Some of the bluntness and sarcasm in the book about cancer can be taken the wrong way by those affect by the disease. The characters attitudes and references to their condition could be seen as offensive by some. People who have commented on the book on Goodreads.com have had no problem stating that this is a great 4-5 star book. Many have criticized Mr. Green for making a story that has an issue so personal to them and trying to convey the feelings to other readers who have not experienced this pain. And a few readers who haven't experienced this situation in their lifetime hated the book for making them laugh about a situation such as cancer. They loved the book and reading it but hated their reactions to it.
How I fall: I believe that John Green had ever right to write this book. He has stated that when working at the hospital he got the idea to write a book about a child with cancer. He didn't want to make this child a huge poster child for cancer or a hero, but rather a normal child learning dealing with growing up and then having cancer thrown onto them. This book exemplifies this idea perfectly and is a very enjoyable story to read. Being a teenager, I am not offended by the book at all because if I was in the same situation as the characters, I feel like I would have a lot of the same feelings. I can understand why others may be offended though. At the end of the day I believe that as a writer, John Green can write whatever he wants. This argument is all about the perspective of the person reading it. What side of this debate would you take and why? Why do you think perspective is so important?
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