"The Soloist" - Chapters 1-6

After reading the first several chapters of the book, Nathaniel Ayers, a former student at the Julliard Music School in New York, is someone that people don’t understand. Some would consider him an eccentric. Music was the only thing in life that Nathaniel was passionate about. Yet , I believe it was what caused him to have psychological problems. I believe that the pressures of the Julliard program were too much for him. Most people who are of Nathaniel’s IQ are eccentric. Some studies show that individuals that have psychological problems such as a mental breakdown, are people with extremely high IQ’s. Most of us do not usually understand these people. As in the book, Steve Lopez cannot understand why Nathaniel would want to live on the streets, and not “come inside” and live a normal life. To Nathaniel, living on the streets was what he wanted. It allowed him the ability to play when he wanted, for as long as he wanted, and no one else seemed to mind. Steve feels that he knows what’s best for Nathaniel. However, both men don’t mentally live in the same world, so what Steve thinks is best for Nathaniel, is not what Nathaniel thinks is best. It’s funny how Steve describes how he feels when he hears Nathaniel’s music, how comforting it is – taking him away. It’s also ironic how someone that is supposedly that distant from the real world can have that affect on people. I guess how passionate we are about things reflects through us, showing who or what we truly are.

This book has become something very dear to me. After discussing the book with my Mom, she told me some things about a family member very close to her, who had mental illness - her mother, my Grandmom. She told me stories of how her Mom would do things that didn’t make sense to her, yet my Grandmom believed what she was doing was right and was actually good for her. My Grandmom had her first “mental breakdown” at the early age of 27, due to a lot of pressures from things going on in their life. Some people can deal with the pressures of life, others can’t and I guess that’s what makes us different. You never know what life will hold for you or how things will turn out, and if you truly believe in something and are passionate about it, you should never let anyone change your mind.

I am anxious to continue the book to find out if Steve and Nathaniel will understand each other better, and if they will see what are the other’s wants and likes and dislikes. Will their relationship develop or will it fall apart because of their differences?


For this post I would like my readers to focus on the following:
1. Does my summation want to make you read the book?
2. Is my sentence structure and grammar correct?
3. How’s my transitioning? Do my sentences flow smoothly?

The Catcher in the Rye

Lynn Ciafre 11-2
English III


To me Holden Caulfield was a very complex individual. I believe he didn’t read people well, and most times, completely misunderstood them. He felt that people didn’t like him, expected too much from him, and quite frankly he didn’t care to be around them. This would explain his problems with school and why he was expelled so many times from so many different places. Perhaps if people understood him and why he did what he did the results may have been different.

I believe a lot of Holden’s feelings were the result of his reaction to his brother’s death. We know that, through his actions, this was hard for him to deal with. Because D.B. was not home a lot, I believe Holden and Phoebe became close and depended upon each other for friendship. They both were able to tell each other just about anything.

Holden didn’t know how to react when people did things for him, such as his teachers, neighbors, etc. He always thought somebody wanted something in return; he didn’t believe people did things to be nice. Holden, as a result of this, built a wall around him self and never let anybody in. This was his defense and he never let it down. As a result of this, he hurt a lot of people.

Towards the end of the story, Holden did finally mature, and thought about other people’s feelings. This came through when he told Phoebe that he was leaving and she became upset. Because of their close relationship, Holden didn’t want to hurt her so he changed is mind. This not only showed some maturity on his part, but also that somebody cared for him and didn’t expect something in return.

It’s funny in this day and age when children act as Holden did, parents often take their children for professional help. This usually is followed by the patient (child) being treated with some form of medication. Like the commercial says, how about “talking to your kids.” Communication may be better than medication.


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In grading my work, I would like not only my grammar and spelling to be considered, but also what I have to say should be to greatest percentage of my mark.

Freedom By Death

Lynn Ciafre – 11-2
April 12, 2009
The Death of a Salesman -

First I would like to say that this is one book that I would probably not read again, or maybe I should, because it might grab my interest the second time around. I thought it took too long in getting my attention and part of the reason was because there were too many references and too much reminiscing which made me confused.

I believe that Willy was a lonely person as sometimes people say that salesmen are. My mom mentioned that most salesmen can talk to and are comfortably speaking with strangers more than their families. I believe this was the case in this story. To me, Willy and Linda didn’t seem to have a great marriage, maybe because he was always on the road. She may have felt overwhelmed by having to raise the kids by herself. Although Willy seemed to spend a lot of time with the children when he was home, this seemed to happen only when they were young. There didn’t seem to be any contact with the kids and their father as they got older.

I think that Biff, who was Willy’s favorite, found his father repulsive after he caught him cheating. Biff didn’t believe his father’s stories and excuses, and was hurt by whole situation.

Willy’s funeral was sad because of the lack of attendance and no mourners. It was especially said because not even Linda, his wife, mourned his passing. She did have some guilt and asked for forgiveness for her inability to cry. Her happiness is evident by the no tears and her final comment indicating that the family was “free”. To me this is a very sad life, and even sadder death.

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In grading my post, I would like the readers to focus more on the organization of my writing piece and how it flows.

The Great Gatsby - Monday, March 23rd

The Great Gatsby

Life is essentially a cheat and its conditions are those of defeat…the redeeming things are not “happiness and pleasure” but the deeper satisfactions that come out of struggle.”
- Letter, October 5, 1940, to his daughter, Frances

I choose the above quote from Fitzgerald because I think this describes Gatsby’s life and his acquaintances. I use the word acquaintance because I believe that he didn’t have any real friends - a reason for him being cheated in life, in spite of his wealthy status. I feel that you need people and friends more than materials things. It’s ironic how we wish for more money and objects and think that this will make us happy. Yet, here is a story of one man’s life who had material riches, but longed for something that he couldn’t have, someone he loved, someone that would have made his life complete.

The quote tells us about “redeeming things are not happiness and pleasure”. As I explained above, materials things don’t always fill our need for happiness. Yes, we have pleasure in having money, or a new car, or nice clothes, but are we really happy? Do we still feel empty? Like something is missing? Gatsby felt this way. He longed for Daisy, but was not sure how she felt. Did she ever think about him as he thought about her? I think that in the short time before his death, was probably the happiest that Gatsby was for a long time. He was able to enjoy his wealth because he could share it with Daisy. That’s what made him complete.

Gatsby’s struggle in life was to once again be with Daisy. However, due to her marital situation, he believed this was never possible. How good he must have felt when she agreed to have the affair with him, in spite of being married. Gatsby must have felt that Daisy had some feelings for him which is why he took the blame for the car accident that killed Myrtle, which resulted n the murder of Gatsby.

Blogger Reflection

Why I have enjoyed “blogging”:

Mr. F – first let me thank you for your email thanking the students for our writing so far this year. Your class has been interesting to say the least. Hope you have enjoyed my assignments and I hope you were able to understand what I felt at that time.

I think that “blogging” is a great tool for assignments. There are many advantages to this form of communication. It allows you to get your point across in a more adult manner, not the usual typing and submission of reports. I think it’s much easier to think and type, instead of writing notes. It allows me to change my thoughts without getting frustrated in having to scribble or cross out or tear up the first draft. It would be great if all of our teachers handled all of our assignments like this in the future. It’s a great prep tool for our future, especially college.

Since we don’t interact much with the other class, in my case 11-1, this feature allows us to comment on their thoughts, suggestions, and point of view. It actually brings the entire 11th grade closer in a sense, where we would not have the opportunity to do this if we were all submitting a report in writing.

I think that the grading system should be based not only on our knowledge of what the topic is, but also grammatically and spelling. In this day of high tech, everyone knows how to type – just from using cell phones, if nothing else.

Blogging for sure takes care of the excuses that “I left it at home”, “something spilled on my homework”, “I forgot my book” and the infamous one “the dog ate my homework”. Thanks to you we’ll need to come up with some new ones.

American Poetry Supermarket - Charles Wright

Charles Wright: "Sitting at Night on the Front Porch" -

I’m here, on the dark porch, restyled in my mother’s chair.
10:45 and no moon.
Below the house, car lights.
Swing down, on the canyon floor, to the sea.

In this they resemble us,
Dropping like match flames through the great void
Under our feet.
In this they resemble her, burning and disappearing.

Everyone’s gone
And I’m here, sizing the dark, saving my mother’s seat.

Does writing have the power to enact social change?

I do believe that writing has the power to enact social change. Writing can be a very powerful and emotional thing. Writing is a form of expressing your emotions. Imagine, all the influential speech writers and icons in history. Such as, King, Ghandi, Obama, and Maya Angelou.

Writing can be about anything you want it to be. It can vary from a piece about slavery or a poem about an ice cream cone. It can rhyme or it can just have an organized flow. But, no matter how it's written or what language it is written in, writing has the power to appeal to everyone.

Different people are effected by different writing pieces. Some writings will anger certain people and other writings will bring joy to some people. Some writings will not have any effect at all and people would just be reading words with no meaning.

But, back to the topic. Writing will change people's views and perspectives toward some things. For example, you might eat meat and then you read about some of the horrible things that animals go threw when they are put down so that we can have meat. As a result of reading this writing, you might become angry and maybe even become a vegetarian.

Another piece of writing that might have an effect on you is a piece of writing about slavery. Writings on slavery might also anger the reader or make them sad. In some sort of was this writing piece will have an effect on you and take some sort of power.

In conclusion, not everything you read will have a powerful effect on you, but some definitely will. And the ones that do have an effect on you will be the ones that change your opinions about things. Those will be the ones tat will have the power to enact social change.

The Price of A Child

Lynn Ciafre 11-2
January 30, 2009
The Price of A Child Writing Piece

Afterward:

Upon Mercer's return home, she became actively involved in the crusade to abolish slavery. She wanted equal rights for all the slaves, the same rights that their owners enjoyed.

Mercer and some of her friends who had the same beliefs as her, formed a committee called LAST - Let's Abolish Slavery Today. As president of the committee, Mercer was able to gather the attention of political and religious leaders, who then allowed her to speak at various gatherings. She was even invited to speak at a national gathering by Sojourner Truth. The turnout was tremendous!

Mercer soon became a household name. Everybody knew her - slaves, slave owners, politicians, and some movie stars. The slaves loved her and thought of her as a hero; the slave owners hated her and wanted her dead, even going so far as to put out a reward for her death. But this didn't stop her, it made her all the more determined.

On December 6, 1865, Mercer's journey was finally done. On this date the Thirteenth Amendment of the US Constitution was ratified, officially abolishing slavery in the United States. Mercer had won her long war.