Abstract Noun Blog Post

1) Love is blue bird book sitting together

2) Hate is black cards a person gives you with or without a  reason

3) Depression is dark blue trails you have to walk at night alone

4) Happiness is a star burst orange Popsicle  in the summer time.

5) Sadness is still silver shoes that don't fit

6) Anger is red hot candies that no one likes

I Have Seen Responses

I read Cheyenne's abstract poem, "You can't defend yourself" and I thought it had a lot of imagery. I could feel myself picturing her words, like " I have seen through tears drying down someone's cheek." I feel this poem had so much meaning behind each word. Like she really thought it through and didn't just put words certain places because she thought it sounded good. I really liked the I would rather be verse, the repetition was a nice touch. One of my favorite lines was," I won't change though, I'm persistent." It makes me think that the person knows they are being selfish but they can't help it. There was also repetition with poke and pester throughout the poem. The first verse I felt was a bit dark, but not in a bad way. It made my head go to a different mind set, which was the point. I felt Cheyennes poem did a really good job of capturing the essence of her abstract noun. So all in all I think she did an amazing job.

I read Harlyns poem, "Trembling Earth" and I thought it was amazing. She used so much imagery throughout the entire poem that I felt as if I were there. For example the verse," I have watched the fiery power of pounding fists trying to break the peace and send the earth into chaos." When I read that I can see the world breaking into chaos and things going horrible. There is also alliteration with power and pounding. One of my favorite lines was," I have heard the ocean of mean words." That is a fantastic metaphor. She's heard so much name calling, and verbal abuse that it could fill an ocean. I like the way she ends her poem with a question because it leaves the reader thinking. And if there thinking then there friends are going to want to know what there thinking about, so then there friends will read the poem. So it's a good way to get people to read it. And I hope people do because her poem talks about a serious issue that the world has. But all in all I thought Harlyn did a great job of making her abstract noun concrete.

Poem Response #1

I read the poem 79 by Joachim du Bellay.  The first Line is " I do not write of love: I am no lover." There's plenty of poetry just in the first line, starting with assonance in the of, love, and lover. This first line lets you know what kind of poem it will be. Obviously it won't be a poem about joy and love, for it states that he is not a lover. The first three lines of the poem start with the words " I do not" so there's repetition. There's also an approximate rhyme with the woman, and human and also assonance. Throughout the next two lines the author repeats pleasure and shows assonance with, no, on, and own. So just within the first paragraph there's many elements of poetry. But what really made me choose this poem were the lines and and the meaning behind what's being said. It's actually a pretty sad poem. For example the line, " I do not write of beauty: I have no woman."  He's saying how he doesn't no what beauty is because he is alone. He has no one to love. " I do not write of gentleness but the human rudeness I see." He doesn't believe humans are gentle beings. So maybe he has been hurt by someone before and doesn't trust people anymore.  Throughout the entire poem he is stating things he does not do, and why he chooses not to do them. Like, he doesn't ask for favors since he doesn't socialize with people. The last line of the first paragraph is a bit depressing. Even though he says he doesn't hang out with people, he admits he is lonely. To me that's sad, feeling lonely is one of the worst feelings in the world, at least to me it is. I have never seen a poem in this format before so it intrigued me.  I also usually go for the happy, joyful, quirky, types of poems. So it was a change for me to read something more dramatic and sorrowful. But I have to say that I really enjoyed, and that I think I will be reading more of these types of poems soon.

Lost.

I have seen the warm welcoming sunrise
The day just beginning to start
The Birds chirping filling my ears
The thought of seeing my friends
Driving me to continue moving

I have smelt the freshly mowed lawn
The grass green as ever
The blue sky shining above
The clear spring water glistening
Happiness filling every visible object
Oh how naive I was.

Something changed.
Something switched.
My world was moving to fast
To fast for me to keep up
I was falling, further and further behind

 Stop!
"Just wait for me" I wanted to shout
But my words never made it
For I didn't say it
Lost. I was lost.

Lost in my own thoughts
Lost in my own world
Consumed by the darkness of never getting out
Seeing, but not feeling
Hearing, but not listening
For I was to lost to ever be found.

You Think You're Cooler Than Me?

Madison’s so great

You haters can hate

I ain’t gonna appreciate

But hey, what can I say?

I gotta A+ in physics

And I got tons of toys

I’m so good at b-ball

I out do all da boys

I can spell Mississippi

And I can ride a bike

You think you’re cooler than me?

Sorry, but I ain't gonna fight!

Limericks.

Limericks

There was once a goat named Billy

His looks just gave me the willies

He has four eyes

And eats tons of pies

No wonder his nickname is silly

There was once a bear named Ted

He loved sleeping in peoples beds

One day I was on the phone

And when I got home

Ted was in my bed

There once was a girl named Noa

She was friends with lots of boas

One rapped around her neck

And she fell down the deck

Poor Noa, Poor Noa, Poor Noa.

Haiku's

Nature

Wings spread wide open

Breathing in the summer wind

The butterfly waits

Modern

Silence overwhelms

Sitting. Waiting. Hoping. 

 But no call ever comes.                              

Season

White covers the ground

My nose is pink, hands are numb

Merry music plays.

Good Vs Evil.

Good	Vs	Evil
Peace	Vs	War
Health	Vs	Sickness
Honesty	Vs	Lying
Poor	Vs	Rich
Happy	Vs	Sad
Angel	Vs	Devil
Zen	Vs	Chaos
Freedom	Vs	Captivity
Love	Vs	Hate
Friend	Vs	Bully
Twin Towers	Vs	Disasters

Things That Make Me Happy

One Direction

My mom

My dad

  

My friends

The beach

 My sisters laughter

Volleyball

Basketball

Laying in the hot sun

Playing in the cool snow

Drinking a glass of orange juice after a long day at school

Watching tv with my brother

Enjoying the little things in life.

 

   

 

    

Ender's Game Revised Anticipation Guide.

I have re-read my anticipation guide and I am surprised to say that my views on some things have changed. When I first heard about this assignment I thought that I would go back and read mine and that my opinions would stay the same, but I can say it's quite the contrary. Enders Game has changed my views on many things now.

1) "Lying is justifiable for the greater good." When I first thought about this I didn't agree with it. I always thought lying caused more harm than good. But Enders Game has proved me wrong. For instance, when Mazer lies to Ender about the simulator games not being real. If Ender would have known he wouldn't have beat the buggers, for he feels to much empathy for his enemies. So lying proved to have helped the human race more than harm it."It had to be a trick or else you wouldn't have done it."(pg 298) Graff was explaining the adults reasoning for lying to Ender.

2)"Sometimes violence is the only solution to a problem." My first time on this guide I only gave it a 2. I thought that there was always a better solution than violence, but seeing the many positions that Ender has been in, violence may be the only solution that works. Like when Ender was giving mini battle room lessons to the ones who wanted to attend, and Bonzo and some of his goons didn't like that and tried to attack him. The only way Ender could get out of that was to throw a few punches. Also when Bonzo cornered Ender in the bathroom, talking obviously wasn't going to solve Enders dilemma. So in some cases violence may be the way to solve a problem." We didn't come to hear the little bastard talk"(209) Ender tried talking, and making Bonzo realize what he was doing wasn't honorable. But obviously he didn't want to let Ender walk out of their without fighting.

3)" It is okay to kill someone in self-defense." I'm sticking with the same answer I gave last time which was, I think it's okay to kill someone in self-defense. If your life is on the line you have to do what it takes to stay alive. Ender proves my point further when Stilson tried attacking him when he was six. He didn't know what he was doing, he just let his fighting instincts take over. All he wanted was to make sure that Stilson would never even think to bully him again. Bonzo was the same, he was in a life or death situation and he had no one to back him up."There are some boys who want to kill you."(pg 204) Petra was warning Ender about Bonzo and his goons wanting to kill him, so Ender knew it was actually serious and not just people spreading rumors.

4)"Words are stronger than fists." Instead of agreeing with this 100% I agree with this 70%. Words in my opinion are stronger than violence, but they may not always work. Some people can be thick headed and not listen to your reasoning. Sometimes not talking at all can also help a situation. If you don't have something nice to say then just bite your tongue because retaliating back will just make the situation 10 times worse. "Can't think of anything to answer. Anything I say will make it worse. So will say nothing."(pg 6) Ender was being smart when Stilson was first picking on him. He was trying to be the bigger person and not make the situation worse.

5)" Only the best and brightest students should receive the best education to become a nations leader."  Having thought about this one for a while, I decided to rethink my original answer and give it a 4. Now everyone is entitled to have a decent education, but not everyone could withstand the stress, and endurance it takes to become a nations leader. Take Ender for instance, in command school he started to fall apart. He wasn't getting enough sleep, so much so that he couldn't tell the difference between reality and dreamland. He was the best student in the entire school and he was going a bit crazy. It even went to extremes when he woke up to the taste of blood and he had been gnawing on his hand. If Ender nearly couldn't handle it, then most wouldn't be able to.

6) "Bullies hurt others because of low self-esteem." I still agree with my first answer. Bullies can have bad lives at home, or have been treated like that before, so it's the only way they know how to deal with things. But also it has to do with self esteem. Take Bonzo for instance, Ender is better than him at almost everything, so he feels degraded and pissed that someone so much smaller and younger can achieve better things than he ever could.

7) "Revenge is never justified." This I still disagree with, people should be held accountable for things they do that harm others. But I've realized that may not be the best answer. See I don't think Ender got revenge on Bonzo or Stilson but I think it could look that way. He beat them while they were down, but he did it to protect himself. But he felt so guilty afterwards that I couldn't imagine what it would feel like if he did that out of cold blood and just for revenge since they bullied them. So maybe revenge isn't the smartest way to go about things.

8)" Crying is evidence of weakness." I personally don't think crying is evidence of weakness, but after reading Enders Game I can see why some people think it is. At battle school if Ender would have cried and complained about how he missed his family, he would have been looked upon and treated very differently by teachers, and students. Some people might think that crying shows how you're not strong or capable of some things like others who don't cry. But I think it's fine to cry when needed. But being overly dramatic is a whole different story.

9)" Any action is acceptable in war." I'm sticking with my original answer on this one. When in battle you don't think about the greater outcome of what might happen by what you do. You think in the moment and in that moment all you're thinking about is winning. So you would do anything to win. When Ender was at the final simulator battle he put everything on the line. It was all or nothing, so having said that I think any action is acceptable in war.

10)"Teenagers need discipline and rules because they can't control themselves."  I have to admit I thought this question was a bit random and I didn't quite understand the purpose of it. But I'm answering anyways. I gave this a 3 like my original answer because of course we need rules and discipline, we're young we haven't gone through as many challenges as adults so we will make mistakes. But that doesn't mean we can't control ourselves. Take Valentine, she knows what she got herself into by helping Peter, but she can control herself and control what she wants to right and such on the nets. Also most of the kids at battle school are teenagers and they proved to control themselves just fine.

11)" Only through personal sacrifice can someone create positive change." I don't think that's the only way someone can create positive change but having read Enders Game it seemed that way. Ender sacrificed his childhood and the outcome was the survival of the human race. Actually many kids, Bean, Petra, Alia they all sacrificed their childhood for the sake of the human race. But that doesn't always have to be the cause. Someone could live a very satisfying life and still feel the need to give back."

12) "Generating compassion for your enemies is the only way to create peace." I agree with this. Having a feeling as to why your enemy does the things they do, or act the ways the act can give you a better perspective on them. It can change your feelings about them, maybe their not who you thought they were. I think Ender can prove my point fully. He needed empathy for the buggers in order to destroy them, because he needed to know how they think. But when he found the queen egg, he looked at them through a totally different perspective. He saw that they had innocence behind their reasoning, and he found a way to create peace with them, he was going to help them re-build their species. Creating passion between you and your enemies can help, maybe you aren't so different."I'll carry you. I'll go from world to world until I find a time and a place where you can come awake safely."(pg 320) Ender sees that the buggers forgive him for what he has done, and he hopes that one day the humans will forgive the buggers.
 

Enders Game Questions Chapters 12-15

Chapter 12

1) Ender provoked Bonzo by beating the Salamander army. Ender was better then Bonzo and that didn't sit well with him. He didn't like that Ender was advancing so much. Bonzo responded by trying to kill Ender. He got all of his friends and trapped Ender in the shower. The thing that saved Ender was Bonzo's honor. If Ender hadn't insulted Bonzo by saying he couldn't beat him alone so he had to bring all of his friends than Ender would have died.

2) Stilson was the first person Ender ever beat up. When he was six Stilson would bully Ender, and make Ender feel small and weak since he was a Third. But Ender didn't want to get bullied any longer and he wanted to make Stilson and his friends stay away for good. So he beat up Stilson, but he didn't stop when he was down he kept beating him up so he would be scared and never pick on Ender again. Ender was thinking of him because he always feels guilty after beating people up. But he wouldn't have to do it if people didn't pick on him in the first place.

3) Ender still expects help from the teachers because they are the ones who made him this amazing student in the first place. He thought that if they needed him so badly that they would come and help him out of a dangerous situation. He knows that he is the teachers best bet at success so shouldn't they help him live?

4) I had know idea that Stilson and Bonzo were dead. I knew that they were saverly injured, due to Ender. But I wouldn't have thought a six year old could kill someone. But I soon got a hunch  after something Ender said,"It was like he was dead, standing there. And I kept on hurting him"(pg 222) He was talking about when he destroyed Bonzo in a fight. I realized that he very well could have killed him because he was capable of it. So after the Graff confirmed my suspicions I wasn't that surprised.

5) When Ender fights, he fights for a good reason. He's usually outnumbered and in a dangerous situation where he could very well die. So he takes out the leader of the bullies. He wants to make sure that they don't even think about picking on him again, because they know what's better for them. They don't tell Ender about their deaths because they don't want Ender to think he's like Peter. If he knew he killed them then he would back down from everything, and would break.

Chapter 13

1) "Perhaps it is impossible to wear an identity without becoming what you pretend to be." This quote means that when you pretend to be someone for so long, then eventually you might end up being like them in reality. Like if you pretend to like someone to be nice, you might become friends because you've been pretending for so long.

2) I have mixed emotions about this. I don't think it's necessarily a "good" instinct, but I think its better than not having it at all.  In order to survive you might need to end up hurting someone else. I think if it's for the better of your life, than that instinct can come in handy. Like Ender with Bonzo, Ender knew his life was in danger so he went with his fighting instincts.

3) Ender reveals his problems while Valentine explains her new identity on the nets. Ender talks about how he hates what he's becoming, he knows that he's a puppet but he can't do anything about it. He talks about how he doesn't just beat his enemies but "destroys" them. He understands what there feeling and thinking and figures out what their going to do. He beats them, by understanding them. Valentine talks about how she's helping Peter and how he's changed, but not fully.

4) Her conflicting thoughts are she loves them both, but they both have changed. Peter has became less violent and harmful, he's trying to do the right thing. While Ender has become the opposite, the teachers have turned him into a killer. But she knows Ender and she knows he hates what he's became, she's not scared of him and she still loves him.

5) Graffs views on the bugger war is simple. He doesn't know what the buggers are thinking and they did start the first invasion so the humans must protect themselves and finish the buggers before they can destroy them. They don't know if the buggers are planning on attacking and killing them all. The same happened to Ender. Bonzo initiated the first move into destroying them, so Ender had to put a stop to it.

Chapter 14

1) Ender knew there was something different about Eros. He didn't feel right about being there, the ceilings were to low and just the whole vibe felt off. Ender found out he was right when he asked Mazer, and he told him that the place was made and meant to house buggers.

2) Mazer is going to be Enders only teacher because he is the only one who is better than him. Mazer is the only one Ender can actually learn from. He has valuable information and knowledge since he fought the buggers first hand. But Mazer also tells the truth. He explains how he is the enemy to Ender and that he is going to push Ender to were he will never be the same again. The other teachers told him that they were his friends and the enemy was only the buggers. But not only that he can relate to Mazer.  Mazer also got taken away from his family and know has to stay on Eros to teach.

3) Mazer was dishonest to Ender because he told him that all the battles he fought on the simulators were fake but in reality he was actually killing buggers. I don't think Ender could have handled the truth, it was smart of Mazer to be dishonest because Ender has to much empathy for his enemies. He understands them, and feels for them to much. If he would have known that he was killing buggers he wouldn't have done it, he would have started comparing himself to Peter.

4) I think that the teachers pushed the commander kids to far but it was for the better good. They needed to win this war and in order to do so the kids needed to be ready. Ender had always been a bit sad and depressed but all of the simulator games pushed him above and beyond. But it didn't matter in the end because they had won. After Ender wasn't completely broken but he wouldn't be the same again.

5) In a way the humans did what they thought was best. They were scared of the buggers and in order to dismiss there feelings they killed all of the buggers. I however don't think they should have done that. Killing a whole race is unnecessary, they could have just let the buggers know that they were the stronger race and to not bug them anymore. But that's not how things worked out.

Chapter 15

1) I think that Ender agrees with what Valentine is saying because that's what has happened his whole life. The adults are the ones who decide what happens not Ender. But I don't think he minds that much anymore because the people in control are ones he can trust. He has Mazer and Graff, the adults who can decide what he does. Alia, Bean and Petra has friends he will always have. And Valentine, the family member that has always loved him no matter what. He has people he can relate too and make him happy and that is enough for him.

2) Enders opinions on the deaths of Stilson and Bonzo is that it's bad, but he has done so many bad things that it doesn't make a difference.. He has killed the whole bugger race all he needs to do is had two more human deaths. He feels guilty and sad that he has caused so much harm to others.

3) Valentine made sure that Ender could never return to Earth for Enders own good. She knew that he was tired of being a puppet and that's exactly what would have happened. Any army on Earth would want Ender has there command leader. Peter would use Ender to his own advantage to become stronger. She wanted to protect Ender.

4) The ironic thing was that when they were younger all Peter did was cause harm and threaten them with death. But when older he ended up saving millions of lives. While Ender was always the quiet one, who never did anything wrong, but when he grew he ended up killing millions.

5) He learns from the egg the buggers left behind. He sees the war and other things through their perspective. He sees that they never meant to kill them, and that when they did, they weren't planning on coming again. He sees the innocence that the buggers posses. They want Ender to help rebuild there species and to take care of their new queen.

6) He authored it using "Speaker of the Dead" because he has had enough attention for a lifetime. He knows that if people knew he wrote it they would read it differently, since he was the one to kill the bugger race in the first place. He just wants people to see things from a new perspective, he doesn't care about the fame. This kind of reminded me off Card. If I would have read Enders Game knowing how Card felt about gay marriage I probably would have judged the book and read it in a different way. How ironic that Card decides to make Ender do that too.

Article Response

Card's opinions on gay marriage complicated my feelings for one of my new favorite books, Ender's Game. When the class first started reading the book I thought it was just going to be another one of those books that I'm forced to read for school. But that's what surprised me. I was actually enjoying reading it. The excitement, the mystery behind the buggers, I had never read a science fiction book before and Ender's Game made me want to read more. When I found out that there was a sequel I was ecstatic. Of course I would want to read the next one in the series after that plot changing ending. That was until Mr. Vack showed us the article about Orson Scott Card and his opinions on gay marriage.

Everyone is endowed to have there own opinions and thoughts about any and everything. But that doesn't mean I agree with them. That's how I feel with Card. He is an amazing writer and he uses that to express his feelings. I think it's horrible what he says about gay marriage, and how its a "reproductive dysfunction born of choice." I would have never guessed he felt this way after reading Ender's Game.  To say the least there were some big "bromances" going on throughout the whole book. Gay marriage in my mind is absolutely okay. You should be able to like who you want to like, or marry the one you love no matter the sex. Card's opinion has made me dislike him, and I know I don't know him personally but that doesn't mean I can't judge him for the cruel words he has said. Having said that I can't bring myself  to change my opinion on the book. It was truly an amazing science fiction and one of the best books I've read this whole year. Card was creative with his plot and characters, and drew me in within the first paragraph. I love Ender's Game, but that doesn't mean I have to love the author.

Mr. Vack in my opinion should keep Ender's Game in his reading curriculum. It's a brilliant book but also, the controversy between the book and the author is impeccable. The classes could have hour long discussions between whether Card's opinions changed their feelings for the book and whether they should support him or not. Though I personally think that he shouldn't support him anymore by buying more of his books. But just use the ones that the school already has. I think it was smart for the movie company trying to keep Card out of things. Ender's Game the movie could have such a great chance at being one of the most watched movies, but that could all be ruined by Card. Him being so vocal and not afraid to say what he wants, could offend many people and make them choose not to see the movie. So keeping him out as much as possible seems like the most logical choice. And since they tried to keep Card out of the "limelight" I don't think the movie should be boycotted. Though I might have a biased opinion considering I liked the book and am looking forward to the movie. All in all I think Card's opinions are horrible and hurtful to some, but Ender's Game is still a really great book.

Ender Game Questions Chapters 9-11

Chapter 9

1) I think that in reality Peter has the power and is manipulating Valentine. But Valentine knows what she's doing and his fairly good at manipulating people herself. They both have power but Peter is the one in control. Valentine and Peter both know that he needed her help in order to go through with the plan. But Peter used empathy to manipulate Valentine into doing it.


2) They relate to the persona's of Valentine and Peter because they both have very strong opinions and they express them in just the right ways. Peter is like Locke because they both express themselves through writing. Also they both had social dilemmas, they didn't always get along well with people. Though Peter does seem to have a darker side to him that Locke does not posses. relates to Valentine but seems more mean. She always spoke her mind and was Demosthenses isn't afraid to say what needed to be said.


3) Ender is angry because he is still an outsider. He does everything he's suppose to do and that makes him succeed. But he has no friends that are close to him, they can't understand what he's going through. He had to work to make friends in the first place and no since everyone looks up too him with respect and honor he doesn't have as much to work for.

Chapter 10

1) Ender was the same kind of leader as his previous commanders. He was harsh and would take no nonsense but he was smart and clever. He let the boys know that he had the power and that they had to respect him. But he wasn't a total jerk to them. He revolved from his old commanders. He learned to treat his army with the same respect. He wasn't stuck in one mind set, like his old commanders.

2) Ender picked on Bean. He called him out in front of all the other soldiers in his army. Ender did this because he knew that Bean was capable of great achievements. He was small like Ender was when he first got promoted. Ender did this because it is what Graff first did to him. In order for the bar to be set high for Ender in the first place Graff called him out and let everybody know that Ender would be the only one that would excel, and he did. So Ender did the exact same thing to Bean.

3) The word "Salaam" means peace. Religion was something that could be personal to that one person. It could be the reasons they do the things they do or act the ways they act. But the government had took that away from the people. Some didn't care they maybe did it in private or taught there kids a word or two. That is what I think happened to Alia. He learned the words from his parents. Alia trusted Ender to look into his past and see who he used to be.


4) The important part about the end of this chapter is that Ender has finally broke. He's done with everything but nothing can make him cry because nothing will top what they turned Valentine into. They turned Valentine, the one person he loved, into a tool. They used her to try to get Ender out of his state of depression. He is certain that he will never be so hurt again. And with that anger inside of him he has decided to defeat the real enemies, the teachers. I think Enders reaction was exactly what the Battle School wanted. They needed him to come out of his sad state and they knew Valentine would be the way to do it.

Chapter 11

1) The computer knows Ender so well because Ender has always been watched. He had a monitor in for most of his life before Battle School, and when he arrived at Battle School he started playing the Giant game. It knows how Ender reacts to situations and it gives Ender challenges that will really push him. But I don't think the computer actually knows him. The computer doesn't know that Ender hates what he's becoming, it doesn't know that he wonders what it would be like to live a normal life. It doesn't know Ender on any personal or emotional level.

2)"Yes. That is the worst that could happen. I can't lose any games because if I lose any"(pg 198) Ender knows he can't lose any because if he loses once then people know he can be beaten. He's worked so hard to become the best and if he loses one then he might lose another and then another. If he loses one then he's not the best that he can be and he might as well give up on trying to be incredible.

3) The teachers are pushing Ender so hard because they think he is "the one". They think Ender is the one that will destroy the buggers in the Third Invasion. So they need to push him in order to prepare him. There scared of the buggers and that Ender won't be ready so there making him go above and beyond normal expectations.  Even though what their doing seems to be making Ender a bit crazy, it's working, Ender is succeeding in everything he does.

4) The last two sentences tell how Bean is coming up with knew ideas to do with his toon, but all of them are stupid. Ender would love that because he doesn't do what everyone else does. Like how he tells him army to always be moving and not to be in formations. Nobody else would try this. He thinks outside the box because in order to beat everyone you need to think differently than them. So Bean coming up with new and bizarre ideas is exactly what they need.

5) "Veni Vidi Vici" is an appropriate title because that's what Ender did. He came up to the challenge of becoming a commander with confidence, he saw every other armies plans on how they would beat them and always out smarted them and found ways around it. And he conquered every single battle he played.