Sense and Sensibility #20!

I really liked this book, and I am happy with the way that it ended. It's nice to see that Elinor and Edward are once again happy and engaged living in Delaford. It is even nicer to know that my prediction was right, Colonel Brandon and Marianne ended up together after all. It is heart warming to read that they both got what they had wanted in the end and that their sisterly relationship stayed super strong.

This is funny, my sister and I have talked about moving in together when we were older and the story's ending was just that. I see so many similarities between Elinor and Marianne and my sister and myself.

Thank you for recommending this book to me, Ms. Sobrero. I really enjoyed it :)

Sense and Sensibility #19

WHAT A TURN IN THE STORY!! Edward did not actually marry Lucy, Robert did! Oh my goodness. That was probably the most unexpected twist in the story that could have happened. I am happy to know that Elinor and Edward are now engaged and happy. Elinor really did deserve to be happy after all of the comfort and love she has given to everyone else.

I knew that Lucy wasn't as great as she claimed to be. She had only wanted to marry Edward because of the inheritance but now that Edward was disowned, she had a "change of heart" to the brother with the estate and money. I would refer to her as an early depiction of a gold digger.

Sense and Sensibility #18

It is good to read that Marianne is happier with hearing Willoughby's confession. She has not been this at ease with her mind for a long time. When the news come of Lucy and Edward's marriage, it is hard to believe that Elinor can restrain herself so much as to keep calm. I noticed that Elinor never really shows her feelings, she tries to keep them private and that is where her and Marianne have the biggest difference between them. I can see myself relating to Elinor in this sense, I don't really show my emotions and I try to keep them to myself. I guess that I can realte myself to both sisters.

Sense and Sensibility #17

OH MY GOODNESS, WILLOUGHBY. This is getting childish now. Marianne cries for such a long period of time over a letter he had written but now, when she is sick, he comes and explains himself. Don't you think it's a little too late for an apology? I think it is. It is sad that he had married for only money, considering that Marianne had loved him genuinely.

On the other hand, I am super happy that Colonel Brandon had expressed his love for Marianne :) I had a feeling that this would happen since he became so concerned with her wellbeing. I feel like this may be the relationship to bring Marianne out of her depression.

Sense and Sensibility #16

It's been months now and Marianne is still melancholy about the whole situation with Willoughby. I understand where she is coming from, but at the same time, nothing will change and she is still young so there are going to be more opportunities for her. Now that she has a cold, I am hoping that she will be okay since there is not much treatment around her. I think that part of the reason she is so sick is due to her depression over Willoughby for such a long period of time.

It's interesting to see how both sisters are going through the same problematic situation but the way they handle it and themselves is TOTALLY opposite.

Sense and Sensibility #15

I noticed that I don't really like Lucy. She seems to brag and take constantly of her relationship with Edward to Elinor. I really don't see that nescessary since Elinor has already accepted the fact that they are engaged. Since Edward's mother disowned him and gave the inheritance to his brother Robert, I feel like that is a sign that Edward and Lucy should not be married.

I also do not really like Fanny. She seems to be a stuck up and snobby woman in general. For some reason, I really don't understand how John could be so attracted to her.

Sense and Sensibility #14

On page 214 it says "Edward seemed a second Willoughby" and I couldn't agree more with that.

Marianne feels guilt now that she knows about Edward and taking into consideration the amount of stress she has put on Elinor through dealing with Willoughby. I can totally see where she is coming from, and it must have been hard for Elinor to deal with her own issues and comfort her younger sister through her problems but I guess that's the role of a big sister, right?

Sense and Sensibility #13

It was nice to see that the Miss Dashwoods ran into their brother and Elinor and him got to talk for a while. What I noticed was that he talks A LOT about money and how much money people bring in. I found this as sort of selfish and "in your face" because he was the one that ended up cutting back on the money he gave his sisters and mother.

Also, I think that the meeting with Edward, Elinor, and Lucy was AWKWARD. I actually felt bad for Edward for a while because it seemed like such an uncomfortable situation.

Sense and Sensibility #12

Willoughby is a good for nothing guy. It makes me sad to read that he can treat Marianne so badly after she constantly sent letters and spent so much time thinking of him. What made me really angry though was the fact that he had to explain everything in a letter instead of just speaking to her the night before when they had first seem eachother.

On a lighter note, through my reading, I understand why I have had so many personal connections to Marianne. The reason is because Marianne has such a close relationship to her sister and so do I. I find similarities to the way they treat eachother and the way that my sister and I treat eachother. They care so much for eachother and stay super close and I admire that because even though my sister is one of my best friends, I do not see her as much as I would like because of our busy schedules.

Sense and Sensibility #11

This book is getting sad. First, Elinor finds out that Edward has had an engagement with another woman for four years, now Marianne finally gets to see Willoughby and he acts as if he barely knows her. When I read about these heartbreaks, my heart falls as if I am in their situation. I feel for them both considering the fact that I am around the same age as them. A question that was going through my head was "Why won't Elinor just ask Marianne if she is engaged instead of questioning?" but now after reading about their encounter I understand why the subject could have been and turned out to be such a sensitive one.

Sense and Sensibility #10

I began volume 2 and it was interesting. Elinor is VERY smart in coming up with such a plan to get Lucy into a room to chat while Marianne was covering up their voices by playing on the piano. I think it's a little weird how Elinor is giving up so easily. She is referring to Lucy as "Edward's future wife" but at the same time they are referred to as "rivals". I feel like Elinor has a plan formulating in her head. Also, when Lucy says that if Elinor's advice would to call off the engagement then she would do it, I feel like that is all a bunch of bologna. It is hard to trust Lucy with all the information that she is sharing so suddenly.

Sense and Sensibility #9

I just found out that the book is split up into Volumes. The ending of volume 1 was SO UNPREDICTABLE. I had no idea that was going to happen. It was shocking how Lucy was so open to Elinor had they only met recently, and about such a topic as being engaged to the man Elinor was in love with for four years. OH MY. I kept reading and reading because it turned out so interesting. I found my earlier prediction to be correct, the strand of hair on Edward's ring was not Fanny's but instead it was Lucy's hair.

To be honest, the book began to get a little boring until the conversation between Lucy and Elinor, I'm going to get ahead on my reading because I want to find out what will happen between Elinor and Edward.

Sense and Sensibility #8

Well, to start off this blog, I thought it would be nescessary to say that Hamlet was mentioned in the book :)

A while after Willoughby had left, there was talk about if money was abundant, there would be changes made to the cottage. This is exactly what Willoughby asked not to do, so I feel as if it is a sign that he is gone for good-- at least for the moment. Also, when Brandon returned, he was wearing a ring. Brandon had said that is Fanny's hair not only considering that it was a different color, but the way that he had responded to the question makes me think a second time- "Yes; it is my sister's hair. The setting always casts a different shade on it, you know." Sounds suspicious to me.

Sense and Sensibility #7

Willoughby does not like change. He had requested that nothing in his cottage be changed, or nothing in Mrs. Dashwood's cottage be changed. Why? I am curous as to why he does not want anything to change as far as furniture, interior decorations, or structure goes. I think it seems a little odd.

I really felt for Marianne when I read that Willoughby had left on such a short notice without a returning date. I felt a connection to Marianne because I know that if I were in her position, I would react the same way.

Hamlet Open Ended Essay #2

I worked on my essay today from 11:00-12:03

Hamlet Open Ended Essay #1

I didn't have any connection to the internet earlier, but I worked on my essay from 2:15-3:10 today.

Sense and Sensibility #6

Colonel Brandon took leave at one of the parties saying that he needed to be in town immediately. That is not what bothered me, Mrs. Jennings and the other women CONSTANTLY talk about his leave. I found it irritating how Mrs. Jennings would not let the subject go, considering that Brandon did not want to let the party know the reason he was leaving. There is a half page filled of dialogue from Mrs. Jennings questioning the "real reason". I feel as if it is none of her business.

Sense and Sensibility #5

This book is interesting, sometimes it does not make any sense to me but after reading on a little more, things all come together with an ending quote or conversation. In chapter 11, Marianne talks about a horse that Willoughby is going to give to her, and I feel like the horse is a symbol for something bigger. Since Marianne had to give up the horse, I think that it may be referring to their relationship. Things are going to well for Marianne and Willoughby that there is bound to be a problem somewhere in the future.

Sense and Sensibility #4

I have noticed one thing about this book: it has lots of characters. I feel like there are so many people introduced in the story that it is hard to keep track of who is who. Lots of times when I read, I find myself needing to go back and think about who the speaker is and what the situation is a second time. The fact that they are mostly all referred to as "Mrs. and Mr." does not help out either. I am understanding the book, but I just found the number of characters as a speed bump in my reading.

Sense and Sensibility #3

I have noticed that the word "sense" is used quite often when talking about Elinor and "sensibility" is used when the topic is related to Marianne. I can tell that these are the traits that the sisters are going to carry throughout the book. I also noticed that the two sisters enjoy art, but just in different forms. Elinor enjoys drawing and Marianne enjoys playing music. This got me to think about how it will play out with their "sense and sensibility" through the rest of the book.

Sense and Sensibility #2

I just read chapter 2 of Sense and Sensibility, and man oh man did I get angry. Mrs. Dashwood is the biggest influencer EVER. Mr. Dashwood was trying to do what the will had stated by helping out his family but Mrs. Dashwood was being super selfish by mixing up words and making it seem as if giving away money to the family was a huge mistake. I am a person who dosen't like others to influence my decision once it's made, ESPECIALLY when a person is only trying to better themselves. It really bothered me how Mrs. Dashwood was being so ignorant in putting their family before Mr. Dashwood's other family by mixing up his words. Oh gosh, I am irritated now.

Sense and Sensibility #1

I began reading Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen and I really did enjoy it. It was a bit confusing at first having so many characters being introduced at once, but as the story went on, things began to come clearer.

So far, this book seems as if it could be made into a movie. When I read it, a movie of what is happening begins to play in my head. I am really enjoying the book so far, thank you for recommending this for me Ms. Sobrero!

1984 #20 YAY!

O’Brien and Winston finally meet in their place of no darkness but it wasn’t what I had expected. I feel as if O’Brien was the one who made Winston hold on to his life. He spoke many times of suicide but his last thought was always O’Brien. Maybe he is a symbol of an angel or a hero. The part where Winston is told he doesn’t exist and that “everyone knows what waits in room 101” confused me. Was this all a dream? Is he already dead? O’Brien is Winston’s obsession. I think that obsesses over him and that is why he believed everything he said and always thought of him. This book was pretty crazy and I feel like if I had the time to read it a second time I would make more sense of it. I feel like Winston is not satisfied with his life but in the end, what can you do about it? I think there is a lost sense of who he is but there’s nothing much that he can do about it so he accepts the fact that he is who he is and just needs to accept what comes his way.

1984 #19

It’s crazy how society makes changes so suddenly. In the middle of a speech the speaker was forced to change words from always to never and such. I feel like this is so confusing and if I were living in that situation where things were constantly changed, I would have no sense of right or wrong, left or right. His last thought of the night “sanity is not statistical” makes me think. I feel as if it is important but I don’t really see how yet. When Julia and Winston got caught by the thought police, it was a pretty shocking scene. I mean, I wouldn’t think about a telescreen being hidden behind a picture. I knew that they would get caught eventually, but the way that it happened came as a surprise. I wouldn’t have thought twice about Mr. Charrington being a member of the thought police either! It really does seem like there is no safe zone for anyone.

1984 #18

The letter saying “I love you” seems to me like it gives Winston a purpose to live and mission to find out what it means. His new relationship with the dark haired girl is provoking thought, things are so secretive and sometimes so fast that I’m starting to wonder whether this will turn out good or bad. O’Brien comes up again, and they finally have their meeting and Winston comes to the conclusion that he will be killed at the Ministry of Love. I connected this to Julia for she had written a note saying she loved Winston, and there he goes saying he will die at the Ministry of Love. I feel like Julia will be the end of Winston. I also see that chocolate is a symbol that comes up lots of times in the book once when he and Julia were meeting up, and second when he explains how he took chocolate from his family and ran away. This may be a symbol for guilt or temptation, I’m not really sure which one. When O’Brien turns of the telescreen I feel like it is a sign of trust, that Winston does not need to be watched.

1984 #17

It seems to me that Winston is living in a world in which he disagrees with. For example, he wants to have a pleasurable sexual affair but that is forbidden by the Party. “In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five, and you would have to believe it.” That quote scared me. To think of yourself living in a society where everything is opposite or different than what you believe or what you know is right, and have to go along with it is a pretty scary place. It pretty much comes to show that you have to power against the government. Winston keeps coming back to O’Brien keeping in mind his dream saying they will meet in a place with no darkness. I feel as if this is a symbol of hope and determination. Winston keeps pushing forth and gets his mind off of suicide by the mere thought of O’Brien in his dream.

1984 #16

1984 has a lot going on in such a short amount of time. I thought it’s interesting how things work in the setting such as there being a thought police and such. It’s crazy to read about how people become “vaporized” and every record about them gets deleted once a crime is committed. It’s also a little weird how records are being changed constantly and because of this there is really no sense of truth. A quote that stuck out to me was “whoever controls the past controls the present and future”. I realized that the society they are living in is actually really scary. A society where files are destroyed to make it as if people never existed, changing documents to make them what the government wants, to cut words from vocabulary and to be watch 24/7 is not something I would want to come by.

What is the What #15

I finished the book while at camp so these blogs on What is the What were transferred from paper to computer. This book really did interest me. It was a crazy book but keeping in mind that it was real helped me stay serious about it. I’m glad that his mother and father were still alive. I put myself in his shoes and realized if I had to go a long period of time without knowing where my mom and dad are or if they were even alive at that, I wouldn’t have the strength and determination to make myself carry forth. I commend Valentino for this because he definitely had the strength that I’m not sure I myself would have. I feel like “the What” is not something that people can attain together, but instead is a personal goal or something inside of you that only you can bring out. This book is definitely not one that I would read on my own time, but I’m glad that I had the opportunity to read it abt learn about the life of another.

What is the What #14

Now I understand why the book is so long, it is split into books. I find it a little strange how he is waiting so long to receive treatment at the hospital, maybe this ties in to the theme of discrimination? Maybe I’m wrong. Moses isn’t dead? I was sure he was until he came back on page 270. The part when Valentino talked about how he was superior to the white male was interesting to me. It was definitely racism, but it was the opposite of the stereotype. The book is pretty intense and it’s crazy to remind yourself that this really did happen to somebody and I keep having to remind myself of that.

What is the What #13

Valentino has now switched audiences, instead of talking to Michael the TV boy he is not trying to get the attention of his Christian neighbors. I realized this is a connection to religion and wonder how this may play out later in the story. The bike is brought back and when I think of the bike for a second time, I think it may be a symbol of hope or strength. It’s pretty amazing to see how strong he is, always pulling through for himself and being independent when times are hard. It was nice to know that Achor Achor was back and Valentino was saved from being tied up. It leads me to think if the police will catch the robbers and how they will play in later in the novel.

What is the What #12

I think that Valentino feels a connection with Michael the TV boy when he said “you too are a child of war.” It’s interesting that Valentino is telling so much about what happened in his childhood with such great detail. I got really pulled into the story when they were telling the story of “what is the what”, even though I got a little confused. I hope that the book will elaborate on “what is the what” later on in the story. It’s hard to believe that this is a real story when he talks about running for weeks and staying with new people and knowing he’s unsafe. We take our basic needs like food, water, and shelter for granted and here Valentino is risking his life by running to obtain these. It’s pretty intense how he didn’t really know where he would be the next day or if he would even be alive.

What is the What #11

What is the What is a pretty intense book right from the start. From the dramatic scene of Valentino getting robbed all the way to him telling the TV boy his past experiences, the book started off with a bang. I feel like saying that he loves Amath is foreshadowing either a marriage or a separation between the two in the future. There is always a constant reminder that the story actually takes place in Atlanta when Valentino puts his audience’s name in at the end of a story, TV boy.



This picture inspires me to read the book. Whenever I see this picture I realize that I’m not only reading a story, I’m reading Valentino’s life story. To understand that these are real accounts of hardship or happiness during his life brings the book to a whole new level.

Kite Runner #10

Aseef joined the Taliban? Crazy! Well, not really. It’s amazing how this book is putting all the scattered pieces back together. This book was INCDREDIBLE. I think this was probably one of my favorite books I’ve ever read (I can prove it because I actually read it in only one day). The ending when Amir says “for you a thousand times over” to Hassan’s son is the best part. It is as if Amir is reliving his childhood with Sohrab. It was a beautiful story really. I can’t really find the words to describe how I feel about the story but I feel like it’s just so great. This really does show how “What happens in a single day can change the course of a whole lifetime”.

Kite Runner #9

MAN! I just read chapters 15-20 and one word: INTENSE. I apologize if I give away some parts of the book in this blog to anyone who hasn’t read it, but man this is a good story. I can’t believe that Amir was lied to his entire life! Hassan was his brother, not just his servant! I’m pretty much in shock right now. Now that he looks back on it, Amir didn’t just watch his servant get raped, he watched his brother get raped. On top of that, his father, the person who said the number one sin was to steal was the one stealing Amir and Hassan’s right to the truth. Now, Amir is on a quest to get his half-nephew back and take them to the caretakers but I think that once he finds Sohrab (if they ever do find eachother) that Amir will take him in as his own. As soon as this blog is posted, I’m going to try and finish the rest of the book!

Kite Runner #8

I’ve had a question for a few chapters now but I kept forgetting to put it in my blog. When people say ‘jan’ after a name such as “Amir jan” or “Baba jan”, what does it mean? Is it a sign of respect? That’s been getting me a little confused. Anyways, on page 142 it says “What happens in a single day can change the course of a whole lifetime” and I feel like that is a flashback to when Amir was a silent witness not acting while Hassan got raped. A lot happened so quick: Amir got married, Baba dies, and now he is learning more about Hassan. It seems as if so much is happening, but at the same times things are intertwining with each other.

Kite Runner #7

The competition seemed to be a quest for me. He’s not only going after first place to be the champion, but he is really looking for his fathers acceptance and forgiveness for taking away “his princess”. After he wins, Amir begins to think only of himself. Hassan was hurt and tortured when finding the blue kite and Amir did nothing about it even though he knew. It’s sad to see how they were such close friends and after the incident tried to avoid each other as much as possible. When Hassan and Ali moved away, It was upsetting to see that even then, Amir wouldn’t let down his pride to save himself a friendship and the strong bond his father had with Ali. Attitudes can change and egos can grow by a simple victory.

Kite Runner #6

I chose to read this book because I have heard others say it’s interesting. They were right! I picked up the book and now I can’t put it down! There’s a part when he hears Hassan say “for you a thousand times over” in his head. I feel like that is foreshadowing an event that is now the reason he lives in San Francisco. I am taking symbols from the book and connecting them to chapters in How to Read Literature Like A Professor. For example, Hassan’s upper lip is scarred and I take that as him having a personal imperfection that may be revealed later on in the book.

How to Read Literature Like A Professor #5

Here’s my last “vacation blog”

I finished the book and man did it change me. Well, not dramatically change me but I mean, I don’t think I’m ever going to read literature the same way again. This book made me realize how deep authors get into facts that seem small. Now when I read, I feel like I’m going to appreciate it much more. I am sure that now, since I read How to Read Literature, I am going to understand and enjoy the other summer reading books even more.

How to Read Literature Like A Professor #4

Here’s my second blog that I wrote on paper while I was on vacation:

Man! I never realized how much of a Christian society we are living in. I knew it was a popular religion in America but I never realized how much is subtly put into the books we read. I also was interested in how they interpreted all of the seasons and talked about how much a season or the geography of a person can tell. AH! When I was reading about the scars and imperfections, I couldn’t stop reading! I really like the point made that imperfections tell you more than just how their skin looks, but also how they mirror psychological or emotional flaws as well.

How to Read Literature Like A Professor #3

I was on vacation for a while and had no internet access but I brought my book along with me and wrote down my blogs on paper so that I could type them when I got home.

As I continued reading, I found myself agreeing more and more with the points that Foster was making. He brought up a pont that as readers we look for strangeness but we also look for familiarity to make sense of it. Also I never would have thought so deep into the weather the story takes place in. Yeah, I would keep a mental note in that it was a rainy night, but I never looked at a walk in the rain as a cleansing scene. The weather chapter is definately the most interesting to me, and my favorite chapter so far.

How to Read Literature Like A Professor #2

Right after I finished writing my first blog I picked up the book and continued to read. Chapter 4 was pretty funny to me because pretty much the whole thing was a review. Ms.Pierce had taught us all abous sonnets during the year and this repeated everything I knew about them. I never noticed that a sonnet forms a square though. I learned something new! I totally agree with Foster when he says that "there's only one story" because stories and characters all branch off from others. The tree never stops growing, but they are all connected to the same roots.

How to Read Literature Like A Professor #1

So, I read chapters 1-3 of the book and right away it starts to open your eyes. Never would I have thought into the fact that a simple trip to a store could be a quest. When I thought of the word "quest" things such as great noble journeys came to mind but then again, that was me being closed minded. Chapter 2 talks about eating together and communion. When I finished the chapter it made me realize more about real life. The fact that we will share communion with the people we enjoy being with and care about are things that we experience in our bigger communion of life. They all lead up the one things all humans have in common: death. Man, this book gets me thinking!