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.