Milkweed Themes Essay

 Author's Note: This is an essay discussing the themes in "Milkweed". More specifically loss of innocence. I compared it to "Life of Pi".

People are dying in the streets. Dead bodies litter the ground, and poor souls  barely clinging to life stumble over the rubble. People are willing to eat anything that is digestible, anything to stay alive. But young Misha, unsure of his age, name, or past, seems oblivious to all this. Even though the Nazis are slowly torturing his friends, he loves them for their big black boots. That is, until the moment he finally figures out what is going on.

Misha is completely innocent,  he just doesn't seem to notice hat is happening in the ghetto. People are dying around him, and he doesn't even care. He was never able to live a normal life. And he realizes this when he is an adult and immigrates to America. He just babbles on street corners about his past, because he finally realizes what he really witnessed. The childhood moments with death and torture are stamped into his mind, and he will never be able to forget them. The effects of witnessing such horrible events have made it so it is impossible to live a normal life.

The same thing sort of happens in Life of Pi. When Pi is starving in the lifeboat, he does some things nobody would do in a normal situation. He resorts to cannibalism, and eats a part of the dead cook. He is a strict vegetarian, and he eats fish and other animals. All these events, especially the cannibalism, will cause his to not live a normal life. He will always have this on his conscience, the fact that he ate another human being. In a way, he lost his innocence when he resorted to cannibalism.

Just like Pi, Misha lost his innocence. He witnessed things that no person should ever witness, and as a result paid for it later on. He no longer was able to live a normal life with his memories imprinted in his mind. He was completely unaware of the fact that the Jews were being left alone to die inside the ghetto, until the moment he finally understands. From that moment on, he is tortured by his memories.

Assignment #3

Author's Note: This is an assignment about a character in our book. We had to analyze a character and their motives and if they were dynamic or static. 

The main character in Milkweed is Misha, an orphan boy who's age is not known, and is not smart. Misha just wants to survive, and help his friends survive in the ghetto. When he sees his friend dangling by his neck from a street light, he barely notices. He does this by stealing food from the outside and bringing it back in. The character is dynamic, because he changes the lives of others. The Milgroms probably wouldn't have survived without Misha. Misha is pretty much their only source of food, like when he gives them eggs. He is kind of like Pi, because his only motive is to survive. He doesn't really understand enough to have any other motive.

Assignment #2

Author's Note: This is the assignment about how the point of view of our book is important. I thought the point of view was really important because the main character had no clue what was happening. 

The point of view in Milkweed is extremely important. It is told from the point of the orphan kid, who's age is not know, but has no clue what is going on. When the Nazis come, he likes them because if their big, shiny, black boots. Some times he describes events vividly and they turn out to be the least important. Then he'll sum a large event in a page or two, like when he was on the farm, he talked about it for a couple pages. It turns out he was on the farm for three years. Disturbing images are described by him so blandly, like how dead bodies of Jews littered the streets, he seems completely unaffected by it. There is one event that comes to mind that I didn't understand at all. Misha finds his friend and the leader of the band of boys, Uri, in a hotel for the Nazi soldiers working as a busboy. At the end, he shoots off Misha's ear. I think this was so they thought he was dead and wouldn't put him on the train to the concentration camp, but the reader is never sure. Both these events are examples of what I am trying to say. He just doesn't notice what is going on around him, and can't describe the things he does understand. This changes how the story is viewed.

The story would completely different if it was told from a different perspective or third person. If it were told through the eyes of an adult, the reader would have a different take on the story. It would be so much about a kid not knowing that he is in a desperate fight for survival, and into just another historical fiction novel about the holocaust. If it were told from third person but still followed Misha, it would also be different. The reader would get more details and have a solid view of what is happening. With Misha's poor descriptions, the reader never has a concrete idea of what is happening.

Milkweed Perspective

Author's note: In Milkweed the perspective is from the point of view of a kid who doesn't understand what is happening. I changed it to his "uncle" Uncle Shepsel, who is trying to convert from a Jew to a Lutheran so he can get out of the ghetto where they keep all the Jews. 

I realized that was no way out of the ghetto, at least if I remained a Jew. So I decided to become a Lutheran. It started when I got a book about Lutheranism. I read the book front to back a thousand times, memorizing all the words. I taught myself how to be Lutheran, and I was no longer a Jew. I was free, free at last. It made me happy just thinking about the prospect of going home and living a normal life again. But it didn't last all that long. When they started the deportation, I was confident I would not have to go, because after all, I was not a Jew. But they didn’t listen to me. They took me anyways, despite my pleads that I was no longer a Filthy Son of Abram. Why didn’t they listen?

Conveniently Blind

What are the chances that two tiny lifeboats, in the middle of the ocean, each with a blind man in control, would meet? You might say the odds are pretty low, and you would be right. However,  in Life of Pi, the author creates this very scenario.  It seems so unbelievable that it must be symbolism. When Pi encounters the blind man, it symbolizes guilt.

When Pi first meets up with the blind man, he believes he is talking to Richard Parker. so he asks him, "I'm curious, tell me - have you ever killed a man?" After talking a bit, the voice, whoever it is, answers the question with a yes. He says he has killed "a man and a woman", and later saying "the man first the woman second." Well, the end of the book Pi tells a short version without the animals, where the cook killed the sailor and Pi's mom. That's a man and a woman, so this leads me to believe he is talking to the cook.

But Pi killed the cook, as seen when he confesses: "Then we fought and I killed him." It's plain and simple; the cook died. So how is Pi talking to the cook if he is dead? Remember that Pi is blind. So he doesn't actually see the other man, who is blind as well. It sure is convenient to go blind, right? Well, that could be symbolism, too. Your eyes symbolize your soul, so Pi going blind could symbolize that he had some regret or guilt that he thought was troubling his soul. Maybe the blind man was blind too because he was feeling guilt. Although when Pi asks him "Any regrets?" he answers with "It was them or me", and tries to close the subject. I think the blind man (or Pi himself) really was regretful about what he had done, and just tried not to show it.

I don't think the blind man was real; it was just Pi's imagination, his guilt for killing the cook. The blind man tries to kill Pi, which would have been Pi being overcome by guilt. But Richard Parker kills the blind man, which could be Pi's survival instinct kicking in. The point is, the blind man was symbolizing Pi's guilt for killing the cook.

Life of Pi response

Author's Note: We had to respond to what we thought this meant: "The idea of a religious boy in a lifeboat with a wild animal struck me as a perfect metaphor for the human condition. Humans aspire to really high things, right, like religion, justice, democracy. At the same time, we're rooted in our human, animal condition. And so, all of those brought together in a lifeboat struck me as being... as a perfect metaphor." It's the author talking about his book. So here is what I thought.

I think that what Yann Martel meant was that it his story symbolized humans. What I think he meant that humans are always worrying and thinking about things that are really out of our control and humans worry about things that we really can't change. We're constantly thinking about religion and justice like the author said. But really we're just animals trying to survive.

Are you proud of your country?

I guess I am proud of my country. We did after all win our freedom against like the strongest army. Also we are a free country which is good. But sometimes I don't agree with things our country does and all the corporate stuff and all that junk. But I would have to say that overall I am proud of our country.

Shaggy

Scooby-Doo is one of the most famous and recognizable cartoons of all time. The mild scares and goofy  characters are great for amusing little kids. The simple and repeating plots backed up with cheesy scares  have been entertaining young children for practically fifty years. So it may come as a surprise to know  one of the main characters, Shaggy, is a pothead. The talking-dog thing, the interesting-speech-patterns  thing, the constant-hunger thing, all point to one conclusion. The iconic kids show character Shaggy is a  drug addict.

First of all, Shaggy has a talking dog, Scooby, of course. But it might be more than just a normal talking  dog as you would see on a kids show. Scooby talks kind of funny, even for a talking dog. There could be  other reasons that he talks the way he does, and even talks at all. If Shaggy is on drugs, he could be  hallucinating Scooby talking. Or maybe poor Scooby is being given drugs by Shaggy, therefore  encouraging him to speak. Either way, I believe Scooby is more than just a talking dog.

Have you ever noticed that Shaggy also talks kind of funny? "Hey Scoob dude, want some Scooby snacks,  man?" This could be a result of all the drugs he is potentially doing. I don't know about you, but it does  seem a little weird the way he talks, especially in contrast against the other characters. He talks like a  hippie, when the 1960's were infamous for drugs.

That brings me to another subject: Shaggy and Scooby's constant desire for food. Sometimes after  smoking marijuana, the subject gets the munchies. That would explain why Scooby and Shaggy are  constantly eating huge portions of food. They're always chowing down giant hamburgers and ice cream  and huge subs. How else would you explain this constant and raging hunger other than the munchies?  This all is just more evidence against them.

Maybe the Scooby Snacks that Shaggy and Scooby love could symbolize drugs. Shaggy and Scooby will  do almost anything for Scooby Snacks; they just can't resist the temptation. If someone asks them to say  go into a haunted house full of ghost to investigate, they would resist. Do it for a Scooby Snack, it's no  question. Maybe Scooby Snacks are portrayed as just dog treats, but are meant to be something else.  

I really think that Shaggy, and even maybe Scooby, are drug addicts. There are just too many things that  lead towards it. Shaggy has conversations with his talking dog, absolutely loves to eat dog treats, talks  like a hippie from the sixties, and always has the munchies. Maybe the creators of the show meant  this,  and symbolized drugs through Scooby Snacks. The show was after all created in the sixties, one of the  most prominent drug eras of the USA. The fact he does drugs is possible, likely, and obvious.

Ninjas on a plane

It was their turn to go through the metal detector. The young man gulped and tried not to show his nervousness. He had nothing to be nervous about, but he still was for some reason. It was the moment of truth, and he stepped through. Nothing, he was clear. The aluminum gun had not sprung the metal detector. He continued a couple yards, and then stopped to wait for his two friends.

They too cleared the metal detector. They continued on their way to their terminal. There were three of them, all had fake names. One had light brown hair, with blue eyes and glasses. His face was clean-shaven, and he wore a Nebraska University sweatshirt. The next had dark hair and dark eyes, with a black goatee. He wore a button up shirt and jeans. The last had brown hair and green eyes, clean shaven and wearing a plain t-shirt. All were in their mid thirties, and highly trained ninjas.

All three had the same goal, to hijack the plane flying from the New York Airport to Paris, France. They would hold the plane until the government agreed to give them one million dollars each. They reached the terminal, and sat down. The plane would start boarding in ten minutes. Those minutes felt like an eternity. It was raining outside, and the drops pattered against the window looking out onto the runway. Eventually, the plane arrived, and they boarded.  

They had business class seats towards the front of the plane. They sat down in the row three across, and settled in for the long flight. The plane taxied on the runway, and then took off. They would hijack the plane when it was over the Atlantic Ocean, so there was nowhere to land. So, one read a book, one listened to music, and the other just looked out the window.

Two hours later, they were a ways over the ocean. With a slight nod from the one on the isle, they started to put their plan into action. The three of them walked up to the front. They stormed into the cockpit.

One of the hijackers punched out the pilot. One of the other hijackers did the same to the copilot. The third threw the pilot out of the way and sat in the seat. He picked up the mic and spoke into the intercom.

“Hello, this is your ‘pilot’ speaking. I would like to inform you that we have control of the plane, and you are now our hostages.”

Panic ensued in the cabin, and some people started crying. One man in the back got up, and headed to the front. He went in, and the three hijackers turned around. He roundhouse kicked the one in captain’s seat, and slammed another into the control board. The last he punched out. He was about to take the controls, when the one he roundhouse kicked karate chopped him.

By now the three ninja hijackers were up, and they ripped off their outer layer to reveal their ninja outfits. The man too pulled off his outer layer and revealed his ninja clothes. One of the hijackers pushed him out of the cockpit. The stewardess was coming forward with the drink cart. The man flipped over it, and pushed it forward down the aisle. It hit the hijackers and knocked them back.

One of the hijacks climbed over the cart and grabbed the man. He picked him up and threw him back to the front. The man got up, and grabbed the two other hijackers. He sent them flying into the side of the plane. The last one had come towards him. The man lunged for the plane door and grabbed the latch.

He twisted it open, and the door swung violently outward. The man gripped on for dear life. The three hijackers tried to hold on, but were sucked out by the escaping pressure and fell towards the earth. The man jumped back into the plane with some difficulty, then shut the door.

He went back into the cockpit and over to the pilot. He was out cold. The man grabbed the controls, and looked out the front. The plane was descending quickly towards the ocean. He pulled the plane up, and the bottom skipped over the water, and then swooped back up. He returned the plane to altitude, and then went back to the pilot.

The pilot was slowly coming to. He fully regained consciousness, and went back to the controls. The copilot joined him shortly after. The pilot got on the intercom and announced that everything was okay. They flew the plane all the way to their destination in London, and successfully landed at the airport, all passengers, save the ninja hijackers, were unharmed.

 

Tangled

Author's note: This is a response to the movie Tangled. As a class we voted on a movie to watch and somehow it won. So, this is my response to the mode that it is. 

Disney has around 50 animated films. That is way too many if you ask me, seeing as most of them are annoying little kid movies. 'Tangled' fits into this category, and as usual was not very good. It was romance mode, quite obviously, and there were tons of symbols. The romantic theme was at times amusing but mostly annoying, because a romance movie is really only good for young children. The movie was just like most Disney animated movie, with a boring and predictable romantic plot.

First of all, the plot, which was very romantic. Starting out with the fact that Repunzel's dream is to leave the tower to watch floating lights on her birthday. That seems like a pretty lame dream, and also the minor conflict at the start. It also was very predictable, when they seemed to be stuck between a rock and a hard place, they would always find some way out. The evil in the story was the evil mom who wanted Repunzel because her hair made her stay young. That is a pretty romantic evil, then add the two big lumbering brutes who were quite comical. The movie as a whole is very unrealistic. Magical hair, floating lanterns, not exactly every day life. And at the end, Repunzel gets married, which is the symbol of life at the end the romantic plot.

Along with the plot, it also came with symbols. There was bright green grass every where, the forests brimming with flowers and life. The sky was blue and there were big white clouds. The night sky was starry. Every where you turned there were romantic symbols. And Repunzel's hair was gold, a romantic color. Almost everything in the movie had some sort of romantic symbolism to it. The movie was obviously romance, the symbols are all there.

The movie was just a usual romance film. The plot follows almost perfectly along with the plotline of the romance mode. The symbols are everywhere, be it grass, sky, animals, whatever. Everything about the story was romantic. It had nothing special to it, and just was meant for kids. So, it was quite boring at times, and extremely predictable. The movie was just any old animated romance movie.

 

Magical Magic Land of Magicness

Author's note: This was a journal entry where another person told us say an adjective starting with d. Then we would have a couple minutes to add to our story and include the word. It got kind of weird, so be warned... 

Felipe and I drive across a bridge into the Unibrow regions of Magical Magic Land of Magicness. We drive up and the city looks to be abandoned. That's because the people there live underground now because of the great flood of '92 and never got around to moving back above ground. Anyways, we drive to the Anteater Train Station and board the train parked on the track of licorice. We drive along and get to out campsite. We unpack our stuff, and go to sleep.

 I had a nightmare where I was sitting on a giant piece of pie and then it blew up. Then, a cantaloupe came and told me to get to the chopper. Then he transformed into Arnold Schwarzenegger and ate me. Inside his stomach, I met a fish named Bill. He said he was swallowed twenty years ago, and there was no way out. I was really sad and started to cry. Then, Arnold Schwarzenegger blew up, and I went flying out of his stomach. Me and Bill the fish went to get to the chopper like the cantaloupe had told us. We rode it but then it crashed into a tree. Then I died, and I was sad.

But then, I woke up, and I was really relieved. I was in Magical Magic Land of Magicness, with my best bud Felipe. Today we were going to Cheeseburger Mountain, I couldn't wait. We had to cross the sea of potato chips, walk through the woods of Popcorn Trees, go through the Pineapple Cave, then climb to the top of Cheeseburger Mountain. At the top was the mythical banana of justice. We started off. We were in a camping site near Soda Lake. Reminds me of Super Mario World 2, but that's beside the point.

We got to the sea of the potato chips. Then Felipe started growing. He became a giant! "Dude! That's awesome!" I yelled up to him.

"I know!" He yelled back down.

See, that's what I like about Magical Magic Land of Migicness, you never know what's going to happen, because it's magic! Then, an evil llama soaked in pickle juice came down from the cotton candy cloud above us. It was the most evil creature in all of Magical Magic Land of Magicness, Bob the Evil Llama Soaked in Pickle Juice, and he's soaked in pickle juice because that's the most evil substance known to man, just FYI.

"Ha Ha Ha, I'll just ruin your fun." He said as he shrunk down Felipe. "HAHAHA!" He yelled as he left.

"Stupid Bob the Evil Llama Soaked in Pickle Juice, he always ruins the fun. We should put a stop to him once and for all!" I was not happy.

To stop him, we needed to dip him in the Cheese Waters of Justice, found under the chocolate waterfall near the Rainbow of Happiness. Sometimes, I feel like our world is somehow really messed up. So we started off, first we needed to rent a Unicorn from Blockbuster so we could fly along rainbow road, a huge network of rainbow highways, and connect to the Rainbow of Happiness. There, we would put our Unicorn in a warp pipe back to Blockbuster, and slide down the Rainbow of Happiness. Then, we would have to float down the river of chocolate on a hungry hungry hippo, and fall down the chocolate water fall and go behind it into the cave of sponges. There, about a mile in, would we find the pool of the Cheese Waters of Justice. So we started on our way.

There was a Blockbuster, but they were sold out of Unicorns. So, we had to rent a Flying Sausage instead, it doesn't get as many miles per gallon as a Unicorn, and its top speed is only 309.4 miles per hour versus 497.6 of a Unicorn. Oh, well, it will do, I guess. So, we flew on rainbow road, and eventually found the Rainbow of Happiness, although our GPS was broke so we took a wrong turn and ended up at the Rainbow of Not Happiness. We turned around and eventually found the Rainbow of Happiness. We tried to put the Flying Sausage in the portal back to Blockbuster, but it wouldn't work so we just ate it. We slid down the Rainbow of Happiness. After a couple minutes, we found a hungry hungry hippo and road it down the river of chocolate, and down the chocolate waterfall. We went behind it, and found the cave of sponges. It was really bouncy. We even saw Spongebob taking a vacation there. We found the Cheese Waters of Justice, and put it in the Goblet of Fire that Felipe had in his backpack. I'm not going to describe how we got to Bob the Evil Llama Soaked In Pickle Juice, because many gummy bears lost their lives, and recounts of the battle may psychologically scar you. But I'll do it anyways, because I can if I say this warning: "Warning, graphic and violent content unsuitable for children. Do not read this section is you are under the age of 34 or squeamish." So here goes:

CENSORED CENSORED CENSORED CENSORED CENSORED CENSORED

See what I mean, a pretty intense and epic battle, huh? Well, so that's how we triumphed over Bob the Evil Llama Soaked in Pickle Juice and his army of 10,000 gummy bears. So, we finally got to go to Cheeseburger Mountain, and found The Magical Banana of Justice. We got to ask it any question. So, we asked it: "We're we good to defeat Bob the Evil Llama Soaked in Pickle Juice?" and it's response was: "No, because that wasn't the real Bob the Evil Llama Soaked in Pickle Juice, it was his not so evil twin brother, named Twin Brother of Bob the Evil Llama Soaked in Pickle Juice and Has an Army Of 10,000 Gummy Bears but Isn't Nearly as Evil as His Brother, Bob the Evil Llama Soaked In Pickle Juice, or T.B.O.B.T.E.L.S.I.P.J.A.H.A.A.O.1.G.B.B.I.N.A.E.A.H.B.,.B.T.E.L.S.I.P.J for short." Darn, we got the wrong guy, and that means he actually wasn't dead, and we had to go back to get the Cheese Waters of Justice back. Hopefully there were no hard feelings, you know, with us destroying his army of 10,000 gummy bears and pouring cheese on his head, but he'll hopefully see it was an honest mistake. You know, I've never seen a name with a number and a comma in it before. Well, anyways, I don't really feel like writing anymore because it gets really complicated and violent and stuff, so I guess I'll just end it here. But that would be kind of lame and stuff, so instead I'll say: To Be Continued…

Satire

Author's Note: This is our own Satire that we made as a response after reading the book Animal Farm  by George Orwell. We tried to stay up to date on the real-life issues, seeing as we were creating it as it was happening.

(Link to project)

Man vs. Machine

author's note: this is a response to the short story "The Fun They Had," and how some technology can be good, but can be bad if taken too far. 

Imagine a world with nothing but technology. The books are on screens instead of paper. The teachers are robots instead of people. Well, this world is real, in the story "The Fun They Had." In the story, they find a real book, and are amazed that it is printed with ink on paper. Such a thing is unheard of in the year 2157. Technology can be a good thing, but in some cases it can be taken too far.

At a glance, it would seem amazing, not having books, not having teachers, not having school. But I think in reality, it wouldn't be so. Technology can enhance learning, I believe that. But when they start replacing teachers with robots, it is taking things too far. They could only give you the information, they couldn't actually communicate with you or give you advice. It is also my opinion that school should remain as it is, with a physical teacher there to teach you. Learning is more than memorizing facts, it's learning how to think, draw conclusions,  and make inferences. A robot cannot teach you how to do those things, only present the facts.

In the year 2157, not only are the teachers robots, but there are no schools. All the kids have their own robots to teach them. The kids have heard of a time when the children from a whole neighborhood all went to the same school together, and all had the same teachers. This seems like it would be incredibly fun to them, and if you think about it, it makes sense. At school, you can talk and be with your friends. If there wasn't any school, a lot of social time would be lost. Technology can be a good thing, but if it's taking away our time with friends and teachers, then maybe it's not so great anymore.

Communication with other people is a necessity. When Technology starts to isolate us from real experiences, it is no longer a tool. It is starting to rule over us, keeping us from real life and friends. Some technology is good, for enhancing learning and fun, but it can be taken too far. We should be able to draw the line between technology and the real world, getting some of each. If we were unable to communicate with anybody in person, it wouldn't be good. Technology is good for some things, but we need to experience other things in person.

Animal Farm Essay

Author's Note: This is a response to the book Animal Farm by George Orwell. The prompt was to discuss the change the pigs went through since the start of the book, and what you think Orwell was saying about the real leaders in Russia. 


At Animal Farm, one of the biggest rules is that all animals are equal. It was agreed upon when the animals first rebelled against the humans. But over time, the rules were changed when three pigs emerged as leaders. Napoleon and Squealer actually rewrote their rules to better suit their desires. The pigs violated their own rule that all animals are equal. 

The pigs have made a change over time, and it hasn't been good. Snowball was mostly fair, but it wasn't for long. He was driven out by Napoleon, who then rose to power. It is now that the pigs are clearly in a higher rank than the rest of the animals. They are the ones that are calling the shots, and making their own rules. Napoleon seems anything but fair, and is forcing the animals to work and have less food. He is clearly a leader, and not only that but him, Squealer, and all the other pigs get to sleep in the beds inside the house. This does not seem very equal.

In Russia, it was Trotsky, Lenin, and Stalin. In Animal Farm, it's Snowball, Squealer, and Napoleon. I think that in the book Orwell is symbolizing the unequal rule of the three. It is true that without a leader, it wouldn't last very long. It is practically impossible for everyone be perfectly equal, because eventually human greed would win out. It does in Russia and in Animal Farm, and Stalin and Napoleon both become selfish and take all the power.

The pigs became power hungry and took over the farm. This also happened in Russia. What Orwell is trying to say is eventually people will get tired of being equal and become unsatisfied. Then they will get greedy and start trying to get more wealth than others. Communism, or in the book's case, Animalism, would work if you took out the human variable, but people will always want more. So this happened to the pigs, and caused them to rewrite the rules to accommodate their desires.