In the novel that I read earlier this semester called Martyn Pig by Kevin Brooks there is an inductive leap to far.
In this novel Martyn's mother has left him and his father. As Martyn gets older, his father begins to drink and when he does so, he abuses Martyn. One night, Martyn's father his drunk and goes to strike Martyn. Instinctively, Martyn jumps out of the way and pushes his father away. His father falls over and cracks his head against the edge of the fireplace, killing him. Martyn begins to freak out. Thoughts of going to jail and being a criminal for the rest of his life begin to swirl in his head. He leaps to the conclusion that he will be found guilty of killing his father, when in fact he would have been let free due to the situation that his father but him in.
This leap alters the story in a dramatic way. Martyn could have just called the police and the whole thing would have ended, but instead, he devises this "master" plan to ditch the body and make it look as if he had just gotten drunk and fallen into a gravel pit located near the bar. Through Martyn's inductive leap to far, he sends himself on this ridiculous cover up mission that ends up causing the death of his best friends boyfriend as well as ruining his relationship with his best friend.
Friday, June 15, 2012
Style
In the story Yellow Line by Sylvia Olsen the poetic device pathos is used
Pathos: the quality or power in an actual life experience or in literature, music, speech, or other forms of expression of evoking a feeling of pity or compassion.
" "Vinny. Vinny." Girlie voices interrupt him. Charlie and a bunch of guys from the reserve are standing at the gym door. "We're counting on you, Vinny. You're our man."
I can't see who's got the smart mouth.
A girl shouts, "Hey, white boy, you sure got hairy legs."
"Vince0, keep your eye on the ball, " Coach Baker yells as I job back onto the court.
"Look at his spider legs," the girls hollers again. "He looks like he just crawled out of a cave."
"Vince," calls Nick. "Where's your game, man?'
I shake my head. The only thing I can think about are the taunts coming from the huddle of losers.
"Looks like he's gonna break," someone by the door says. There is an eruption of giggles.
I wheel around to take a look at them and smash face first into the wall. They are laughing their guts out like they've just seen the funniest thing in the world. " (Olsen 19)
Olsen, Sylvia. Yellow line. Victoria, BC: Orca Book Publishers, 2005. Print.
This scene creates Pathos towards the main character Vinny. In this scene Vinny is being made fun of by guys and girls from his High school because of his skinny and hairy legs. This creates pathos because being made fun of is something that no one wants to go through, but unfortunately everyone has. This adds to the feeling of sympathy because no matter who reads it they will feel bad for Vinny because everyone has been through it and knows what it feels like.
This is significant to the story because, as a reader, you feel pathos for Vinny and, as a result, begin to root for him to rise above all the hate that is being directed at him. This is also significant because it allows the reader the identify Vinny's situation early on in the story.
Pathos: the quality or power in an actual life experience or in literature, music, speech, or other forms of expression of evoking a feeling of pity or compassion.
I can't see who's got the smart mouth.
A girl shouts, "Hey, white boy, you sure got hairy legs."
"Vince0, keep your eye on the ball, " Coach Baker yells as I job back onto the court.
"Look at his spider legs," the girls hollers again. "He looks like he just crawled out of a cave."
"Vince," calls Nick. "Where's your game, man?'
I shake my head. The only thing I can think about are the taunts coming from the huddle of losers.
"Looks like he's gonna break," someone by the door says. There is an eruption of giggles.
I wheel around to take a look at them and smash face first into the wall. They are laughing their guts out like they've just seen the funniest thing in the world. " (Olsen 19)
Olsen, Sylvia. Yellow line. Victoria, BC: Orca Book Publishers, 2005. Print.
This scene creates Pathos towards the main character Vinny. In this scene Vinny is being made fun of by guys and girls from his High school because of his skinny and hairy legs. This creates pathos because being made fun of is something that no one wants to go through, but unfortunately everyone has. This adds to the feeling of sympathy because no matter who reads it they will feel bad for Vinny because everyone has been through it and knows what it feels like.
This is significant to the story because, as a reader, you feel pathos for Vinny and, as a result, begin to root for him to rise above all the hate that is being directed at him. This is also significant because it allows the reader the identify Vinny's situation early on in the story.
Social Issues
In the book I am currently reading Martyn Pig by Kevin Brooks, the main social issue is child abuse. In the story, Martyn's father is an alcoholic. He is drunk almost 24/7 and whenever he is drunk he gets really angry really easy. When his father gets angry he often yells at and hits Martyn.
This social issue is very significant to the story. One night his father comes home completely drunk and gets upset at Martyn for no real reason. He goes to punch Martyn but Martyn is able to jump out of the way and pushes his father away. Unfortunately, his father falls and hits his head on the side of the fire place killing him. This becomes the motivating incident of the story. So, without the social issue of child abuse, their would be no real plot to the story.
In general, the story is saying that child abuse is wrong. The story is told from Martyn's point of view and through this he reviles many of his depressing emotions about his abusive situation. This novel lets you into the head of someone who is being abused which isn't something we always get to see.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Significance
Brooks, Kevin. Martyn Pig: a novel. New York: Scholastic Inc., 2002. Print. Two significant elements in the book Martyn Pig by Kevin Brooks are the fathers alcoholism and the event that Martyn's Aunt is coming over for Christmas.
The father's alcoholism is a significant element to the story. Because Martyn's father is drunk almost 24/7 he often mistreats his son. He physical and verbally abuses Martyn which causes Martyn to have to be extremely strong and totally self reliant. Also, if the father would have been sober, he would not have attempted to punch Martyn. If he hadn't tried tried to punch Martyn, Martyn wouldn't have pushed him into the fireplace and he would not have died. This would have drastically changed the plot because the fathers death is the main crisis of the story.
Martyn's Aunt coming over is also a very significant element to the story. After the incident that caused Martyn's father to die, he decides to hide the body instead of calling the police. So before his Aunt comes over he must devise a plan so his Aunt doesn't see the body and find out what happened. Martyn's best friend Alex has to help him disguise the body and hide the accident from Martyn's Aunt. This shows how committed Alex is to Martyn and how strong their relationship with each other is. This is also one of the biggest complications Martyn faces in the whole novel.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Define and Describe a Character
McCarthy, Cormac. The road. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. Print.
Resourceful
The ability to deal skillfully and promptly with new situations, difficulties, etc.
Synonyms: capable, creative, able
Antonyms: dull, uncreative, unresourceful
Protective
Having or showing a strong wish to keep someone or something safe from harm.
Synonyms: defensive, guarding, sheltering
Antonyms: attacking, hurtful, threatening
Persistent
Continuing firmly or obstinately in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition
Synonyms: perseverent, unrelenting, relentless
Antonyms: lazy, relenting, surrendering
I just finished reading "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. In this book the father has all three of the characteristics listed above.
The father in this story is definitely resourceful. Being in a post apocalyptic world many everyday items that we would take for granted are completely gone. This forces all survivors to make the most of everything they have. The father does this time and time again as him and his son struggle for survival. One example of this is when he fixes their shopping cart using only a few items they found in an old garage. "He pulled the bolt and bored out the collet with a hand drill and resleeved it with a section of pipe he'd cut to length with a hacksaw. Then he bolted it all back together and stood the cart upright and wheeled it around the floor. It ran fairly true." (McCarthy 17)
The father also shows that he is very protective. Although he only strives to protect his son, he still shows that he is a protective person. "Why are you looking at him? I can look where I want to. No you can't. If you look at him again I'll shoot you." (McCarthy 65) This scene shows that he is protective. He is willing to kill a man simply for looking at his son.
In order to survive in a post apocalyptic world you must be persistent. The father in this book is no different. Being in a post apocalyptic world you are faced with many tough challenges. You will see many people die, you will have to walk miles on end and you will have to fight for every meal. The father faces all these challenges and many more as him and his boy fight for their survival. It is nearly impossible to find a quote for this trait because he is constantly persistent throughout the entire novel.
Resourceful
The ability to deal skillfully and promptly with new situations, difficulties, etc.
Synonyms: capable, creative, able
Antonyms: dull, uncreative, unresourceful
Protective
Having or showing a strong wish to keep someone or something safe from harm.
Synonyms: defensive, guarding, sheltering
Antonyms: attacking, hurtful, threatening
Persistent
Continuing firmly or obstinately in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition
Synonyms: perseverent, unrelenting, relentless
Antonyms: lazy, relenting, surrendering
I just finished reading "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. In this book the father has all three of the characteristics listed above.
The father in this story is definitely resourceful. Being in a post apocalyptic world many everyday items that we would take for granted are completely gone. This forces all survivors to make the most of everything they have. The father does this time and time again as him and his son struggle for survival. One example of this is when he fixes their shopping cart using only a few items they found in an old garage. "He pulled the bolt and bored out the collet with a hand drill and resleeved it with a section of pipe he'd cut to length with a hacksaw. Then he bolted it all back together and stood the cart upright and wheeled it around the floor. It ran fairly true." (McCarthy 17)
The father also shows that he is very protective. Although he only strives to protect his son, he still shows that he is a protective person. "Why are you looking at him? I can look where I want to. No you can't. If you look at him again I'll shoot you." (McCarthy 65) This scene shows that he is protective. He is willing to kill a man simply for looking at his son.
In order to survive in a post apocalyptic world you must be persistent. The father in this book is no different. Being in a post apocalyptic world you are faced with many tough challenges. You will see many people die, you will have to walk miles on end and you will have to fight for every meal. The father faces all these challenges and many more as him and his boy fight for their survival. It is nearly impossible to find a quote for this trait because he is constantly persistent throughout the entire novel.
Friday, March 2, 2012
Identify and Sort
McCarthy, Cormac. The road. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. Print.
The five elements of a short story that are in the book that I am reading (The Road by Cormac McCarthy) are characters, setting, conflict, suspense and point of view.In my personal opinion this is the order of importance:
1. Suspense
2. Conflict
3. Characters
4. Setting
5. Point of View
In the book The Road by Cormac McCarthy there is a ton of suspense. A great example of the suspense in this book is when the man and his son came upon the mysterious house where people are being held captive. As the two descend down to stairs in the basement their only light is coming from a lighter. Because of this, the author reviles small bits of information as the light flickers in and out. This really drags out the moment and as each piece of information is reveled the suspense of the moment keeps building and building up until finally the whole picture is reveled. "He started down the rough wooden steps. He ducked his head and then flicked the lighter and swung the flame out over the darkness like an offering. Coldness and damp. An ungodly stench. The boy clutched at his coat. he could see part of a stone wall. Clay floor. An old mattress darkly staid. Huddled against the back wall were naked people, male and female, all trying to hide, shielding their faces with their hand. On the mattress lay a man with his legs gone to the hip and the stumps of them blackened and burnt." (McCarthy, 110) As you can see this is a very suspenseful part of the book. This is just one example of the many suspenseful elements in The Road by Cormac McCarthy
In the book The Road by Cormac McCarthy there is a ton of suspense. A great example of the suspense in this book is when the man and his son came upon the mysterious house where people are being held captive. As the two descend down to stairs in the basement their only light is coming from a lighter. Because of this, the author reviles small bits of information as the light flickers in and out. This really drags out the moment and as each piece of information is reveled the suspense of the moment keeps building and building up until finally the whole picture is reveled. "He started down the rough wooden steps. He ducked his head and then flicked the lighter and swung the flame out over the darkness like an offering. Coldness and damp. An ungodly stench. The boy clutched at his coat. he could see part of a stone wall. Clay floor. An old mattress darkly staid. Huddled against the back wall were naked people, male and female, all trying to hide, shielding their faces with their hand. On the mattress lay a man with his legs gone to the hip and the stumps of them blackened and burnt." (McCarthy, 110) As you can see this is a very suspenseful part of the book. This is just one example of the many suspenseful elements in The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Identify
There are many things that can make a great book. Three things that I look for in a good book are a good plot or storyline, good characters and lots of action or suspense.
So far in "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy all three of those qualities are being met. So far, the storyline has been good. Everything so far has made sense and has been in a logical order. The characters are also very good in this book. The father is smart, strong and brave and his personality really contributes to the story. The boy is the other main character in the story. The boy's presence really adds to the story because the father has to look after himself as well as the boy, where as if the boy wasn't in the story the father would only have himself to look after and his journey would be a lot easier. This story is also full of action and suspense. The two characters have been through many near death experiences and have survived two different attacks from the "bad guys" so far. Whenever their is action the author does a great job of adding suspense. For example when the father and his son come upon the house where people are being held captive their only light is coming from a lighter. As the light flickers pieces of information are reveled. This really drags out the moment which creates a feeling of suspense.
"The Road" by Cormac McCarthy has met my three requirements of a good book and is overall a great book.
McCarthy, Cormac. The road. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. Print.
So far in "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy all three of those qualities are being met. So far, the storyline has been good. Everything so far has made sense and has been in a logical order. The characters are also very good in this book. The father is smart, strong and brave and his personality really contributes to the story. The boy is the other main character in the story. The boy's presence really adds to the story because the father has to look after himself as well as the boy, where as if the boy wasn't in the story the father would only have himself to look after and his journey would be a lot easier. This story is also full of action and suspense. The two characters have been through many near death experiences and have survived two different attacks from the "bad guys" so far. Whenever their is action the author does a great job of adding suspense. For example when the father and his son come upon the house where people are being held captive their only light is coming from a lighter. As the light flickers pieces of information are reveled. This really drags out the moment which creates a feeling of suspense.
"The Road" by Cormac McCarthy has met my three requirements of a good book and is overall a great book.
McCarthy, Cormac. The road. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. Print.
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