Post A Week 2 OUT CHASING HORSES

Vocab:
Paddock (18):a small, usually enclosed field near a stable or barn for pasturing or exercising animals.
slowcoach (20):someone who moves slowly, slowpoke.

Lit. Devices:
"...,fishing in the river for trout, balancing on the shining yellow logs that sailed the current close long after the clearing of the river was done (17)." This is an example of imagery because of the shining yellow logs.

"... or we went to Jon's house in the other direction where I was treated as the crown prince (21)." This is an example of simile because the novel compares him using "as".

"Jon's face was a chalk-white mask with an open mouth, and from that mouth uttered sounds that made my blood run cold (33)." This is an example of a metaphor because it says that Jon's face is a chalk-white mask.

Quote:
"christ." I said. "It's wierd that something so little can come alive and just fly away." and maybe it was not well put and certainly less than the light airy feeling I felt inside me. But something happened at that momment I that I had no way understanding, for when I raised my eyes and looked up at Jon's face it was strained and totally white (33)." This quote is iomportant because it shows the immense change in Jon for no apparent reason. He then crushed the tiny birds egg he was holding, then the nest, making Lars feel terrible, helpless, and desprate. I don't know what the significance of this incident will be, but he makes it clear this is important.

Theme: The theme of this book is that people are unpredictable, and that they constantly change.

Post B Week 1 OUT CHASING HORSES

Out Chasing Horses is about a man who lives in Norway and lives in the forest. He loves the Norweigian countryside and has waited his entire life to be able to retire to a cabin in the woods such as this one. One night, he is sleeping in his cold, dark cabin and is awoken by noises in the wood. He looks out the door and sees his nieghbor out hollering for his dog who had run away. He decides that is wasn't right for his nieghbor to be alone in the middle of the night, with only a flashlight as company, so he walks with this man until the dog bounds back into sight and they journey back home.

I can understand why this man would want to live in the peace and quiet of the Norweigian wilderness, because two summers ago I traveled there and loved it.

Post A Week 1 for OUT CHASING HORSES

Vocab:
Skint:having no money; penniless.

Breadth:The measure or dimension from side to side; width.

Literary Terms:
"There is a reddish light over the tree by the lake (5)."

"It is starting to blow. I can see the shape of the wind on the water (1)." THis is an example of personification because the wind cannot blow, and does not have shape.

"It was a disturbing should, and the man in front of me bit his lip and ran the fingers his left hand over his forehead with an uncertain movement before he went ( 14)." This is an example of imagery.


Theme: The theme of this book is being alone but still helping others.

The Suitors "Self Esteem"

In the epic poem prior to the Odyssey, Odysseus leaves to fight in the Trojan War. When he leaves, his wife Penelope and son Telemachus are left alone, and soon many suitors move in to Odysseus' palace to court Penelope. These suitors are pathetic, and wouldn’t have had the courage to disobey Odysseus and harass his wife if he was still in Messina.

Also when Telemachus confronts the suitors at a town meeting, they reply that Penelope had been messing with them, telling them they would have to wait until she had finished weaving her web until they could be with her. Penelope is obviously playing with them, screwing with their heads, and they do not have the courage to confront her about it until they are in a large group.

The song “Self Esteem”, by The Offspring, is about a guy who has no self-esteem. His girlfriend walks all over him and cheats on him, yet he cannot tell her how he feels.

"I wrote her off for the tenth time today
And practice all the things I would say
But she came over
I lost my nerve
I took her back and made her dessert

Now I know I’m being used
That’s okay man cause I like the abuse
I know she’s playing with me
That’s okay cause I got no self esteem"

This reminds me of the suitors because they spineless and would not dare to do this to Penelope if she had no one to guard her and they were not acting as a group.

Vocabulary:
(206) Dolefully: sorrowful; mournful; melancholy

(215)Lilting: A cheerful or lively manner of speaking, in which the pitch of the voice varies pleasantly

Literary Terms:
His voice was strangely harsh and resonent, like metal being crushed (212). This is an example of a similie used effectively to show the apparent coldness in this soldiers personality.

"At that very moment, a very large clock struck midday. Bonnet laughed, almost with pleasure. It was such a deep low, slightly cracked sound he imagined coming from the antique clock with the painted casing in some Dutch Old Master, along with the smell of fresh herring prepared by the housewife and the sounds from the street beyond the window with its tarnished panes of glass; in such paintings there was always a clock like this one hanging on the wall (215)." This quote is an example of symbolism to me, as the soldier Bonnet is imagining this specific scene vividly in his head, a scene that may have taken place in Germany. This clock symbolizes home and security to the German. This insight into the Germans thoughts allows the reader to think of the Germans as people, not just occupiers.

"The peaceful sky was tinged with pink and silver. Its innocent light played on the happy faces of the men as they marched past (218)." This is an example of personification, because peacefullness and innocence are human qualities.
Quote:
"Madeline opened the door without making a sound and slipped out into the deserted wet garden where tears seemed to drip from the trees. an hour later Lucile let Benoit in through the little green door that opened on to the Maie woods. The storm was over but an angry wind continued to rage (304)." This is after Benoit has killed a German Officer and must be hidden in Lucilles house. I think the final sentence is not only about the physical storm brewing outside, but also the conflict with the Germans intensifying greatly.

Theme:
The theme of Suite Francaise is fear, but with the fear comes fiercely strong hope for the future and loyalty to those one loves.

Post B Week 8 Suite Francaise

So I have just finished Suite Francaise, and I would have to say that I loved the second part of this book! The first half was interesting, but it was depressing, the characters were condesending and full of resentments torward everyone and everything. They were forced to leave Paris, France, because of the defeat of France by the Germans in World War II. Why exactly there was a mass exodus, I do not quite understand, as the civillians are in just as much peril in the suburbs of France as they are in Paris, as they are still France. The second half of teh book was about the occupation of the French towns by German soldiers. The towns people were all in the comfort of thier homes, and the Germans were civil and in most cases, genuinely nice. Love blossoms betweem several civilian women and the soldiers. Though it was still about the war, the tension between the sides was subdued, and instead of being about the war as a whole, it showed the intrests of the people and how they were torn between loyalty to thier country and loyalty to themselves.

Post B Week 7 Suite Francaise

This novel is really quite depressing. I can only read a few pages at a time with out feeling disgusted, and when I start reading the book again I feel as though I have already read this passage before, as all of the pages are similar. Also there are too many subjects or characters in this book to be able to truly understand what is going on. You finish a chapter and need to go back to several chapters to find out what the next set of people have to do with anything. It’s a frustrating read at times, but I still suppose I like it.