Independent Reading Assignments Week 2

Key traits of John Tyree, Dear John:
- fustrated: we see this when he discusses his up-bringing with his girlfriend, blaming his father for the lack of a childhood- what the character thinks or says.
It's also displayed when John's father is meant to accompany him and his girlfriend to a social gathering, but due to his mental disability, he feels he's unable to do so-actions.
- loyal: we see this when John is away in theatre, his girlfriend thousands of miles away, yet still writes to her and thinks of no one else but her-actions.
- bravery: we see this when John is shot twice on his shoulder, yet once fully recovered is determined to serve in the very place he was injured once more to fight for his country-actions.
- sympathetic: we see this when John returns from service to his strayed girlfriend, yet once he's informed about the situation and given the reasons for which she married someone else, John is calm and agrees to visit his old, terminally ill friend-actions.
- pretentious: we see this when John's girlfriend says she isn't scared of him, no matter how he acts with others-what other characters say about this character.
This trait is also displayed as we see John caring for his girlfriend and treating her well, yet around strangers he'll act bolshy and initiate fights-actions, what this characters thinks or says.
- Gentlemanly: we see this when his soon-to-be girlfriend's bag is accidently pushed over the pier and he jumps in to save it, seeing that no one is volunteering to retrieve it quickly for her-actions.
- Humble/Introverted: we see this when he's thanked for retrieving the bag for the girl, John simply states it was nothing and walks away, then to be invited for dinner-actions, what the character says or thinks.
This trait is also displayed when congratulated or questioned about being in the Special Forces of the military, he answers the questions without sounding boastful about himself or the importance of his work-actions, what the character says or thinks.
- Repressed: we see this when John's father passes away, he keeps all his feelings bottled up inside of him until confronted with his ex-girlfriend, at which point all the feelings come pouring out about his father and their relationship-actions.
- Obstinant: we see this when John's placed before his commanders, refusing to return home after recovering from his gunshot wounds, adamant not to stop serving his country he vows to extend his tour once again- actions, what the character says or thinks.
- Remorseful: we see this when John's father passes away, he hates himself for treating him the way he did, blissfully or choosing to be unaware of his father's mental disability-actions.

John Tyree, our protagonist is a round character, but stays true to what he believes throughout the book. As a disturbed adolescent with a isolated childhood, John turns to what he deems to be the only option ; the military. During leave, he meets his dream girl, Savannah. Thinking of someone other than himself is a foreign concept to John, one he adapts to fairly quickly. Trust, so hard to build yet so easy to break; the one person he's confided in, leaves him whilst he's serving on an extended tour of duty. Slinking back into his repressed ways, John suffers a great loss, leaving him with a huge burden of guilt and regret.

Frankenstein Anticipation Guide

1. The key to all emotional healing can be found in nature.
Disagree.

2. Nature is filled with harsh cruelties.
Agree.

3. A person's priorities should place family before work.
Agree.
4. Enjoying life is more important that persuing fame, glory and knowledge.
Agree.
5. Those born with social and financial advantages have a responsibility for those who are not.
Agree.

6. Ignorance is bliss.
Agree.

7. The persuit of knowledge is a volatile quest.
Agree.

8. Someone's ego will cause a tragic fall.
Agree.

9. Children learn their behaviour by watching and mimicking adults.
Agree.

10. Most people are basically cruel.
Agree.
11. The "disunfranchised man" who finds himself unable to live with society for whatever reason, is someone for whom we should feel sympathy or reverance.
Agree.
12. Society makes a person whatever he becomes.
Agree.
13. Rejection and mistreatment can manifest themselves in a person becoming rage-filled.
Agree.

14. If a person or an animal is treated with cruelty, he will respond to others in the same way.
Agree.

15. Those people we deem "monsters" in today's society are merely misunderstood.
Agree.

16. The greatest burden a person can carry is living with the knowledge of his wrong doings andthat they were preventable.
Agree.

In Depth:

13. Rejection and mistreatment can manifest themselves into a person becoming rage-filled. Agree.
There's only so much a person can take of being pushed away time and time again before it begins to take its toll. Someone who as a young child is rejected time and time again, combined with other factors, will as an adult, cause the slightest thing to anger them. This isn't simply having a short temper, it's taking out the feelings you've bottled up for years towards things you were never shown or given as a child. For example, as a young boy, a mutual friend was sidelined and as the years went by the rage grew from simply being dismissed and it's heartbreaking to see someone who has so much potential being held back because of the anger they're now saddled with through no fault of their own.

3. A person's priorities should place family before work.
Agree.
The common arguement for placing work before family is that without money, the family would crumble. Providing for your family is necessary, however if you sideline them all too often there won't be a family left to provide for. It's a fine line. For example a person should not be so enravelled in their work life that they neglect their family's. Missing birthdays or important events is a common sacrifice made by workers, but if a person were to attend those events lee-way would be given for future work commitments. Thinking of your family and their needs should come to mind first before agreeing to various work commitments.

Prospective Piece- TKAM

Protagonist- Scout
Narrative- first person, Scout.
Scene- Jem's punishment for cutting Ms.Dubose's plants in Chapter 11.
Characters involved- Jem, Atticus, Scout, Aunt Alexandra.
How would the scene be different if told from Auntie's point of view?
This chapter is important for characterizing Jem and showing that even a mini-Atticus can lose his temper, which may have been foreshadowing for the trial and the aftermath of it. If Auntie was to tell this, it would be focused on the bad behaviour of the children, rather than the motives behind them and what the actions really symbolised.

Alternative scene- After Jem returns home.

"The boy is obviously, he needs chores, Atticus!", I began, Atticus had those little runts run wild for years now and I couldn't take it no more. They needed a feminine influence, someone to take control.
"Jem, you wouldn't cut Ms.Dubose's plants for fun, now would you?"
I couldn't take it no more, I stormed outta the room, he treated that boy like one of his court cases, always giving him a fair trial. He just needed a smack.
It'd been two hour and I'd calmed down a little, the living room silence gre longer, my eyes drfited around the room and stopped at the empty sofa.
"What did you say to him Atticus?", the silence was broken.
"He's going to read to Ms.Dubose tomorrow morning", Atticus replied without so much as raising his head from his newspaper.
I didn't see what reading a book to her would teach the boy, but I was growing weary of the arguements.
The air outside was fresh, with clear skies running for miles, it was 9am when I woke. The house was empty with not so much as a note to be found.

Jem Finch's Reaction

TKAM Anticipation Guide

1. Every person in a court of law deserves to be defended.

Disagree.

I don’t think that we can assume the right to be defended should be given to every person facing the judicial system. For example, Raoul Moat, he murdered several people including his ex-girlfriend days after being released from Durham’s prison. He didn’t know most of these people; they were innocent by-standers whose lives were taken away by one unhinged man. A man, who according to this statement should have the right to be defended, if he hadn’t of committed suicide?! There is no possible excuse he could’ve given for killing all those innocent people, whatever occurred in his personal life is not a valid reason. The crime committed is very much a huge factor and to whether defence should be given. A person on trial for murder, although they acted in self-defence of course deserves the right to be defended, they didn’t set out to kill anyone, they were simply protecting themselves. However a serial killer, what possible defence could be given? A mental illness? This has become so common, blaming unnecessary murders on the mental health of the defendant, however in most cases, complete nonsense! If you’ve committed a crime of such vulgarity, at least after all you’ve done, have the guts to face the consequences of your actions.

1. If you are truly innocent then you have nothing to fear from a judicial system.

Disagree.

The judicial system, although necessary and good in many cases, does sometimes prosecute the wrong person. For example if a group of criminals come up with a story and falsely blame another party, it’s their word against the other person’s, the voice of the majority will be heard and therefore the innocent party could be falsely prosecuted, even if they’re ‘truly innocent’, for example in the Scottsboro Trials, although the boys were in the majority and were innocent because of their race and weakened defence, the white girls were of course believed. Another counter example for this statement would be if the jury were to be bribed, or a jury selected unfairly. In such a scenario the jury could be paid a certain amount of money to fix the outcome of the trial. In recent times the judicial system has been branded as ‘corrupt’, ‘useless’ and its importance ‘fading out’. This is because when charged and sentenced to life imprisonment, if you behave, you will most likely serve a maximum of five years as there’s a shortage of prison cells. Most are thinking of the judicial system and the police as a joke nowadays, the respect once shown and trust has vanished, and rightly so.

Anticipation Guide

1. Money equates happiness.
Disagree.
If a family member died for example, being able to buy a Ferrari won't replace your loss, it may take your mind off the matter but it won't make you happy. Money is essential, there's no arguing with that, however the people around you, your environment is what makes you happy, not money. Some of the wealthiest people are also some of the unhappiest as their money is ALL they have and would give anything to have someone to care for them and love them.

2. In romance looks and personality always outweigh background and social class.
Agree.
It doesn't matter where you come from, how wealthy or not you are, what social class you belong to, it matters that you care about each other. For example, if you're poor and love an aristocratic lady, it shouldn't make a blind bit of difference that your backgrounds are different, if you love each other, nothing else matters. Liking someone for them, warts and all, not for their money or background is what SHOULD come before anything else.

"A Work of Art" Prediction

In Uhov, Moscow lived a 10 year old orphan, Sasha. His parents died tragically four years ago and ever since he has stayed in Uhov's Youth Hostel. The house the family once lived in stood rotting away in the distance, the candleabras that once burnt bright were now covered in dust and the floorboards cracking. It was hard to believe that the once most sought after house in the neighbourhood stood, dying.
As can be expected such a bleak event would take its toll on a boy of such young age, Sasha had good and bad days but was deemed fit to be fostered by the hostel's doctor, Dr. Ranov. Sasha lay on his bed, model train in his hand, pretending to be the driver, eye's gazing at the ceiling. Ironically the boy's love for the machines, which would be seen as the enemy for most children, was thing that took his parents away forever. The door knob twisted and with slight embarrassment Sasha woke up from his fantasy and sat up. His new potential fosters parents cautiosly entered, after the meet and greet session finished fairly well Sasha seeked the advice of 14 year old Sashkin.
"I don't know what to do!", Sasha began.
"Look, there isn't one day I don't regret turning down an opportunity to start afresh, get out of this dump, be with people who care because they want to not because it's their job!"
Their conversation was cut short as dinner was being served. Sasha had a lot to think about, at his age having a life changing decision ahead of him was overwhelmingly daunting.
Nevertheless, two months later he was settling in, in his new home away from all the gaudy interior decor and starting a new hopefully happier chapter of his life, the gratitude was evident, not everyone gets a chance like this he thought.