The Nazis decided to make a dental search to find any prisoner with gold crowns in their mouths and rip them out to exchange for money. Eliezer has continuing flashbacks from the present time to when he was in the prison camps relating the people and the horrors he had to face. For example: he meets a girl about his age when in the camp, and sees her once again when the holocaust is over. The Nazis are constantly killing resistance members and any unfit Jews. Almost daily they have to go through selections to see if they are still fit enough to go on. A young boy was taken as a slave to a resistance member, and since he was involved with it, he was publically hung in front of all Jews as a reminder to not resist. Many Jews lost their faith that day and decided God was no help to them anymore. Elie had completely given up on all hopes of a God.
The significance of the young boy dying was to symbolize the death of God. All their hope had been placed in their faith when the hard times started, but God never seemed to deliver them, so they gave up all hopes. Also, the young boy dying symbolized Eliezer's innocence dying, for he was forced to grow up so fast and not live as a young man should.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Monday, January 31, 2011
Night by Elie Wiesel
A twelve-year-old boy named Eliezer, also the narrator, lives in a Jewish town named Sighet. His parents own shops and are very strict in the jewish beliefs. Eliezer followed the Jewish teachings as his parents requested, but also had a fond liking for the "cabbala" which is book of mysticism not usually read by men his age. Although knowing that his father objected, Elie snuck out in search of Moche the Beadle (local pauper) to teach him of the cabbala. Moche was a beggar, the only one in all of their town that was not looked down upon; he was a very uplifting, kind man. One day, all of the foreign Jews were expelled from Sighet, and Moche happened to be one of them. At first, rumors spread and people were on edge with fear for themselves, but after months passed, many had even forgot that a change had occured. Moche returned one day, in a much more solemn mood than he had been in the past. He told stories of how the Gestapo had tortured, killed, threatened, and beat the captives and he had escaped by pretending to be dead when taken to the camps. No one seemed to belive Moche because he was the only one to return with any stories. Even Eliezer, his former student and friend, failed to belive the tails from the old man.
Not too long after, the Fascists raid the town of Sighet and begin ruining the lives of the Jews. They took posessions, destroyed buildings, forces the Jews into wearing stars around their necks, and began to take them away. Elie's family was among some of the last to be taken away and was forced to watch all of the chaos that they had formerly not belived from Moche the Beadle. The family's servant, Martha offered them to stay with her in her village, yet they declined [ironic because she was a gentile, and the name Martha being very commonly known as the friend of Jesus that wanted to make preparations for the Lord, while her sister, Mary, refused for she wanted to sit and listen to him speak.] The family is then taken in a cattle car to Auschwitz.
The interesting thing about reading this book is the reader knows the whole situation that occurs in the Holocaust. We know what the death camps are like and what toruture they were put through. The Jews of Sighet were very oblivious and naive when it came to believing Moche or even taking into consideration that anything could be wrong. The village was blind to the hatred going on around them and refused to believe that they were the next target. This theme seems very common in tragedy-type books; the reader knows what will happen, wishing to alert the characters of the danger ahead of them. Since the book is based off of a true story, it is also interesting to hear the voice from the survivor having to retell his experience during the era. He too was unaware and sheltered from the fate that was due him.
Not too long after, the Fascists raid the town of Sighet and begin ruining the lives of the Jews. They took posessions, destroyed buildings, forces the Jews into wearing stars around their necks, and began to take them away. Elie's family was among some of the last to be taken away and was forced to watch all of the chaos that they had formerly not belived from Moche the Beadle. The family's servant, Martha offered them to stay with her in her village, yet they declined [ironic because she was a gentile, and the name Martha being very commonly known as the friend of Jesus that wanted to make preparations for the Lord, while her sister, Mary, refused for she wanted to sit and listen to him speak.] The family is then taken in a cattle car to Auschwitz.
The interesting thing about reading this book is the reader knows the whole situation that occurs in the Holocaust. We know what the death camps are like and what toruture they were put through. The Jews of Sighet were very oblivious and naive when it came to believing Moche or even taking into consideration that anything could be wrong. The village was blind to the hatred going on around them and refused to believe that they were the next target. This theme seems very common in tragedy-type books; the reader knows what will happen, wishing to alert the characters of the danger ahead of them. Since the book is based off of a true story, it is also interesting to hear the voice from the survivor having to retell his experience during the era. He too was unaware and sheltered from the fate that was due him.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
So the plot progresses...
Oskar continues his search for the BLACK that holds the answer to his key. In his adventure, he finds that there is a man living in the apartment above theirs that is the next on the list. The doorman tells Oskar that he thinks the room is haunted because he had never seen anyone go in or out of the room ever. He enters the room to find a very talkative elderly gentleman. The man tells Oskar that he was born in 1900 so he has lived more than a century. Black kept a record of every single person he had ever met in his whole life; oddly, the biography of that person was only one word long. Usually the words were: war and money (two of the most important things in his life.) Oskar was immediately intruiged by this system and asks the man if he has one for his father. He checks and sees no card containing that name; Oskar's disappointments continue. Apparently the man hadn't set foot out of his apartment since his wife died, so Oskar invites him to join him on the remainder of his travels.
Oskar is depressed because his mom has a "friend" named Ron that always hung around the apartment. He was so upset that his mother could even think of replacing his deceased father. They get into a fight one day and Oskar becomes so upset about the situation that he blurted out: "if I could have chosen, I would have chosen you!" After that comment, his mom left the room, extremely hurt. Oskar felt terrible after the occurance and begged his mom to forgive him.
The story is then interrupted by another flash back. It is now finally clear that the letters are reffering to a war: World War II. The hidden comparisons of Oskar's struggles with 9/11 and the problems reguarding WWII finally make connection. All of the 'narrators' share common difficulties and resolutions to problems. The letters finally tie in to the piece as a whole.
I have finally been able to make some connections in this book!!! :)
Jonathan Safran Foer named this book perfectly: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. He purposely places the words 'extremely' and 'incredibly' constantly throughout the novel. The words 'close' and 'loud' finally show some reason too--Oskar is getting ever closer to his father by just continuing what his father would love for him to do; and as Oskar revists the recordings of his dad on the answering maching, the answers to his life become louder and louder, and Oskar finally realizes new things about himself.
The letters that had been placed so interruptedly in the novel finally prove some importance. The person writing the letters is Oskar's grandfather(i think), who he never met. And some of the other ones are written by his grandmother, about why her husband left her and why he will never meet his grandfather. It is very interesting because the letters were written at the time of the Holocaust- they lived in Dresden, Germany and were constantly around the bombing and warfare. The man writer (grandfather) says there is so many 'unwritten rules' between him and his wife ((which I find super ironic because I am German, and our family has so many of these unwritten rules-- about not hugging or about a certain tradition or food or conversations-- but we all know them and no one else would)) He discusses how he went mute after the war and they just explained things with their hands and their touch(which was very minimal being German.) Everything is beginnging to tie in so much better in the novel and the little pieces of genius that Foer throws in captures the reader with every glance of a page.
Oskar continues his search for the BLACK that holds the answer to his key. In his adventure, he finds that there is a man living in the apartment above theirs that is the next on the list. The doorman tells Oskar that he thinks the room is haunted because he had never seen anyone go in or out of the room ever. He enters the room to find a very talkative elderly gentleman. The man tells Oskar that he was born in 1900 so he has lived more than a century. Black kept a record of every single person he had ever met in his whole life; oddly, the biography of that person was only one word long. Usually the words were: war and money (two of the most important things in his life.) Oskar was immediately intruiged by this system and asks the man if he has one for his father. He checks and sees no card containing that name; Oskar's disappointments continue. Apparently the man hadn't set foot out of his apartment since his wife died, so Oskar invites him to join him on the remainder of his travels.
Oskar is depressed because his mom has a "friend" named Ron that always hung around the apartment. He was so upset that his mother could even think of replacing his deceased father. They get into a fight one day and Oskar becomes so upset about the situation that he blurted out: "if I could have chosen, I would have chosen you!" After that comment, his mom left the room, extremely hurt. Oskar felt terrible after the occurance and begged his mom to forgive him.
The story is then interrupted by another flash back. It is now finally clear that the letters are reffering to a war: World War II. The hidden comparisons of Oskar's struggles with 9/11 and the problems reguarding WWII finally make connection. All of the 'narrators' share common difficulties and resolutions to problems. The letters finally tie in to the piece as a whole.
I have finally been able to make some connections in this book!!! :)
Jonathan Safran Foer named this book perfectly: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. He purposely places the words 'extremely' and 'incredibly' constantly throughout the novel. The words 'close' and 'loud' finally show some reason too--Oskar is getting ever closer to his father by just continuing what his father would love for him to do; and as Oskar revists the recordings of his dad on the answering maching, the answers to his life become louder and louder, and Oskar finally realizes new things about himself.
The letters that had been placed so interruptedly in the novel finally prove some importance. The person writing the letters is Oskar's grandfather(i think), who he never met. And some of the other ones are written by his grandmother, about why her husband left her and why he will never meet his grandfather. It is very interesting because the letters were written at the time of the Holocaust- they lived in Dresden, Germany and were constantly around the bombing and warfare. The man writer (grandfather) says there is so many 'unwritten rules' between him and his wife ((which I find super ironic because I am German, and our family has so many of these unwritten rules-- about not hugging or about a certain tradition or food or conversations-- but we all know them and no one else would)) He discusses how he went mute after the war and they just explained things with their hands and their touch(which was very minimal being German.) Everything is beginnging to tie in so much better in the novel and the little pieces of genius that Foer throws in captures the reader with every glance of a page.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close... part #2
Oskar Schell is still determined to find to whom or what the "BLACK" key belongs. He decides that he will search the buroughs of New York until he gets answers. Unfortunately for him, he is determined to navigate in alphabetical order by the persons first name, not by district. Oskar walks more than three hours back and forth through the streets just to show up at the next doorstep and attain disappointment. Eventually, Oskar shows up at a home of Abbey Black; she is a beautiful older woman that attracts his attention. With his mind set on the goal, Oskar makes his way into Abbey's home and continues to ask questions that pertain to her house--thinking that somehow he will find a clue to his father. The couple talk for hours about elephants, jewelry, photographers, everything that ends up meaningless.
Oskar comes to an epiphany later that night when he was asleep. Running into his mother's room, he asks her the name of the storage company that his father would keep his belongings--his biggest hope was to hear her say BLACK STORAGE or BLACKWELL STOAGE or MIDNIGHT STORAGE or even RAINBOW--anything to connect a clue to the key. The name was none of the above and his high expectations were once again drown out by disappointment.
I now think i am going to compare how a character's emotional purging can motivate and benefit others...
The death of Oskar Schell's father was a tragic moment in the young boy's life. But through the adventure that his dad left behind (or so Oskar thinks) he becomes closer to his father than ever before. He recieved the wit and brain of his biggest role model in life, and now lives out his 'legacy' without even realizing how his goal-driven purpose now is keeping his father's memories alive. Oskar's outstanding protrayal of bravery is not out of his own will, he walks the dangerous streets of the New York Burroughs thinking the whole time about the reward of being like his father, never once doubting that he will be closer. His determination and simple-minded questions make him a character that is brilliant, yet still child-like. The open-mindedness of his thoughts actually seem to force him into being more mature and rounded from his experiences. Oskar's pain from the death of his dad leads him to inspire everyone he meets that being true to themselves and keeping in line with all of the things they find most dear to them and those they look(ed) up to--especially the father figure.
Oskar comes to an epiphany later that night when he was asleep. Running into his mother's room, he asks her the name of the storage company that his father would keep his belongings--his biggest hope was to hear her say BLACK STORAGE or BLACKWELL STOAGE or MIDNIGHT STORAGE or even RAINBOW--anything to connect a clue to the key. The name was none of the above and his high expectations were once again drown out by disappointment.
I now think i am going to compare how a character's emotional purging can motivate and benefit others...
The death of Oskar Schell's father was a tragic moment in the young boy's life. But through the adventure that his dad left behind (or so Oskar thinks) he becomes closer to his father than ever before. He recieved the wit and brain of his biggest role model in life, and now lives out his 'legacy' without even realizing how his goal-driven purpose now is keeping his father's memories alive. Oskar's outstanding protrayal of bravery is not out of his own will, he walks the dangerous streets of the New York Burroughs thinking the whole time about the reward of being like his father, never once doubting that he will be closer. His determination and simple-minded questions make him a character that is brilliant, yet still child-like. The open-mindedness of his thoughts actually seem to force him into being more mature and rounded from his experiences. Oskar's pain from the death of his dad leads him to inspire everyone he meets that being true to themselves and keeping in line with all of the things they find most dear to them and those they look(ed) up to--especially the father figure.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close-- still part #1 :)
I am not completely possitive at this point if i am going to do an author study on Jonathan Safran Foer quite yet or not. I definately want to read all of his books, but am not entirely sure how to go about this just yet....
This book starts very informally, no indent and very common, familiar language: a question even. It is written in a way that assumes the audience knows all of the preceding events and the reader is open-minded. It truly requires an outgoing-in-thoughts person to fully understand and dive into the casual introduction. The main character, Oskar Schell, is a young boy full of questions that are more thought-provoking and rhetorical than anything else. His insight draws the reader in deeper in hopes of comprehending his mindset. Oskar is dealing with the immense pain left behind from the loss of his father; he is coping by using memories and skills his dad left behind. On a quest to unravel a mystery he feels will bring him comfort, Oskar searches all of New York for answers his father (perhaps purposely) never attained.
Jonathon Safran Foer has many unique techniques to engage the reader; he even combines pages of color and pictures to further lure the reader in. Almost every single line in the whole story has a purpose and contributes to the story as a whole. Throughout the story, there are breaks where the story becomes sidetracked into 'random' letters. The first, written to "my unborn child on 5/21/63," is a letter that is ironically connected to another letter later in the book, just as everything in the book is connected loosely by a simple strand of details. Foer uses interrupted paragraphs and thoughts to show the reader exactly how things happen, therefore allowing the reading to grasp every aspect of the plot.
---interesting clues and writers imagination I found----
- a whole page dedicated to the word 'purple' written in green
- main character was at an art supplies store and found his father's name written on every tab of paper used for testing colors: more than a year after he had died
- the letter written to the unborn child comes up again and reflects on a future letter from a concentration camp inmate, 30 years prior to the first letter.
- interesting how the language and pages are broken up so frequently- the style of how he writes is so different
This book starts very informally, no indent and very common, familiar language: a question even. It is written in a way that assumes the audience knows all of the preceding events and the reader is open-minded. It truly requires an outgoing-in-thoughts person to fully understand and dive into the casual introduction. The main character, Oskar Schell, is a young boy full of questions that are more thought-provoking and rhetorical than anything else. His insight draws the reader in deeper in hopes of comprehending his mindset. Oskar is dealing with the immense pain left behind from the loss of his father; he is coping by using memories and skills his dad left behind. On a quest to unravel a mystery he feels will bring him comfort, Oskar searches all of New York for answers his father (perhaps purposely) never attained.
Jonathon Safran Foer has many unique techniques to engage the reader; he even combines pages of color and pictures to further lure the reader in. Almost every single line in the whole story has a purpose and contributes to the story as a whole. Throughout the story, there are breaks where the story becomes sidetracked into 'random' letters. The first, written to "my unborn child on 5/21/63," is a letter that is ironically connected to another letter later in the book, just as everything in the book is connected loosely by a simple strand of details. Foer uses interrupted paragraphs and thoughts to show the reader exactly how things happen, therefore allowing the reading to grasp every aspect of the plot.
---interesting clues and writers imagination I found----
- a whole page dedicated to the word 'purple' written in green
- main character was at an art supplies store and found his father's name written on every tab of paper used for testing colors: more than a year after he had died
- the letter written to the unborn child comes up again and reflects on a future letter from a concentration camp inmate, 30 years prior to the first letter.
- interesting how the language and pages are broken up so frequently- the style of how he writes is so different
Monday, November 29, 2010
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close .... blog #1
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
by Jonathan Safran Foer
The story begins with Oskar Schell, the narrator and main character posing 'life questions,' meaning: seemingly useless questions, but when further looked at, very insightful. His father played a huge role in his life, always encouraging Oskar to think deeper and creating "scavenger hunts" for Oskar to use his intellect to solve problems. These hunts would usually have no real meaning at all, just serve as a new adventure and how to bypass tricky situations. He is a young boy who loves asking questions; especially ones that grant deeper meaning to life and help people find something they never would have thought before. For example: "what about a teakettle? what if the spout opened and closed when the steam came out, so it would become a mouth, and it could whistle pretty melodies, or do Shakespeare, or just crack up with me?"
(pg 1) is one of the many interesting thoughts trailing from Oskar's mind. His father, who he believed to be the smartest, best role model in the world, died in Semptember 11th. Oskar returned home from school on that day, just in time to hear his dad's voice messages left on the machine. In turn, played them continually just to hear his dad's voice, but knew that he couldnt bear the pain of having his mother hear it. Oskar hid the phone with the messages on it, deep in his closet and replaced the old phone.
Later, Oskar was going through his dad's closet, feeling his warmth in the unmoved suit coats and untouched dress pants. He stumbled upon a vase on the top shelf. Reaching up in hope to safely bring down the object, it smashes to the ground. Yet a surprise that would begin a new world of questions for Oskar fell into his hands: an envelope with a key inside and the name 'BLACK' written on the front of the secret container. Oskar knew his mother had no idea about the secluded vase, and reasoned that his father left it for him to explore. Searching New York for the name Black could take years, he knew that a plan had to be made and he must go about it very cunningly. Oskar then sets up a plan for his excavation of the Burroughs to find who, or what the 'BLACK' key belongs...
by Jonathan Safran Foer
The story begins with Oskar Schell, the narrator and main character posing 'life questions,' meaning: seemingly useless questions, but when further looked at, very insightful. His father played a huge role in his life, always encouraging Oskar to think deeper and creating "scavenger hunts" for Oskar to use his intellect to solve problems. These hunts would usually have no real meaning at all, just serve as a new adventure and how to bypass tricky situations. He is a young boy who loves asking questions; especially ones that grant deeper meaning to life and help people find something they never would have thought before. For example: "what about a teakettle? what if the spout opened and closed when the steam came out, so it would become a mouth, and it could whistle pretty melodies, or do Shakespeare, or just crack up with me?"
(pg 1) is one of the many interesting thoughts trailing from Oskar's mind. His father, who he believed to be the smartest, best role model in the world, died in Semptember 11th. Oskar returned home from school on that day, just in time to hear his dad's voice messages left on the machine. In turn, played them continually just to hear his dad's voice, but knew that he couldnt bear the pain of having his mother hear it. Oskar hid the phone with the messages on it, deep in his closet and replaced the old phone.
Later, Oskar was going through his dad's closet, feeling his warmth in the unmoved suit coats and untouched dress pants. He stumbled upon a vase on the top shelf. Reaching up in hope to safely bring down the object, it smashes to the ground. Yet a surprise that would begin a new world of questions for Oskar fell into his hands: an envelope with a key inside and the name 'BLACK' written on the front of the secret container. Oskar knew his mother had no idea about the secluded vase, and reasoned that his father left it for him to explore. Searching New York for the name Black could take years, he knew that a plan had to be made and he must go about it very cunningly. Oskar then sets up a plan for his excavation of the Burroughs to find who, or what the 'BLACK' key belongs...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)