Final Giver Post

Okay, so here's the thing.
This post for this blog is gonna be a HUGE part of my grade, so I should make it really good. I should probably start with a few practice ads, just to warm up. Of course, they'll be fantastic, and you'll hardly even be able to tell that they're just for practice.
Here we go.
 Okay.
....

Um, wow. No. That's not good. Way to lime-green. It's also not very, well....relevant. Let me give this another shot.

ONLY SUPER COOL DRAGONS READ THE GIVER! IF YOU READ IT, YOU CAN BE A SUPER COOL DRAGON TOO!

.....
.....
Hmm, seems like a little bit much.

"I am a quadruped mammal, and I approve the Giver for other quadruped and biped mammals."

In all seriousness though, The Giver was a fantastic book. I would recommend it to all of you if you haven't read it already, due to the fact that it's actually a rather life-changing book. It caused me to realize many things that I have never really thought about before, and because of this, I thought it was pretty dang great.

Now I'm going to make a real ad on the giver.

I updated the book cover slightly here, putting more emphasis on the colors being used. Colors were a main aspect of the book as a whole, and I think this adds more. The colorful quotes I added are all from the book as well, and this gives a hint to what awaits the reader and catches the eye against the dark background.

I also put together a verbal ad, like one that would be heard over the radio.

Announcer: "And the author of the book, Lois Lowry, is here today to talk about the book she wrote. Lois, it's all you."
Lois: "Thank you."
Announcer: "Tell me, why is it that you think people should read your book?"
Lois: "Well, there's a variety of reasons. First of all, I'd like my readers to know that 89% of readers who read my book, according to the survey I sent out a while ago, said that The Giver impacted their life in some way."
Announcer: "Wow, that's a good portion of people."
Lois: "It sure is."
Announcer: "Why else?"
Lois: "Well, I've been running low on funds lately, and my little puppy is sick. I need some people to buy my book so I can pay for the puppy's medical bills."
Announcer: "...."
Lois: "....."
Announcer: "It seems to me that you're trying to appeal to your audience's pathos here."
Lois: *changes subject* "Another reason I'd like for you to read my book is because it's gotten wonderful reviews."
Announcer: "I heard that Oprah called it life-changing."
Lois: "She did indeed. Barak Obama nominated it for the number five book of the year."
Announcer: "Wow, thanks so much for talking to us all today, Lois."
Lois: "Thanks."

The Giver Post 3

1.  What one quote or concept has stood out to you in this book so far?  Share the quote and explain its impact on you.

"Jonas." It was a whisper at first: hushed, barely audible. "Jonas. 
Jonas." 
Then louder, faster. "JONAS. JONAS. JONAS." With the chant, 
Jonas knew, the community was accepting him and his new role, 
giving him life, the way they had given it to the newchild Caleb. His 
heart swelled with gratitude and pride. 
But at the same time he was filled with fear. He did not know what 
his selection meant. He did not know what he was to become. 
Or what would become of him. "
Unlike all all of the other children who received their assignments and were applauded for it, Jonas received his and had his name chanted over and over. This stuck out to me because when the small child, Caleb, had died, the crowd had done the same thing. They chanted Caleb's name over and over until "he disappeared forever from their lives and minds."

2.  Think of one way that a person in the story solved a problem. When you have decided on the person (or animal, or . . .), tell or write what you learned about solving the problem that you could use sometime in solving a problem of your own. What kind of trouble was he/she in? What was the problem to be solved? Do you have any of the same problems?

Jonas was in a large predicament near the end of the book. Gabriel was to be released (killed) the following day, and all of Jonas's plans were changed by this small thing. He had to take Gabriel with him. So he did. He improvised. Instead of leaving alone, like he had planned to do for weeks, Jonas took his father's bike with the child seat and took Gabriel with him.
I learned from Jonas that sometimes you need to improvise. Even if you've been planning something for a long time and there's a sudden change of plans, improvisation is often the only way to continue effectively.


3.  Think back in the story and try rewriting an incident from it. Substitute setting, a secondary character, or add on to the incident. For example, substitute a dog for a wolf in the THREE LITTLE PIGS.

"but he doesn't like to be kept waiting." The woman behind the reception desk mumbled. "So I'd hurry in." Jonas opened the door and walked down the hall until he came upon a staircase. He walked down it, and the first thing that struck him were the books. Hundreds, no, thousands of books. He took a deep breath. Jonas walked into the room, noticing that the furniture was much fancier than the furniture in the normal dwellings.
"Hello, Jonas." A female voice spoke from the chair near a window. "I'm the Giver."

The Giver, Post 2

1) Based on what you have read so far, would you recommend this book to someone else?  Why or why not?
I would recommend this book to EVERYONE. It's a great book and it absolutely has to be read! It's life-changing and full of important lessons.

2) If you could ask the writer of your book 3 questions, what would they be and why?
Why does the book end the way it does? I'm really curious about this. What happened to the Giver in the end of the book? My third question would be why the elders decided to turn to sameness. Wouldn't everything be better in color, with music?

3) What have you noticed about the language of your book?  Based on word choice, who do you think is the target audience of your book?
I think that people my age and older at the target of this book. It's mostly aimed at them, with a few tougher words and guesses, but it's mostly pretty simple. The language of my book is flowy and nice. I don't really know how to explain it other than that, actually.

The Giver

1.  What do you admire about the characters involved in your story?  What do you despise in them?
I really like that The Giver and Jonas are the only two who really understand what is happening to them throughout the course of the story. They can feel things and they understand things to much more depth than anyone else in the story. I dislike the fact that everyone else throughout the story is shallow and doesn't understand the circumstances they're in.

2.  If you were a character in this story, what would your role be?  Don't just replace an existing character with yourself, but think about if you, as you are right now, were added to this story, how would you function in the plot?
I would probably fit well into Jonas's role. I have always be empathetic towards people and very understanding of feelings and emotions. I would probably do about the same thing as Jonas did.

3.What predictions can you make about the characters involved?  Is their any foreshadowing so far to indicate that things will end well or poorly for the people in the story?
I predict that Gabriel is going to be released. Jonas's father keeps mentioning how weak Gabriel is, and it's making me quite nervous about him. I certainly HOPE that Gabriel isn't released, because I think the whole idea of release is much more than what Jonas thinks it is.

A thing that I made...?

Artifact 5: A slightly biased article about immigrants

After reading this article, titled Illegal Immigrants: Asset or Liability? , I found it to be stereotyped. The author, Laurin Motsay from Baltimore, whose name was unlinked, assumed that all 'illegal immigrants' became thugs or gang members after entering the US.
To start the article, Laurin linked a name, Mr. Rodricks, and wrote about how he thought that undocumented immigrants were a "wonderful asset" to the United States. Rodricks had explained that an undocumented immigrant came to the United States, became a doctor, and saved a woman's life. Ms. Motsay continued, after telling Rodrick's story, turning her comments gradually more and more sour and impolite.
"In the interest of fair and balanced commentary, I wish he would have compared the number of illegal immigrants who save someone's life to the number who commit violent crimes — like the "thrill-kill" murder of three New Jersey college students who were shot in the head in a school yard by an illegal immigrant."
This is only one of Laurin Motsay's accusations against undocumented immigrants. It's true that this was an actual crime, but this is only one instance of a crime committed by an immigrant. Ms. Motsay then proceeded, in my opinion, to accuse illegal immigrants many unfair and stereotyped crimes.  "There are many more victims of rape, murder, assault, etc., that Mr. Rodricks could ask about their [the victim's] gratitude to illegal immigrants. He [Rodricks] could also ask law enforcement officials how grateful they are to illegal immigrants such as gang members."
Ms. Laurin then finished with her typed name, apparently having nothing more to say on the subject.
The last few words of her accusation are inaccurate. Not all undocumented immigrants will become rapists, gang members, or murderers. In fact, very few statistically will. Many more US citizens that undocumented immigrants will commit these crimes in the United States.

Artifact 4: Dreamers (the book)

For my fourth artifact, I chose to review the book 'Dreamers.' The premise of the book is that Dreamers are living among us, some of them are even the kids next to us in our classrooms. Immigration is much more local than we think this is, these students and kids are here in plain sight, and we need to recognize that.
Many of the stories in this book are anonymous, like one boy's input:
"You see me, but you don't see me.
I could be your best friend, or neighbor.
I could be a student, or your classmate.
I could be the person who walked by you today.
People have this idea of who I am, but do you know who I am?
You see me, but you don't see ME as I fall away in the shadow of uncertainty."
Who are these people anyway? Immigrants are human beings, just like you and I. They probably came from countries where they had no hope, an unequal education, violence and poverty.  They came to find better lives. Their parents could have brought them to the United states at a young age so their children had a better place to grow up. Wouldn't anyone do that?  I know that I would, and so would my parents.  Think about someone you love.  Where would you stop when it comes to providing them with healthcare and education.  Think about it.  If we lived in a place where basic needs were denied to us, wouldn't we actively seek a place where we could get them?  Wouldn't all of us want our loved ones to be safe, fed and educated?  This does not come at a cost to citizens, contrary to what most believe.  They don't degrade our schools.  There is enough food for us all, and Obama Care allows them basic healthcare.  I wonder how many of the students in my class receive the benefits of Obama Care.  Probably few.
This relates to The Distance Between Us because many of these students, like Reyna, were left behind in Mexico by their parents. Unlike Reyna's situation, some of their parents never went back for them. On the other side of the coin, some of these students' parents were deported to Mexico and unable to get back, leaving the kids alone.

In the back of the book, there is a section titled Common Myths about Immigration and Immigrants. I took a picture of it so it's accessible to this blog.

I apologize for the large size of this image not fitting the blog format, but it's easiest to read this way.

Artifact 3: Political Cartoon

"I don't know any illegal aliens but I hear they're spoiling America!"

The irony of this cartoon is that the 'illegal immigrants' who come to America are willing to do any work, even the least desirable jobs. However, that's not where the irony ends. Unfortunately, it's much deeper than that.

The woman in the cartoon represents what America is becoming: 'overfed, expecting everything to be handed to her, rich,' whereas the small people in the fore and background represent the immigrants the women was talking about, doing their very best to keep on the woman's good side. By staying on her good side, they are sacrificing many things they themselves could have, such as significant food, shelter, and money.

The woman doesn't seem to realize that the 'illegal immigrants' are the ones providing for several of her needs. 

I found that this political cartoon relates to Reyna's situation because she was often teased or underestimated because she migrated illegally from Mexico.

Artifact 2: Ted Talk

Actions are illegal, never people: the title of the Ted Talk that I  watched. It's a very profound speech, lead by Mr. Jose Antonio Vargas in the Mid-Atlantic. Mr. Vargas explained how other people in American and Mexican society saw him and how he felt about it.
Mr. Vargas pondered the meaning of 'illegal' and the differences wording can make. The difference between the words 'illegal alien' and 'undocumented immigrant,' although they're used in the same situation, have a very different effect on the people they're said to.
This Ted Talk relates to Reyna in many ways. Reyna did not see immigration as a bad thing; she saw it as an opportunity. However, unlike Mr. Vargas, Reyna was afraid to 'come out' as an 'undocumented immigrant.'

I really liked this Ted Talk.  I liked how he spoke emotionally, yet candidly, as he responded to the questions that his colleagues posed.  The idea that people would deny anyone a driver's license or ask someone to "stand in line," is demeaning.  It suggests that very basic human or inalienable rights are only available to those with a valid social security number.  Look at Mr. Vargas:  He is a highly-educated man who has only known the United States has his home country.  What really differentiates him from most of us?  Nothing.  As a matter of fact, he surpasses us in most human qualities.

Artifact 1: The Other Dreamers

The first artifact I found was an article in the New York Times opinion section online. It's an article regarding the "Other Dreamers." These individuals are children who, at a young age, were brought the United States by family members or their parent(s). However, the "Other Dreamers" 'dream' about visiting where they were born: their home land, Mexico.

SUMMARY

(If you would rather skip my explanation/summary of the article and watch the video (which is about 10 minutes long), it's located below.)



The specific individual showcased by the New York Times article about was Mr. Rufino Santiz Díaz. Mr. Díaz was born in a small town in Mexico called, Chiapas. He immigrated to the United States as a young boy and grew up in a quaint Georgia town. After graduating from high school, Díaz decided he would have better odds of making it into college back in Mexico.
According to the author of the article, Verity Oswin, "At least 17 states have laws permitting some undocumented immigrants to attend public universities for in-state tuition rates, yet they are generally not eligible for federal financial aid."  The article goes on to say, " But with a college application system in the United States that can expose undocumented students, and a Mexican system filled with bureaucratic hurdles for students educated abroad, Mr. Santiz finds himself trapped in a limbo that leaves him with few viable options to move his life forward. He is still struggling to gain admission to college and find suitable employment in Mexico."
I find that this article relates to 'The Distance Between Us' because Mr. Díaz longs to return to his home country. Reyna, too, longed to return to Mexico after a while in the United States. Her longing was partially due to those she had left behind and partially due to simple homesickness and a feeling of disconnectedness.  Reyna missed her culture and her country and this caused her to feel the distance of which she speaks.