Kate's Brother... I Mean Jesse

Authors note: I wrote this piece to show my understanding of character analysis. I did not include how Jesse is similar to another character. Jesse is similar to Haymich from the hunger games because they are both covered up by these titles. “The Winner” and “The brother of the girl with cancer” No one takes the time to find the real them and they become sick of it. They both resort to drugs, and scandalous behavior.  Another thing I didn’t include was how Jesse influenced other characters. I think Jesse’s negative attitude influenced Anna to realize how her family really worked, and opened her eyes to reality.

Jesse Fitzgerald is 17. He’s a spitting image of his mom, he loves music, and he’s a lot smarter then he looks. He’s good at art, he used to watch Sunday cartoons every Sunday, and one time, he tried to dig a hole all the way to China. There so many things about Jesse that the world doesn’t know, because the fact that Jesse’s sister is sick, is all that seems to matter. Even his parents seem to forget about him. And I think, this is why Kate being sick, has changed Jesse for the worst.

Being the sibling of a cancer patient can be harsh. And living in a family, where sickness is all you talk about, isn’t really a healthy environment for a 4 year old to grow up in. When Jessie was four he was an average boy. Sweet and caring. When his mom wakes up late he informs her that he has already “eated” breakfast and had made some for her as well. But, through the years that Jesse was lost. And a new Jessie slowly began to form. I think the day this new Jesse arrived when was when he was 10 or so. His mom had promised him that they would go to his orthodontist appointment and after, she would take him to go buy a pair of new baseball cleats.  But, when he told her it was time to go. She told him his sister was sick. Jessie responded with “Yeah Kate’s sick, but why don’t you grow up and realize the whole world doesn’t revolve around her?” And he was right. His mom did need to realize that. And when she didn’t ,  She left Jesse devastated.

Eventually this new Jessie got larger. He continued to grow and grow. But, it really hit its growth spurt the Christmas eve of when he was twelve. That night Kate had gotten sick, so is parents had shipped Jesse off to the neighbor’s house. He not only had to spend Christmas without his family, but he had to spend it watching strangers have the family he always wanted. He eventually got sick of the sympathetic looks, and snuck back over to his house. There, he cut down a tree, put it up, and decorated it all by himself. Content with what he had done, he fell asleep. In the morning he found presents under the tree, and gladly ripped one of his open, only to find a toy truck from the gift shop of the hospital. He open present after presents. Each one held a little bit of disappointment, and a trinket his parents had found on the way home from the hospital that last night. He felt forgotten and abandoned. Not to mention, no one said a word about the tree.

Now that Jesse is 17, the new him is full grown. He has reached breaking point. He find himself thinking about things that most kids his age, don’t. One day, Jesse took an adventure in his car. He rode to the highway, and cranked up the speed to 95 miles per hour. He thinks to himself “On my license it says I’m an organ donor, but truth is, I would consider myself to be an organ martyr”. But, I think Jesse expresses himself best when he thinks “I’m much better dead then I am alive” The little boy that played and laughed, is now thinking that he, doesn’t deserve the chance to live.

Throughout the novel a whole new Jesse is created. A little monster created by need and attention.  A little monster, caused by Kate’s cancer. They need to bring the old Jesse back. A Jesse, who is good at art. A Jesse who loves Christmas. A Jesse who once had enough ambition to attempt to dig a hole, all the way to China. 

Fahrenheit 451 Conflict/Resolution

Author's Note: This is a conflict resolution piece of the book Fahrenheit 451, I was kinda lost on this so if you have any feedback, feel free to comment!

Guy Montag of Fahrenheit 451 is different. He thinks different, he acts different. He sees different.  He has been different since the beginning, but only when he encounters a young girl named Clarisse does he realize it. Clarisse asks him questions no one has before, and really makes him think. She makes observations about things that no one else seems to notice. She invites intelligence into the insipid world he is living in.  And Guy thinks, People should be more like her.  Guy soon starts to get frustrated with how his society acts. They don't act like Clarisse, and he thinks this is because they don't read books.Guy thinks that books will benefit his society and everyone in it. They have intellectual  thoughts, and ideas. Things that no one he knows would  even take the time to think about. Guy starts to steal books.Turns from a humble server in his society, to a belligerent criminal on the lose. The conflict in this book is person vs. society. Guy is fighting society for the right to read books. 

Mr. Montag has some struggles. His house gets burned down, his wife betrayed him, and he was almost killed multiple times. But, in the end the conflict is resolved. Guy enters a new society. One where books are allowed, encouraged even. Each member of the community commits a book to memory and passes it down from generation to generation. This way, when the real society is ready for books again, Guy and his companions will be ready and waiting. If he had not run away he would have lived a  miserable life with his wife, who doesn't even care about him.. Even though guy is different, there is a place where he fits in. And that place, is with books. 

I Love You Tan-Man

We have known the Juenger family since forever. Most pictures we have involve at least one of the Juenger boys. Tyler, being 17, is a year older then my brother Evan, and year younger then my brother Austin. Conner and Colin-the twins- are 11. Only two years older than my brother Carson. And Tanner,  was closest to my age. Being only a year older than me, we were best friends, and spent majority of our childhood together. As we got older we started to drift apart. Which was understandable. Boys got cooties and while I was interested in dolls and hair, he was interested in football and cars. But I wish we hadn’t drifted apart. You see, Tanner was born with half a heart. More specifically hypo plastic left heart syndrome. I remember there was a girl in my class that had the same disease. But, she functioned better then Tanner did. And while she stayed healthy, Tanner didn’t.

                                                                ___ ___ ___ ___

I stood in front of the old box television, watching a new image pop up every few seconds. I remember being irritated. Thinking, the few seconds they showed each picture was not enough. The screen faded to black. And suddenly came to life again. Tanner and I appeared on the screen. Yet another picture that I didn't remember. It was a hot day...I assumed. I was dressed in a pink swimsuit, and Tanner sat beside me. Our hair was both beach blonde, and the sun had highlighted it to the point where it was almost white. I was laughing as I reached into a plastic cup to grab a piece of ice. Tanner licked his fingers beside me, with a calm expression on his face. He was always eating. "Remember that?" My mom touched my shoulder gently "You two were best friends". My throat closed. I didn't know what to say. Should I lie; tell her I did? Or should I admit that these pictures meant nothing? Tears formed in the corners of my eyes, and started slowing dripping down my checks. Guilt came over me at an overwhelming pace. I racked my mind for things I could remember; things I could cling to. His pasta salad was the best, I thought. We used to do his mom's hair. More tears formed. He loved the bears. I shut my eyes tightly. Why couldn’t I remember? My mom took my silence as a time to leave. She gave me a tight squeeze and slipped away into the crowd. I was grateful for the time I had to myself. I opened my eyes in time to see Tanner and I disappear. Only to see us again, in a different setting. This time we were both in a stroller. It was summer again... the 4^th of July to be more specific. I had pigtails that had obnoxious bows, just like everything else I wore as a child.  I was smiling at Tanner, and although it was hard to tell under his nooky, he was smiling back. It looked like we were having fun... when did that stop? Why did we stop playing together? At what point did I decide I was too cool to hang-out with him? I glanced to the other side of the room. Something I hadn’t had the courage to do since I got here. But, soon enough my glance turned into a stare. Tanner. He lay motionless. His eyes closed, and as pale as the winter snow. As much as I never wanted to see him this way, I had too. And, as much as I didn’t want to say goodbye, it had to happen. I stood in line, feeling like a small child in a world of confusion. I let my head droop.

Dear God,

I’ll never understand why you chose Tanner. Why you took him away, when all he was, was good to you. I know, he won’t be sick up there. And he can do all the things he couldn’t do before. But, everyone here wishes they had had more time with him. Including me. I took him for granted. I don’t remember most of the things that happened when we were friends. And it makes me sad to think that there will never be a chance for me to become friends again... Take care of him please.

                                                     

                                                                                  Amen.

A smile spread across my face.

One last thing... make sure you stock up on the food. You’re going to need it.;)

One last tear rolled down my face as I walked up to Tanner. I said my goodbyes, and slowly walked to the phew. Leaving Tanner behind left a bitter sweet taste. Yes, it was hard. But, deep down I knew that somewhere in the future there would see him again. And I couldn’t wait for that day to come.

I love you Tan-Man

Re-Telling Uglies

When Tally Young-blood turns sixteen, her licence is the smallest of changes. What she's more interested in is the surgery that turns her ugly self into one of them, a pretty. If she knew that behind every pretty face lies a secret. A secret that only an ugly can begin to comprehend.

My Scrapbook

     Authors note: We were assigned to find a  quote and then we had to write a piece to explain what the quote was supposed to mean. My quote was "Glory only gives herself, only to those who have always dreamed of her"

 When I was nine, I was determined to make a scrapbook. I asked for supplies for my birthday, and I took pictures at every social event that I possibly could. I thought it would be the coolest thing to make one all by myself. I don't know why I was so obsessed at the time but I was. It might have been me wanting to be independent, or even just having the sense of accomplishment once I was finished. Me being able to look through the book when I was older and praise the talent I had as a child. But, that scrapbook never happened. The supplies gradually got lost, or pushed under my bed. And, the pictures I took never got taken form the camera and put on paper. This scrap book that I thought was going to be so easy, turned out to be insanely difficult. That scrapbook could have defiantly happened if I had wanted it enough, but the truth of the matter was I really didn't .The idea was cool, but I wasn't thrilled about the actual effort you had to put into it. So, when I first read the quote "For glory gives herself, only to those who have always dreamed of her"-Charles De Gualle, this little project of mine was the first thing I thought of. If I would have tried harder, and worked longer my scrapbook would defiantly have been the coolest thing ever. But, I gave up. I guess its true, if you don't want it enough. Your never going to achieve your goal. "Glory gives herself, only to those who have always dreamed of her" 

A Disease

Being ugly;  It’s a disease. And we all know it. You look at magazines and envy every girl that is prettier then you. We tell ourselves beauty is determined on the inside, not the out. But, in the society we live in? That’s defiantly not how it works. People judge you. Your weight, your height, your hair? It’s all wrong. You feel sorry for yourself. You buy make-up and expensive clothes to cover the revulsion. But none of that can fix the way you’re eyes are too close together, the way you’re nose is too big, or the way you slouch because you are awkwardly tall. But wait! There’s a cure! The answer to your prayers! The day has finally come!  You’ll be as stunning the girls you envied! All you have to do? Change your personality.

Tally Youngblood lives in a world where ages 12-16 you are called an ugly. Nick names are made to taunt you with your flaws. “Squint” was the name she was tortured with for 4 whole years. But really, it was fine. The day she turned 16, everything would change. Wouldn’t it? That’s how it worked with everyone else! They take you in and cut you open. Grind your bones for the perfect shape, make your lips bigger, eyes wider, the whole shebang! Soon enough she would join all the pretties, and she can’t wait. She was going to be beautiful, she was going to leave “squint” behind and move on with her new life as a “pretty” . But, as Tally is forced on an adventure, she soon discovers that this operation doesn’t only involve appearances. The doctor’s insert a tumor in your brain. This tumor takes away any sense of rebellion, or opinion you ever had. Sure, mac n’ cheese is still your favorite food, and you still love the color pink. But, the stuff that really matters? You just don’t care anymore. You’re vulnerable. You refuse to think different then what you’ve been told. And Tally is granted a choice. She can either run away with the other people who escaped, and never turn pretty. Or turn pretty and have her brain get toyed with. The answer seems obvious. But is it really?

In fact, the more you think about it, the more questionable you get. If you were to turn Pretty it wouldn’t be that bad would it? You would have tons of fun, you would get to be with your friends, and you would get to of course, be pretty! So what if you didn’t care about important stuff? Less for you to worry about, right? Why would you ever want to go live with… ugly people? People will treat you with respect if your pretty. You won’t be judged on your looks, only on your personality. It’s kind of hard to see the flaws in the plan that these people have created. Turned everyone pretty seems to be the perfect solution to everything. If you were to stay ugly you would have to live without all the modern technology. You would have to actually make stuff yourself! Then there’s the fact that you could possibly get caught when you escaped. And last but not least, you are stuck being ugly. What part of not being a pretty sounds fun? None of it. So why when I read this book, why did I feel it was the right choice for Tally to stay ugly? Why did every time she thought of actually going through with being a pretty, did I secretly wish she would change her mind? For some reason staying ugly seems to be the better decision. You get to completely be yourself, and you get to do whatever you want without the city telling you otherwise. Maybe flaws are what makes everything interesting.

Tally is faced with a tough decision. And when I read the book I always try to put myself in her shoes, and think what the right thing to do is. When I first started thinking, I could honestly tell you that being pretty seemed like a reasonable choice. Everyone else turned pretty, why shouldn’t she? But as she met new people, and actually experienced life where you can accept yourself for who you are, I really hoped that Tally would make the decision to stay ugly. Even if it is a disease, It’s a disease you can live with. A disease that is fun. A disease that lets you…well… be you. 

Boy' s In Love...Oh joy

 Author's Note: This was a required piece for our whole class, and I got assigned to write from the point of view of a 13 year old boy that's in love. So to all boys I apologize if this is defiantly NOT how you feel, and I am sorry that the whole story is extremely cheesy, but hey, I tried!

     I kick a rock as my feet drag across the ground. We have walked home every day since I could remember. We were those kids that never really understood the whole cooties thing. We were always best friends, and it didn't occur to me until now that it might be kind of weird. Now was when all the kids started pairing off into couples, and I started to wonder;  could we be a couple? I don't want to make things weird between us. "That math test today was so hard!" I take my gaze off the ground and stare at her. Before now, I noticed the color shirt she was wearing, and how her hair was done, but now I realized that their was so much more. Her eyes are bright blue, her hair had sun streaks in it, left over from the baseball games we played this summer. I stared at her lips as she talked. She was so pretty. Before I could think I leaned in. Hopefully she wants the same thing.