Code Talker - 3/10/16

Code Talker

Author: Joseph Bruchac

Pages: 0-118

Prompt: In 4-6 sentences, describe several things you learned from your reading.

          In the Code Talker you follow a Navajo boy's life through boarding school, boot camp, and World War II as a Navajo code talker. Since, you follow a born Navajo I learned a lot about the Navajo people, traditions, culture, and language. One thing I learned was that the Navajo language is a very difficult language to learn. Ned, the Navajo you follow in the book, said that you can try saying one thing, but easily say something else. On top of that there are also many slightly different variations of Navajo. I also learned something very interesting about Navajo's in war. It is a rule to never cry out in pain during war because they never want to give away their position and their weaknesses.

          I also learned more about how the Navajo people introduce themselves to each other and religion. I find it very interesting how they introduce each themselves to each other because they have different clans and houses. For instance, Ned would introduce himself with his real name and say he was born for Mud Clan and born to the Towering House. He would also say where he was born and who his father was. This is very different to how we introduce ourselves now. I also learned that in the Navajo religion has different gods for different things.

          From reading this book I also learned more about the boot camp for marines and the secret code the Navajos made. I learned more about what the future marines had to go through like carrying heavy packs, in the heat, for five miles. I found it interesting how the Navajo found this easy, while others found it hard. I also found it interesting that the peaceful Navajos were the platoon that scored the highest in the pistol and rifle range. Even though they did this easily. what was the hardest for them was the swimming test. Some of the Navajo people that made it through the boot camp were chosen to learn the secret code. Ned was one of those people, so I got to learn more about the code words, phrases, letters, etc. I also got to learn more about code talkers in general like the equipment they use.

Life is Beautiful Blog - 3/2/16

Prompts: What connections can be made between Life is Beautiful and our reading? What events, scenes, or situations are similar or different? What is similar or different about the mood or tone of the pieces? How is life shown as beautiful throughout the film?

          A connection between the book Night and the film Life is Beautiful would be father son relationship. In both pieces the fathers have a great relationship with their son because they look out for each other. In Night Elie and his father would always encourage the other to keep going and keep hope. Also, at the end of the book Elie never left his fathers side, giving him his rations of food, water, or anything else he needed. In Life is Beautiful Guido tells his son, Joshua, that the whole thing was a planned vacation and a game to make sure he doesn't get scared. This shows how much Guido cared for Joshua. Joshua would also listen to what Guido said, showing that Joshua trusted his father even in the most troubling moments.

          Life is Beautiful and Night have some scenes that are similar when the people were going to the camp and at the camp. A scene that was similar was the Jews being crammed into small train car. In Night Elie describes the car as, ". In Life is Beautiful you can see Guido and Joshua being loaded in to train car with barely any room left. Another, scene that is similar is the hard labor the prisoners had to go through. In Night Elie explains that he had to carry heavy slabs on his back for a good distance all day. In Life is Beautiful you can see Guido carrying what looked like anvil to incinerators for smelting.

          The mood of the movie Life is Beautiful and the book Night is different at the start of the movie. At the start of the movie the mood is very happy and humorous. The mood is like this because of the main character, Guido, who is a very wacky guy. For instance, he continually tries to switch his hat with his bosses. This is very different from the serious mood Night has throughout the book. However, the moods become similar as Guido and his family are put in a concentration camp. In both the movie and book they show the brutish attitude of the German soldiers. They talk about the gas chambers and crematory. This made the mood very serious and dark.

          In the film Life is Beautiful life is shown as being beautiful various times. One way life is shown as beautiful is through family/love. While in the concentration camp Guido tells Joshua that the whole place was a game for a tank. He did this to keep him away from the harsh truth, which shows he loves and cares for his son. Guido also sends signs to his wife, Dora, various times. Guido played a song from a opera they were at and also spoke over the loud speaker to her. 

Night - 2/25/16

Night
Author: Elie Wiesel
Pages: 81-109 (End)
Prompt: How do Elie's experiences during the Holocaust change him as a person?

          Throughout the book Elie Wiesel change his viewpoint about God and religion. At the beginning of the book Elie wants to dive in deeper into his religion, he said "One day I asked my father to find me a master to guide me in my studies of the cabbala" (1). This shows that Elie wanted to be a very religious person and believed in a God. However, the concentration camps changed his religious viewpoint. He stated many times throughout his time at the camp that God was dead. He witnessed a hanging happen and said "Behind me, I heard the same man asking: 'Where is god now?" And I heard a voice within me answer him: 'Where is He? Here He is—He is hanging here on this gallows..." (62). This shows that he truly believed that God was dead and could lent help them.

          Elie's relationship with his father also changes throughout the book. Before the concentration camps Elie and his father had a normal relationship. When they were transported to the camp there bond became very strong, they almost never left each other's side. He also never let his father give up hope. He said "'Father! Father! Wake up. They're trying to throw you out of the carriage'... I set work to slap him as hard as I could. After a momemt my father's eyelids moved slightly over his glazed eyes" (94). Then as his father is about to die Elie thinks to himself "I thought in the most secret region of my heart, but I dared not to admit it. It's too late to save your old father, I said to myself. You ought to be having two rations of bread, two rations of soup" (105). This is a huge difference compared to how Elie thought of his father before.

          Elie as a person has changed since the beginning of the book. Elie is now an activist and is trying to help out people who need it. Throughout out the book he only looked out for his father, friends, and himself. Now he trying to help out anyone he can and is trying to bring peace. From this he has a Nobel Peace Prize from telling his story of living through the Holocaust.

Night - 2/18/16

Night

Author: Elie Wiesel

Pages: 0 - 80

Prompt: List at least three problems the character faced? Which was the most life changing? Explain.

          Throughout the book Elie faces several problems with himself to the Nazi soldiers watching over him. One of the problems he faces is malnourishment. Since, he is at a concentration camp the conditions are horrible. The medical care is poor, the shelters are falling apart, and the prisoner barely get any food. Food and water is essential for surviving, so receiving a small amount of could cause serious health problems. This also makes him have less energy and strength, so some task are harder and more tiring.

          Another problem Elie is facing is keeping his faith in a religion. He starts to questions Gods powers and of he is even real. Elie questions this because all of the things happening around him. He watches as innocent people die from sickness, hunger, or an injury. He thinks why isn't God helping them. He also watches as people get cremated and hung at the gallows. He questions why God isn't preventing this. That is why keeping his faith to religion is so hard for him.

          The most life changing problem he is facing is staying with his family. Elie only has his father left after he was separated from his mother and sister. This was hard for him and the rest of his family. Now he tries his hardest to stay with his father at all times because he doesn't want to lose him, too. This is the most life changing because he never saw his mother and sister again. They never said a proper goodbye to each other and Elie never knew that was going to be the last time he saw them. 

Butterfly Project

Holocaust AoW Impressions - 2/16/16

          During the gallery walk I learned that direct Holocaust survivors have a higher chance of getting schizophrenia than the average human. This is because of all the things they have seen and had to live through. People who were indirectly affected to the Holocaust have a 27% of developing schizophrenia. People who directly affected by the Holocaust had a 41% higher chance than those who were indirectly affected. Those who were born in the Holocaust had even higher chance.

          I also learned that some Holocaust survivors want to help the world. One survivor wants to make sure that future generations know that history is important and should be learned. They believed this because they didn't want history to repeat itself. Another survivor wanted to help Syrian refugees. This survivor wants to help because she basically went through what they are currently going through. She loved through the Holocaust and knows the feeling of this situation. They know what it's like seeing innocent people die and don't want these people to see it too.

Berlin Memorial Activity - 2/3/16

Prompts: 1) What did you learn? 2) Why do you think this monument was built? 3) What did you notice about the number of laws passed in certain years? 4) Which restrictions do you think you would have the most trouble dealing with and why?

          From the activity we did in class I learned about many of Huremburg Laws put into place. These laws were put into place from 1935-1945 during WWII and effected the Jewish people. We learned got to see about 60 of the laws and when they we passed. As the years went on these laws got more and more strict. It got to a point were Jews could only shop at a certain time and Jews couldn't have any milk. The life for Jews also got worse as the years went on. Jews weren't allowed to work a certain job, buy certain products, or have certain possessions.

         I think this monument was built to give a feeling of a proper burial for all of the victims of the Holocaust. The victims of the Holocaust were just dumped into ditches and buried in groups. They were never buried in a proper way, so this monument was to at least give off a feeling of this. I think it is also a rememberence of the whole Holocaust and all of the lives taken from it.

          I noticed that more laws were passed in some years than other years. I also noticed that the years there were a lot of laws passed were the years with big events. The first year with a lot of laws passed was 1933, in this year Adolf Hitler came into power. The next year where a lot of laws were passed was 1938, which was the year Kristallnacht (The Night of Shattered Glass) happened. The final year where there were many laws passed was 1942. 1942 was a huge turning point in the war because Germany was finally defeated after a long streak of winning battles and it went all downhill from there.

          The restriction I think I would have the most trouble dealing with is the law that restricted Jews from joining any sports clubs. I would have the most trouble with this because I love playing sports. I have been playing sports for basically my whole life, so it would be way source of entertainment gone. It would also be a source of fitness taken away to, so it would harder to stay healthy.