The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas

The boy in the Striped Pajamas is a riveting novel by John Boyne. Set in  World War II, Berlin, but mainly Auschwitz. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas focuses on the humanizing the Holocust and through the best way possible, Innocence, Childlike Innocence. Bruno, our main character leads us along his journey in discovering some of the horrors in his world that he is oblivious to. This piece will focus on the theme of childlike innocence and how that relates to the rest of the world historically and to me the reader.

Childlike Innocence is a very powerful and constructed thing. Mainly for Bruno, him being the oblivious and innocent to the fact that his father was killing people no matter what the motive, all comes back to the idea that hatred is just a learned behavior. Bruno being sheltered to the very best his parents could do, brought him up no recognizing the signs that were all around him. Shmuel being a prisoner himself knew plenty more about the worlds darkness compared to Bruno. Examples of Bruno illustrating his innocence was with the phrase, “why does everyone where pajamas?” Something like this shows that Bruno has no clue about the people behind this fence and why they are actually there.

Relating this novel to the world can be done quite easily. Wired into children’s minds are the concept of simplicity and love. They haven’t been affected to the point were they mirror what they experience and see. Adult minds have changed and adapted to their constantly changing environments and the need to succeed for the pleasure of an external motive. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas was very well constructed. From the beginning, Bruno narrated the story, showing everything for what it was from his perspective, Childlike innocence. This gave a greater feel and a stronger connecting for the reader to attach to. The reader, might I someway connect to this piece through their personal experiences in recognizing things that they previously didn’t. Things that were either harmful in their life or in others. This is a powerful way of latching on to the reader and pulling them along on the journey that the story has to say. 

For me this novel was a roller coaster of emotions. Initially starting with a comfortable straight, waiting for the turns to happen and then ending with a sudden stop and feeling no heart beat.  The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is an amazing story that I hope everyone gives themselves the chance to indulge in. 

The Alchemist

The Alchemist is an international bestseller by the renowned author
Paulo Coelho.  “A fable about following your dream.” The Alchemist encourages the reader to pursue their dreams and find their personal legend. Paulo Coelho writes a tale following the journey of a young Andalusian shepherd named Santiago. He has a recurring dream of treasure hidden by the pyramids of Egypt. Believing it to be prophetic, he pursues help discovering along the way, the language of the world and the idea that everyone has a personal legend. 

The main theme in this novel is pursuing your dreams and following letting your heart guide you. Santiago matures into this throughout his journey finally trusting in his heart to guide him. This theme can be related to anybody. Every person that picks up this novel will read it differently due to their experiences. A young person coming out of school will read this and take in the theme, dreaming of themselves achieving their aspirations. A older person could look at this with guilt knowing they really never followed their heart, and now only have that slight hope of one day achieving it, keeping it alive. 

For me, the Alchemist is motivation bound together. A tale of exiting your comfort and trusting what cannot be guaranteed. This is a story that shows of blessings and rewards in trusting your heart and living what your are written for. The Alchemist gives me as a reader a new look at my life. It has opened my eyes to questioning my motives and which path I’m going to take. This I believe is what Paulo Coelho really prepared for his readers, perspective. 

I one hundred percent desire that everybody picks up this book and lets it float them from page to page, rolling them up and down on it’s waves of excitement, emotion and encouragement. 

Immigrants 5th Reading Log

The immigrants poem by Sam Greenlee is written to challenge the world’s views or at least Great Briton’s, on racial injustice and discrimination. This story argues from the perspective of African descent British people. They wonder why they are still seen as immigrants in their own country, solely because of the shade of their skin. The racism that people face in their own country is shameful. According to some people it doesn’t matter if you were born and raised there, you are still an immigrant in that place. The narrator in this poem asked “how bout that German Lady layin up in Buckingham Palace?” This is asking, how about the everybody else that is actually an immigrant, you are still immigrants even if your skin is “fish-belly white.” 

This text connects with the world historically too. It talks of the Norman invasion as how they settled on lands that were not of their own. Through history other races and cultures have come to other countries and in little ways shaped what we know as today, England, New Zealand, Australia and pretty much every other country in the world. 

For me this is just how New Zealand today is. Although compared to this poem, New Zealand is the other way around. We are working very hard to look after the native people of the land, “te tangata whenua”, Māori. Even though there are many different cultures of people living and calling this country home, we still acknowledge the original people that lived here first. Also in New Zealand there are instances when kiwi’s (New Zealanders) of Asian descent are seen as immigrants and are told to go home. This is really sad that people still have the nerve to treat others in a certain way solely based on their physical features. Since we continue to receive many Asian tourists, people continue to think that all Asians are tourists in our country, and due to the many road accidents caused by Asian, especially Chinese tourists, it really frustrates locals.

If I was in the position of not being wanted or recognized in my own country, I would feel very disconnected and lost. Sad too that people continue to discriminate, putting down people where they don’t deserve it.

I really recommend this poem as it challenges views that you might not have realised were there. Often we can still blame groups of people for faults of others. 

Creative writing/ Trigg Beach

I intend to write a descriptive piece of writing about Trigg Beach Australia. I intend to add figurative language.

It is summer. Early Sunday morning rays ricochet off the Indian ocean surface, flickering stars not in their usual place. A black rubber cloak drapes around my waist, stabbed in the sand, my patched up board stands. Fixed in place, I’m immovable. At the moment, Albert Einstein’s theory seems to almost be true. The tick of a second lasts almost a minute. My eyes dart across the horizon, sponging up every detail of where blue and blue meet. “Tick”, and what seemed an eternity ago is gone a fleeting memory as i duck-dive wave after wave, Whano whano, as I battle the sea. The body of Tangaroa, with great power tries but to no avail, pushing me back. Past the break, I sit chest out chin up, with the salty sea lapping at my waist. “Patterns” “Patterns” “Patterns”, the visual cortex complex as it is works tirelessly to recognize the best swell before it presents itself, to what is now an numerous audience eagerly waiting.

e hoa mā, ina te ora o te tangata, ne!

“My friend this is the essence of life.”

My ride back is fast approaching, muscles flex pulling the board through the currents, darkness looms, the sun backs down to this monstrosity. “Faster, faster.” With what ever energy left, I channel it into driving the board down. I pop up absorbing the roller coaster feeling in the pit of my stomach. I go to turn left, but wanting to eat me up, it blocks my path. Pumping my board, like Kelly Slater, I crouch lower, lower; Just…! making it from it’s clutches, I dare challenge this taniwhā, another day.

The ageing day gradually shuffles along. A sweltering sunny Sahara everywhere but here. The light onshore breeze lowers your core temperature just enough to be bearable. The Australian dream is present on this beachfront. The rolled out red carpet walkway is part of the never-ending landscape. My bright yellow and green neon Penny board is in my hand as I struggle to see through the constantly rising heat rays. I survived the sea, to live another day.

Listen. Morning waves still being tamed by the early surfer, and shops yawning open their doors to welcome in the day. The beachfront is a clock working with such habit, as I roll along, looking for my favorite Times square like billboard. Yelo Cafe if not for the birds and the waves, would be heard before seen. The bustling staff work as ants efficiently running the shop. No need to look around; loud chatter echoes, sharp laughs and lion-like roars come from every corner of this renovated house room, rebounding back to your now slightly sensitive ears. An antique Victorian style door bell notes my presence. Sensational aromas of fresh coffee beans and baking just being put out on display; a sign that I have just entered another realm.

“Dave”

“Meg”

“Samantha”

People stumble up receiving their morning drug, knowing the rest of the crowded room is glaring wishing it could be them, eager to leave.

Even nature seems to lull in a peaceful sabbath rest. “Flynn”, the eco-friendly see-though cup, its contents a swirled mass of ice chocolate delight. “Ding” “Ding”, that world is left behind in a blur of green and yellow. Little by little mankind emerged into life, bringing noise and taking tranquility.

Look. My wrist whispers willingly in a monophonic tone, “10 oclock.” I know I have an hour till Church. Making my return back along this coastal line. My eyes drift left imagining what the rest of this magnificent day will present, gift wrapped with excitement and received with joy.

Maori words:

Whano: is when waves are pushing you back, that action is whano.

The phrase, “e hoa mā, ina te ora o te tangata ne: is a proveb/saying that apprciates what is happening or what has just been received.

Tangaroa: is the god of the sea.

Taniwhā: Monster, spritual being that is out for chaos.

Coach Carter 4th Reading log/fim

The 2005 film Coach Carter is an amazing story of a change. Coach “Ken Carter” is offered the role of basketball coach at Richmond high school. He accepts and turns up to coach boys that won’t even come to school. Throughout the movie each boy learns, and changes. They grow as an athlete and become a student. By signing a contract given to them, stating that they must maintain a 2.3 grade average, turn up to every class and sit at the front of every class, they also earn the idea of a “student athlete, student comes first.”

I first really liked this movie because of my personal enjoyment for basketball, and throughout the film I could connect with a lot of what was happening. Although, this is inspired by a true story, and it tells me of students that fought against their culture to play basketball, study at school, and most of all succeed in their life. At the end of the film they played against the team the viewer first saw them play against, St Francis.  The whole game was tight, until the final buzzer went with the score board showing 70-68, St Francis takes the win. This film didn’t have the storyboard ending like I hoped, but it had a lesson woven into it instead. Turns out that a few of the players went on to college and graduated with degrees and played basketball while attending. This was a movie a really enjoyed because it taught resilience, persistence and most importantly, it taught friendship. Resilience is found when we as person are challenged by great struggles and overcome them. For me I relate to the ending, when they didn’t win the championship. In my basketball years I’ve failed in games and lost countless too. With resilience and persistence I’ve come to practice harder, play harder, and drive to be better. And even through all this, I’ve made friends with people that are so much better than me and less too. In Coach Carter, they worked as a team with each others strengths and weaknesses, and this is what I now strive to do too.

“You said we’re a team. One person struggles, we all struggle. One person triumphs, we all triumph.”

 

Is our planet useful Speech draft

Is our planet useful?

For most of our time on this earth we humans have been driven by wealth and power. With food, an essential need to our survival, it makes sense that the wealthy and the powerful get the say, as they are the one’s who own and profit off it, they control it for their own gain knowing that either way we still need food.

In economics there is a term called the law of demand; so there is demand, where people want something and the quantity, how much is available. Demand(lift hand) and quantity(lift hand). When there is high demand and low quantity, the good that people want is limited, so the price will rise, people will pay more for it, just to get it, they will bid the price up, and vice versa as the economic students will know.

Let us look at China, biggest population in the world, they’re a growing economy right now. Their middle class are getting richer, and are buying more luxury items such as meat, and dairy. A country like China can’t afford to feed its 1.4 billion people due to the space it has. So this is where New Zealand and Australia come in. China is now the world leader in meat consumption mainly because of their massive population. This is great for our economy, dairy is booming and we send meat over there so much you’d wonder where it all actually came from.

So rich countries eat meat, here’s why. It is common for in a farming family that when you shoot an animal and I’m going to stick with cattle, if they shoot a cow out of their herd to put in the freezer it should last them from half a year to a year, because every cow is different, if you look at the fat amount, the muscle size, how much it weighs, and on. So one cow, half a year to a year.  The average is that you get 250lb/ 113.4 kg of beef from one acre of land, but at the same time you can get 50,000lb/22,680 kgs of tomato’s or potato’s, off the same acre. Are we being effective?

Our world population now stands at over 7.3 billion people, and our cattle population is at 1.4 billion. 71% of our earth is covered in water, and of that 29% that is land, 37% is used for cultivation. By 2050 we will be at about 9 billion people, that’s not getting any better for land space and agriculture, because as we grow, we will want to develop the most comfortable land first, but what’s already there, our growing food. Now here’s where it gets interesting, one of the worlds greatest problems right now, worse than climate change, and that the media seem to sweep right under the carpet, is soil degradation. Soil degradation is when artificial pesticides and fertilizers are slowly destroying the life in the soil. The living ecosystem it is contains absolute trillions of microorganisms, and by unleashing all of our controls on nature, it comes back to bite us. We need soil, 95% of our food comes from the ground, and it has a key role in adsorbing carbon and filtering water, why are we messing with our planet. We won’t be able to breath soon let alone eat. Some scientists estimate we only have 60 years left of grow-able soil. From life in the right direction. com I found these facts,

  • “40% of soil used for agriculture around the world is classed as either degraded or seriously degrading”
  • “70% of the topsoil, the layer allowing plants to grow, is gone”

But here I am only talking about land, well what’s left of it. What about the 70% water. Lots of people want to go to organic farming, and look after the land better, but how long will that last us with our population still rising. In the ocean there are numerous amounts of life that we could harvest and feed on. There are a few companies that are investing in farming in the ocean. Through study we have only just started to learn about the life that lives below the waves. From the fish that we already over catch to the seaweed and kelp lots of other cultures have been eating for generations. Wakame is a popular Japanese seaweed salad that few of you might have had before. Last checked only eight asian countries were actually farming seaweed and the total output reached over 24 million tons. From only eight countries… Going to who… and this is one type of seaweed and one species among the thousands that live in the ocean. What if the western diet was completely changed. No genetically enhanced meat and vegetables, no processed products. I’m saying that by investing in our oceans capability we could spread our needs over a greater spectrum and start to utilize our planet with out completely destroying it and us too.  And who knows we could even stop world hunger, too.

 

Is Religion need speech draft

Is religion needed.

necessary, what would the world have been like with out it?

Estimated roughly there are 4200 religions throughout the world.  That means that, again roughly estimated, there are around 320,000,000 gods that people worship and believe in. Is religion needed?

To keep it slightly simple the two examples that I’ll use today are the Bible and the Koran. These two books are globally know texts, they have historic and spiritual value, and to be fair cause a bit controversy. The Bible is linked with Christianity, The word of God. Each piece, yes each piece, as it is made up of many different books, all written by many different Men and Woman. See each piece its believed to be revelation from God about one thing or another.

The Koran on the other hand is an Islamic text. In short to sum up the Koran, Muhammad was visited by an angel in the desert and wrote a whole bunch of new scriptures about what was actually the word of god, and over about 23 years he got revealed more and more stuff, and finally after he died they were all put together into one book. But while claiming that this is the proper valid truth, like most faiths and religions do;…. he had no witnesses. To believe in either of these texts requires faith, believing in what you can’t see. For the Koran you just have to believe that Muhammad was telling the truth like the other 1.8 billion people who do. Or with the Bible believe that Jesus really did rise after being hung on the cross to die. The Bible- Relationship & forgiveness, that is pretty much the simplest, looses way to describe it, and the Koran- Slavery & Guidance,  So remember that. Relationship and forgiveness, Slavery and guidance. One difference, free will.

In this day and age we constantly see problems, in abundance and very much in a way, bigger than they seem. A constant companion, that tells how the world works and reminds us of how insignificant we are in this largely evolving world, social media is a presence we have grown so accustomed too. Yet I know we as a race have always strived to achieve a close perfection in all areas of life that closely concern our choices, beliefs and last but no where least rules. I know that many of you don’t like what’s different, change is different, but you don’t understand it. “Why are they doing that, it’s not right, I understand this and like this, so why is this happening.” See there lies a subtle difference, Choice are influenced, beliefs are built, and rules are made. But they all intertwine in way that you don’t realize. See when your beliefs influence you to make a choice, it could lead you to step forwards in your life or to either side. You learn and grow from that choice, and decide, that your beliefs guiding you, are important… vitalneeded. Then rules, I quote from Google “one of a set of explicit or understood regulations or principles governing conduct or procedure within a particular area of activity.” Easier said as, “control of or dominion over an area or people.” You lay down rules everyday of your life, often unconsciously. Not knowing that there are boundaries being set right inside your own mind. These consist of don’t walk on that side of the street, don’t talk to him, get out of it now… and onward.

With religion you will see negatives and positives. and  Fair enough some negative things have happened in the name of “God” “Allah”, but look at the great things that have happened. People’s lives have been turned around, families reconnected, many other miracles. what would the world be like without religion. Good? Worse? Completely different?

 

 

 

The Intouchables, 2nd Log

“The Intouchables” is a French dramedy film directed by Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano.

Philippe is a very wealthy quadriplegic, who hires an unqualified, uninterested and on the benefit, Driss, to be his caregiver. Philippe and Driss form a relationship based on humor, excitement and adventure. Philippe states that he wants no pity from people, and that is Driss’s mentality, “don’t be lazy, you have to throw some back.” he said as they played in the snow. Through out the film Driss pushes the boundaries of social classes and the discrimination that lies there. He looks for the laugh in Philippe and in all others that he meets, making this film the comedy-drama that viewers will watch again and again.

I really enjoyed watching the Intouchables through the humour that Driss used. His personality is one to break the tension, in this case, when people take pity on Philippe’s condition. Driss would quite often make jokes at the expense of his disability; like don’t be lazy, you’re too slow, etc… This is the main theme in the movie as it is also about breaking the social barriers too.

Driss being “Black” and from the street compared to, rich and wealthy hotel owner Phillppe. The social barriers of France are just as much there as any other country, you just have to pay attention to notice them. In one scene a friend of Phillppe expresses concern about his new caregiver. This is a great example of the discriminating in a simple situation. Throughout the movie both Driss and Phillppe grow to prove that they aren’t different after all and both bring their own piece of to the table.

I would highly recommend this movie, as its a roller coaster of emotions and a full of humor. Everyone can find a place in this story, and the culture with it adds the final touch. When I found out that this was based on a true story too, that hit the spot of relating to the movie. This isn’t just any movie.

The Man Who Planted Trees, 1st reading log

breif outline

“The Man Who Planted Trees” is a French novel written by the author Jean Giono. It’s a story about a man on a hike through the hills of “an old region where the Alps penetrate into the Provence,” where he stumbled upon a man who spent his days planting trees. He sorts out one hundred good acorns every day, and plants them while walking his sheep. Slowly through years, the land changes. People and animals return, life is brought back to the area.

Socially, This story brings out the idea of selfless perseverance. Bloufer spends a whole year planting 10,000 trees, to only have them die. Although he had this major disappointment, he ploughed on. This kind of resilience is important, Everyone has experienced hits in life causing you to back down from a goal, dream or even a personal satisfaction. It shows and builds character to stand back up and continue on. For me this story really builds onto some quotes that I try to live by,

“Losers quit when they fail, while Winners fail until they succeed”

“The one who falls and gets up is so much stronger than the one who never fell.”

I would definitely recommend this text as it is an amazing story filled with French culture, old age dreams, and learning and change; such as resilience and hope. The Man Who Planted Trees might tell each and every reader a different story, based on what part they relate to. The short story has managed to talk about travel, war, history and friendships, all in the few pages it is. So I repeat myself again, read this book!

The Kite Runner

Khaled Hosseini’s novel, “The Kite Runner”, is a 2003 international bestseller, portraying a story of guilt to redemption. This essay will be focusing on three of the many language features that the author uses in his novel; such as narrative P.O.V. (point of view), foreshadowing, and symbolism. Hosseini guides our imagination again with the usage of the Farsi language and cultural references.

paragraph 1

Narrative P.O.V.

Amir was very well off as a child growing up in Kabul, Afghanistan. His father Baba, was one of the richer men in the Wazir Akbar Khan district, of which where they lived. Amir grew up enjoying many of the pleasures a child should, apart from the attention that he constantly craved from his father. Being a rich household they had servants, Ali and his son Hassan. Ali and Hassan are Hazaras, and are looked down upon by other Afghans. Besides that Amir and Hassan were best friends,doing everything together. Amir  Being a servants son, Hassan had a profound respect for Amir as demonstrated numerous times throughout the novel. Amir leads the reader through

paragraph 2

Foreshadowing

 

paragraph 3

Symbolism

Pomegranate tree

kite fightingeing

Baba and the black bear

“Lore has it my father once wrestled a black bear in Baluchistan with his bare hands.” This story

Conclusion