Fatelessness book trailer

During last week we were gaven the task of making a book trailer for fatelessness in groups of three, I was not very happy about it, but then I realized how entertaining it was to practise our actor skills with my group and we passed a very good time doing the trailer, here is the link, hope you enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjwzH4l-YEI&feature=plcp

Men writing as women and women writing as men

In this entry I search a little about wmen writing as men and women writing as men

Men approach

Samuel Richardson

Richardson more or less invented the English novel with Pamela, written in the form of letters from a 15-year-old servant girl in the household of country squire Mr B to her anxious parents. Eighteenth-century readers were amazed by the author's knowledge of female emotions and female clothing.

John Cleland

Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, better known as "Fanny Hill", is narrated by a naive northern girl who comes to London to seek her fortune. She soon falls into the hands of a top brothel keeper, and good copy for Cleland's pornographic purposes is ensured. After a few dizzy years as a whore Fanny is still the good-hearted girl she was on page one and is rewarded with a happy marriage.

Women approach

The Professor by Charlotte Brontë

Brontë may be known as a great recorder of female experience, but her first completed novel (published posthumously) is narrated by a man. William Crimsworth is a northern lad who becomes a teacher in a girls' school in Brussels. Before he finds love with a pupil-teacher at the school, he has to survive the flirtatious mockery of all those teenage girls.

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

Wharton's story is told by a nameless young man, who has been sent by his employers to the small town of Starkfield in wintry New England. He is intrigued by the mysterious Ethan, whom he hires as his driver. Thus we get access to the tale of Ethan's passion for Mattie, his wife's cousin. It all ends in a very nasty sledging accident.

These approach give a very interesting point of view about gender types and how do they see the other. I think that is a really good thing to write in this stle since the athor can understand better women problems and have more constructive opinions about gender roles, although there are natral limitation in this approach like that a man do not think in the same way as  a woman

Anne Frank diary

Now, after I have finish my written task I have started reading fatelessness again, but when i was going page by page throught the chapters, I started thinking how was WWII but in another point of view, from another boy or girl that live in those times. Thinking about it it quickly appeared in my head Anne Frankk  and his incredible story so I decided to write about her story, her diary and her life during that period, in order to understand better the context of "fatelessness" since bothe the novel and the diary have many simmilarities, being the mos important one, that both narrators where boys and the authors live in those times and suffer the Nazi attrocities.

Plot and story summary:During the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands Anne Frank began to keep a diary on June 14, 1942, two days after her 13th birthday, and twenty two days before going into hiding with her mother Edith Frank, father Otto Frank, sister Margot Frank and three other people, Hermann van Pels, Auguste van Pels, and Peter van Pels. The group went into hiding in the sealed-off upper rooms of the annex of her father's office building in Amsterdam. The sealed-off upper-rooms also contained a hidden door behind which the Franks would hide during the parts when Nazi soldiers were investigating the buildings for harbored Jews. Mrs. van Pels' dentist, Fritz Pfeffer, joined them four months later. In the published version, names were changed: the van Pels are known as the Van Daans and Fritz Pfeffer is known as Mr. Dussel. With the assistance of a group of Otto Frank's trusted colleagues, they remained hidden for two years and one month, until their betrayal in August 1944, which resulted in their deportation to Nazi concentration camps. Of the group of eight, only Otto Frank survived the war. Anne died in Bergen-Belsen from a typhus infection in early March, shortly (about two weeks) before liberation by British troops in April 1945.

Here is a video I find very emotive about Anne Frank and her diary:

Rationale

I choose to make a new chapter, more like a "new opening" about George Koves and "Fatelessness". I did it beacuse it is important to underdtand better the context of the novel and most importantly, try to understand what have happened and how the situation have develop up to the point where rhe novel begins.

As we know George is a dinamic character, and as a 1st person narrator, we can see how he is constantly changing both emotionally an physically and that is what I try to capture through my "new opening" for the novel. I think that it was better to make the tense in past since I want him to relate why he was in the situation he was at the beggining of the novel by relating it and foreshadowing what will happen next in the novel as for example I insinuated his parents discussions.

About the context of the novel, I decided to show a little about Jewish customs, like the sSbbath, but mainly about the nazi invasion and the quickly  installment of their ideology in Budapest as happen in many places of Europe during WWII. I write about the discrimination of Jewish people, the imposition of wearing "yellow stars to know there believes and how their where sent to ghettos, taken away from their houses and without the option to protest since they will get "tortured". All the above situation is directly related to the mood and the tone of both the novel and my chapter because that situation was of great desperation, resigned and suspenseful since Jewish didn`t know what will happen next, and that it is exactly what I look foward to in my task, to show the resigned and suspense in wich the Jewish were forced to live inside the Gheto walls after being taken away from their homes by the germans.

Written task

  (I will write the rationale in the following post.)

This is the big one, hope you enjoy:

"Today was a very strange day, I mean we have a nice family Sabbath and I turn 13th the day before  although there was something strange in the air and I couldn`t tell what it was, I think it have something to do with the germans as most of the chat on the meeting was about  all the rumours that stay they are getting closer to Budapest. Anyways I have a quite nice time and even my mother and father didn`t have any discussion, as they usually have about even non-importance things, like if the kosher was too cook or not. 

At about midnight I was tired so I went to bed, but the problem was that I couldn`t sleep much since at around 6:00 am I reckon, I was awaked by a powerful noise that was coming from the outside. I tried to ignore it but it was too anoying so I didn`t have any option but to open the window and  take a looked at what was going on. I was astonished , in the street a very peculiar show was going on, as some people were running from  many men dressed in the same clothes  and some of them running, others marching, all of them with guns,and I could see the same scene whereas I look. I quickly realize then that they were Germans and I deduced they must have entered the city and take it very fast. Anyways  it was too early and I was still tired so I find nothing bette than went back to my bed  and fall sleep, I mean actually I wasn`t very interested  in that stuff back then.

I remember that the next days were of great disorder in the city. First the germans were gathering mass groups of people iin different points  of the city as I was told by my father. When we get to the nearest point from our house. The line move fast and when we get to the control desk, they asked us many things, much of them common as I reckon, except one that it seems they asked everyone there, I wouldn`t care of it but that question look very important for them as they insisted a lot in it, and it was who was Jewish and who wasn`t one. Naturally my parents answer that we were Jewish and after that it was strange since the officer did not ask any more questions and send us  to another line that turn out to be eternal for me.As time passed I was annoyed  because those who weren`t Jewish could just leave the place and went to their homes and  those who  were Jewish, were just like us in that infinite lines. 

Finally we were the first ones in the line and we were given a "yellow star" wich we were instructed to have at all times cause if not we will get punished, before leaving the officer tell something to my parents that totally aggravate their faces but still we  leave quite quickly. On the way home we stoped at a grocery were my mother have a really nasty discussion with the owner since prices were  far more expensive for jewish than the rest of the people, wich I think was totally non sense.

 Until that moment I didn`t find anything so terrible, but the next day the worst thing happen. We were having breakfast when a German officer knock the door and when my parents went, I heared that my mom started crying. I was a bit worried since she don`t usually cry but when they came back they were silent and that uncomfortable silent stay for the rest of the breakfast. When I was leaving to my room, my dad stoped me and asked me to packed evetyhing I consider important, and when I asked him why, he just  answer me that a dark cloud was coming and then he hug me for a quite long time. Don`t ask me why but when I was packing I realized we were being moved from our house and that was why my fathers were so upset during the last day and breakfast.

Time passed and we were bored waiting for the truck to pass. We were outside our house and after two hours  the truck finally pass. We went on board after having to left one bag behind, as those were the "orders",just one bag for person. After that we began the trip through the dark and ruin streets of Budapest after all the air raids and gun firing. It was a very long trip for me and I was kinda depressed by looking at the crumbling city.

When we finally arrive to our new place, that seems like a complex for me, I was surprised by two things. First everyone there was Jewish as we could saw; ans the secong thing was that I could only figure out one word to describe the whole place and our apartment, and it was "small". We could not asked for anything better although, since those who protested we saw that were being punished, according to rumours tortured, and  send to  "labour camps" as germans called them. We couldn`t get out of there unless for work and food was expensive and scarce. I remember that I was hoping that situation to end soon but in the meanwhile  I maked new friends in school back then and I quickly get used to wearing the star. At that time my mom start dicussing again with my father and  eeverything stay went back to "normal". Although I  remember I was not sure about what would have happened in the future just as I am now...

Literary devices

As promised I will continue up by telling the reader some of the most important literary devices that can be found in almost every novel. To understand literary devices is crucial because many times we don`t understand anything when reading a text and that ocurred just because we don`t know how the author is playing with language and therefore we can`t understand his ideas.





Allusion: an implicit, brief reference to a famous character or a historical moment.

Hyperbole: exaggeration of something. Ex: "I'm so hungry that I'd eat an entire cow".
Metaphor: an implicit comparison between two (very) different things.
Onomatopoeia: use of words that imitate sounds. Ex: "hiss".
Personification: human attributes are given to an object.
Simile: direct comparison between two things, using the words "as" or "like".
Understatement/litote: says less than intended. Opposite from hyperbole.
Oxymoron: a figure of speech by which a locution produces an incongruous, seemingly self-contradictory effect. Ex: “cruel kindness”.
Irony: the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning.
Pun - A word is used which has two meanings at the same time, which results in humor.
Analogy - the comparison of two pairs which have the same relationship.

Important words: You must know what do they mean!

Plot: sequence of event of a story, that include characters and a conflict.
Climax: the moment with more intensity in the plot.
Setting: time and place of the story's action.
Tone: the author's attitude towards the story and the reader.
Mood: general atmosphere created by the author's words. Feeling that the reader gets.
Theme: an insight of human life that is revealed in a literary work. What is the text about.
Thesis: the organizing thought of an entire essay or piece of writing and which contains a subject and an opinion
Soliloquy: a long speech made by a character who is alone in the stage, revealing his thoughts and emotions.
Connotation: associations and implications that go beyond the written-literal words.
Denotation: dictionary definition of a word.
Symbol: something that means more than its literal interpretation.
Flashback: scene in which the character(s) go to the past, to tell us more about the context of the plot.
Foreshadowing: hints and clues that the story gives us to create an idea of what will happen.
Gothic: use of mysterious elements in literature. Dark and gloomy settings.
Hero: character whose actions are inspiring or noble.
Stanza: a group of lines in a poem, that should be a unit.
Narrative poem: tells a story in verse.
Lyric poem: a melodic poem which describes an object or emotion.

Narrative Techniques

A big test is coming. the written task won`t have piety with those unprepared, so in the meanwhile I will look at the narrative techniques and literary devices to understand better Fatelessness and to be well prepared for the written task that is coming up. Let`s start analysing narrative techniques and in the next entry we will take a look at literary devices.

Point of view: It answer to the question, Who tells the story? It can be either a main character or secondary character telling his version of the events (first person), it can also be the reader (second person)  and  it can be the point of view of and outsider (third person).

Narration: It answer to the question, Who is the narrator speaking to? Here we have mainly three ways. The first one is a direct narration where the narrator speaks directly to the reader. It can be an indirect narration, where the narrator just tells the story, wihout focusing on the reader, and we can also have a frame narration, where the author  in some way speaks in direct narration but also includes third person.

Speech: It answer to the question, How does the narrator and the characters of a story speak? Here we have direct, where they speak for themselves; free indirect speech, where the characters foughts are explicit and direct; and for the last we have a reported style where the narrator just summarizes what the characters said.

Tense: it answer to the question, when did the events of a story happen? To answer this we need to look at Tense. We can see then that it can be past, where they remember and tell something ocurredt in a past time. In present where the action is going on and the narrator is as surprised as the reader about what is happening. And for the last we have future, where the story is about something that is going to happen.

Apart from the mentiones above, there are many ways for the writter and the narrator to express their message and entertain the reader, wich include:

Flashback: it consists in making a scene where it goes to the past to remember something that happened.

Foreshadowing: It consist on giving away clues about what will happen in the future

3rd person omniscient:With this tecnique, that uses an omniscient narrator,  it is possible to tell many characters thoughts.

Dual Narrative: it tells stories from two different perspectives, with the objective that the reader can have more point of views and therefore understand better the situation

FATELESSNESS 

Going back to "Fatelessness" I will like to make a timeline to understand better the context of it, as it was my first timeline make with the application there were many details I miss or didn`t understand how to do it, but anyways it is a good  timeline to look at what are the important events during those times, from Hitler ascension to the final solution. Here is the link:

Atonement

In this entry instead of doing a lot of writing or answering questions I want to focussed on one of the most shocking moments of the movie, The evacuation from dunkirk. To understant better this operation I will left some videos and a image to imagine the situation better:

 Atonement

Atonement is the name of a novel written by Ian McEwan, It have been transformed into a movie in the last years. the novel take a lok in Briony, a thirteen year old girl from a rich house and how with his powerful imagination star thinking the worst of Robbie, a servant, accusing him of raping and ruining his love relation with Briony sister, Cecilia. After Cecilia and Robbie died during the second world war, Briony make a novel and try to give them the happy ending they deserve. I will answer some questions proposed in class now:

1. What sort of social and cultural setting does the Tallis House create? What emotions and impulses are being acted upon or repressed by its inhabitants?

The Tallis are a very rich and proud family, clasicist in some way. They are also british and for them the  "honour" of being part of their family was great. Looking back we can see that love is repressed as Cecilia needs to hide his relation with Robbie as he is from a lower class or family. Also both sisters are expected to behave like ladies in every aspect.

2. A passion for order, a lively imagination, and a desire for attention seem to be Briony's strongest traits. In what ways is she still a child? Is her narcissism - her inability to see things from any point of view but her own - unusual in a thirteen-year-old?

Briony have a very creative and powerful imagination, as she invents whhole complex stories from nothing, but she is still a child because she can only see her version of things. She firmly believes in her inventions although all evidence clealry points other way. This actually is very normal for her age, but she take it to a whole new level and make it unusual and even dangerous for others.
3. Why does Briony stick to her "version of the story" with such unwavering commitment? Does she act entirely in error in a situation she is not old enough to understand, or does she act, in part, on an impulse of malice, revenge, or self-importance?

 In my opinion she was a narcisist person, so she needs to stick to her verion as she unconsciously thinks that her version, although a lie, it is what happened and she firmly believes it.

4. As she grows older, Briony develops the empathy to realise what she has done to Cecilia and Robbie. How and why do you think she does this?

As every adult, Briony mature and realizes the terrible thing she have done to Cecilia and Robbie, feeling guilty as they could never be happy because of her fault. Therefore she writes a novel giving them the happy ending they deserve.

Pride and prejudice

have get more questions to answer about "Pride and prejudice", hope you enjoy.

1. What degrees of emancipation and/or conservative reinforcement of 18th-Century family values does Elizabeth Bennet's marriage to Mr. Darcy support?

She was a free woman with pride and liberty, and that what make her an example of emancipation although she still marriage Mr. Darcy but in my opinion she alone take the decision and choose for herself what she wants.
2. What attitudes to marriage does 'Pride and Prejudice' convey? What other options did Elizabeth Bennet have?

In the novel the only option women have was to marry to keep their pride up. Otherwise they were disqualified by society. In this context Elisabeth love story have lot of similarities with other romantic stories, with the difference that here Elisabeth is a free woman and take her own decisions, so finally the story have a happy ending, and  Elisabeth is still free.

3. How does the introduction made by Vivien Jones affect your reading and approach to the novel? 

Tell us what the story is about and help us to get some clues about the historical context, without revealing the end. In my opinion this introduction kept the reader engage to the novel and make him want to read and know more about it.


4. How could the social circumstances and contexts of 'Pride and Prejudice' apply to different cultures and contexts today?

I think that this idea of woman emancipation is more common in our occidental society than in other cultures but still is always something important to look about. Actually in the occidental society women are practically free but in other cultures such us Islamic countries, women have a very small role and they are even look more us objects than humans.

 Pride and prejudice

This is a novel written by Jane Austen, a British author. This book was made a movie in 2005, but the important thing is that many movies were based on the story of Ms. Elizabeth Bennet the story  take a look at women emancipation and this is the big theme of the novel.

1. Why do you think "Pride and Prejudice" continues to be a referent for modern tales? 

Because the theme of the novel is one of the most controversing points iin our society, the role of women in it. Therefore this theme is almost inherent to humans and it will always be interesting to look at it.

2. What do you think is the effect that these different authors (film directors, producers, modern writers) want to achieve in today's audiences?

Many authors have the puropse to teach people and change the prejudices that people make about certain spots of our society and try to ma change people view about things, in many ways  as it can be through a serious or a funny way the one to transmit their message.

3. If you had to choose one of the previous versions to analyse, which would be the one and why?

I will certainly choose "Pride and prejudice" from 2005, because it really shows away how was society in those times and also is among the options, the one that is more close to reality in those times so i find that quite interesting.

PEE Structure

 

 Duirng last weeks, we have been doing a lot of tasks and essays using PEE structure, but what is PEE structure? I will like to explain more about it and to look as how is it made and why is the best structure to use in any argument.

The PEE is divided into three:

Point: Here we state our argument and explain it

Evidence: In this section of PEE, we need to base our argument providing  examples, such us quotes, from the novel, in order to support our argument

Explanation: In this section, the main goal is to explain the quote or the evidence, and show how is related and prove our point. In my opinion the explanation is to link both the point and evidence, making your argument stronger.

By looking at this I think it seems obvious that when you correctly use this structure your argument is almost bullet proof as you provide evidence for you point and then linked both the point and evidence and explain why they are linked and why is right providing very solid arguments if well used.

Chapter 2 analysis

Title of selection: Fatelessness, Chapter 2

Author: Imre Kertész

Genre: Autobiographical Novel

Setting: Budapest 1940s, in Georg's neighbourhood

Historical context: WWII, Antisemitism.


The author wrote this piece to: (author’s purpose): 
To tell us how have George life changed since his father left in some way how he have been forced to mature faster.

The main idea of this piece is: 
Is to show us how george Koves have been forced to mature as he have to work and is having love encounter with his neighbour Annamarie.

The message (or theme) of this selection which the author would like us to “take away” is: 
In my opinion the is trying to show us that we all have differences and it depends and just because you are different than other does`t make you worst or better than the other one, also this depends merely on each one perception.

Characters: (Major)
Protagonist(s): Georg Koves

Antagonist(s): In my opinion we can say that one antagonist is the older sister since he have a speech v/s George and also we have the nazi regime as a permanent antagonist. Also I would like to add that we can also consider George`s mother an antagonist since she tries to make George went to live with her although his father have the right over him and George primese his father he will take care of George stepmother.

Static characters: Mr. Suto is a static character as he keeps up his promise towards George family delivering money and supplies.

Dynamic characters: George is constantly changing and in this chapter he changes along with Annamerie as they star some sort of love relathionship.

Did the author use any special literary devices in this selection such as: personification, metaphor, simile, foreshadowing, suspense, flashback, imagery, irony, humor, poetic sound devices such as rhyme, etc... List and give specific examples: 

In this chapter we can see that the narrator uses a flashback to recount his love encounter with Annamarie during the air raid. We can see when he star his flahsback to recount the love encounter in the following quote: (p.32) "The incident occured the day before yesterday..." With this flahback the author is narrator is trying to show the importance of the event and how have changed and develop George as a character, also giving away some aspects of his personality.

What was the author’s “tone” toward the subject/person/idea he wrote about? 

The author tone during this selection is much like making a recount of facts, more like going stright foward to the point, it is also more like in an informal way. We can look at this in the following quote:
"This evening too I was with her in the other room to look at the Fleischmanns' ornamental fish, because in truth we have frequently been in the habit of looking at them at other times anyway. This time, of course, that was not quite the only reason for us to got here. We made use of our tongues as well" (Page 33). He describes what he is passing through with a peculiar tone that makes this novel unique because he is very direct and tells things just as they happened without "making rounds" and evading the main point.


What “point of view” was this piece told from? List word clues that indicate this. 

 It is a 1st person narration, therefore is the recount make by George about whats going on so everything is tell in his point of view about things. I thing is not necessary here to quote because the whole novel is in 1st person and any extract you read will lead to the conclusion that evertyhing is George`s point of view.

List the conflicts in this selection (internal and/or external): 

There's one maiin external conflict, it is the discussion of George with the Steiner's older daughter, about being Jews. She feels uncomfortable because people in the street "hate" her, because she's Jewish, but for Georg it isn't really a problem. George was "exasperated" because the older sister was making a whole complex situation out of something that was much more simple and that actually depends on someones perspective so George start arguing with here until the climax occurs and she start crying after being beat by George decisive argument.

The internal conflict that may be found in this chapter is the dilemma that Georg has after speaking with his mother. He does not know what to do and is actually thinking wether keeping up with his father promise against his mother insinuations that put George into rally "headbrake"situations. His mother also told him that "love is proved by actions, not by words". He is really thinking that he will need to choose between his stepmother, consequently his father promise, and his mother.

QUOTE ANALYSIS

Task 2

We were given the task to analyse 3 different fragments from chapter 3 and to use the PEE style wich I found is the best to explain an idea. Instead of choosing quotes to resume the chapter, I choose quotes that in my opinion give away the context and how jewish people suffer in those times and how was the general situation.

1.  We can see that in those times as we all know Jewish were  abused and they were private of many basic things for daily life, wich was a very terrible situation since they need to pay much more and recieve much less for basic things such as food, we can see all thee things jewsih were privated by that time looking at the following quote:"...I once asked him what he found so great about smoking so much, to which he gave the curt reply, 'It's cheaper than food'. I was slightly taken aback, since such a reason would never ave occurred to me." (Page 42) In this powerful quote we can see how this character called "the smoker" get addicted to cigarettes since he can obtain them easier than food, wich is a very  sadand deplorable situation in my opinion. It is important to note that this situation ocurred early in the chapter and when George have already being taken away from the bus by the policeman and joined with the group of boys.

Other thing that is important to note in this chapter is that not everyone under the Nazi Regime was a bad person, but instead was surpassed by the situation and have no other choice but to follow orders from the top and the real Nazis. This persons weren`t criminals as they couldn`t do nothing agains there superiors. What is said before can be explained by the following quote:""The policeman was not in the least put out by the question. But then again he replied it was not up to him to decide. As became clear, he really knew little more than we did: he referred to further orders that would replace the older ones..." (Page 43) This quote is stay by George after he realized that the policeman really didn`t know what to do with all that group as he was just told to took them and wait for what he call " further orders" wich of course make it clear that he was sor of an innocent person and actually in my opinion didn`t even know what the fates of the Jewish he joined was and he could not do much about it.

 Finally,  I want to state that Jewish were really abused and denigrated to inhuman levels wich although was a very untolerable and sad situation, no one could do much as the Nazis were in total control and the Jewish did not have voice and vote, since if they try to raise they would just be executed. Basicly im trying to say that Nazism was a very racist and close minded ideology and those who believe in it literally transform into animals.“… he turn toward the gendarmes, ordering them , in a bellow that filled the entire square, to take ”the whole Jewish rabble” off the place that, in his view, they actually belonged-the, stables, that is to say-and lock them in for the night.”(Page 57)

This quote is taken after a big Jewish group, among them George, is taken to what I feel from the story was like a grey maze, and were we can look at this officer who really believe in Nazi ideology,  have some degree of auhtority and this mixed make him despreciate Jewish to the point of refering to them as "rubbish"  showing his racism and how the Jewish were being denigrated as he says that "they actually belonged the stables."

Exploring jewish life

In order to understand better the ideas, setting and context of "Fatelessness" we need to understand better how do Jewish life and traditions are. To understand it better I realize the following tasks:

Task 1: Explain the seven pilars to Judaism

Tefillin:These are small black leather boxes containing scrolls of parchment from the Torah which are wore by observant Jews during weekdays morning prayers. It consist in a black leather strip which goes around the body of the person (specially arms and neck) and a little box which is placed in the forehead.:

Mezuzah:A mezuzah mounted on the doorpost designates the home as Jewish, reminding us of our connection to God and to our heritage.A mezuzah is not, contrary to popular belief, the outer container. The mezuzah is actually the parchment scroll within, on which the "Shema" -- a biblical passage declaring the oneness of God -- is handwritten by an expert scribe.The mezuzah is also a symbol of God's watchful care over the home.

(http://www.chabad.org/generic_cdo/aid/278476/jewish/Mezuzah.htm)

Shofar:The shofar (שופר‎) is a Jewish instrument most often made from a ram’s horn, though it can also be made from the horn of a sheep or goat. It makes a trumpet-like sound and is traditionally blown on Rosh HaShanah, the Jewish New Year. There are many symbolic meanings associated with the shofar and one of the best known has to do with the Akedah, when God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac.(http://judaism.about.com/od/holidays/a/whatisashofar.htm)






 Hanukkah: also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple (the Second Temple) in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah)









Kosher: Kosher food is food that meets Jewish dietary laws, or kashrut, which comes from the Hebrew word for "fit" or "proper." Any food can be called kosher food if it adheres to Jewish law, orhalacha. Conversely, foods labeled as "Jewish" aren't necessarily kosher. Kreplach, cholent,kugel, latke, and kishka are all traditionally Jewish foods, but if they are not prepared in accordance with kashrut, they will not be kosher food.

Tzedakah: Tzedaka is a Hebrew word literally meaning righteousness but commonly used to signify charity. It is based on the Hebrew word Tzedek meaning righteousness, fairness or justice, and it is related to the Hebrew word Tzadik meaning righteous as an adjective (or righteous individual as a noun in the form of a substantive). In Judaism, tzedakah refers to the religious obligation to do what is right and just, which Judaism emphasises are important parts of living a spiritual life.

 Sabbath:Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish weekand the Jewish day of rest. On Shabbat, Jews recall the Genesis creation narrative in which God creates the Heavens and the Earth in six days and rests on the seventh. Shabbat observance also entails refraining from a range of activities prohibited on Shabbat, such as lighting a fire and cooking.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shabbat)

General Knowledege

Last week a very a important competition took place for the Interhouses anual competition, Im talking about the General Knowledege activity.

It consisted in one student of each year  from 5th grade to year 12th, but as year 9 students are in the northern trip two students from year 10 were call to defend their respective house as the competition was make in pairs. I have the opportunity to participate in the activity representing my house, Somerscales, along with my classmate Rafael Labra.

There were many topics you could choose and many questions with different degrees of difficulty for each topic, basicly the harder the question, the more points were involved.

You could choose from many topics, ranging from music and art to science and spanish.

It was a tough competition but at last, Somerscales finish in second place, beating Robertson and Sutherland while beat only by Mackay house. In my opinion it was a very interesting and entertainig competition and a great opportunity to test you knowledege, not forgiving that we earn really valuable points for our house.

Fatelessness

Chapter 1 Questions

1.  What characters are introduced in this chapter?

In this chapter many characters are introduced like the protagonist George Koves, his father, mother and stepmother. From the family we can also consider his grandparents and many uncles (specially Uncle Lajos). We are also introduced to  Annamarie, the baker and specially Mr. Suto.

2. Choose two characters and select a quote to describe them physically or psychologically.

Uncle Fleischmann: "was utterly unnoticeable beside him [Uncle Steiner], being a diminutive man of immaculate appeareance, with white hair, ashen skin, owlish spectacles, and a perpetual slightly worried air on his face" (Page 23).

Mr Sütó: "Yellowish red light-spots were dancing like busting pustules all over his round, brownish-skinned features with the pencil mustache and the tiny gap between his two broad, white front teeth" (Page 6)

3. What is the narrative technique? 

Point of View: 1st person narrator. ("I didn't go to school today", P.3)

Narration: Indirect 

Speech: Reported

Tense: Past tense

4. Describe the setting of this chapter

The setting of this chapter is Budapest, Hungary during WWII so all jewish including George need to wear a yellow star. More specifically, we can say that the setting of the chapter is the neibourghood and George`s father house during the day before the father went to the labour camp.

Interview to Imre Kertesz

We saw a relly interesting interview to Imre Kertesz wich can be seen in the following video:

From this video interview, we were proposed by the teacher to answer some questions about the interview and Imre Kertesz, wich are the following:

1) Before the interview, the presenter visits a monument to the Holocaust created by the American artist Peter Eiserman. Considering the shapes, architecture and general design, in what ways do you think he represents the reality in the concentration camps?

It represent the luck of freedom from the prisoners and how small and vulnerable they were. The stone blocks represent the german opression.

2) Which is the paradox the presenter mentions regarding Imre Kertész and the place where he lives?

The paradox is that Germany is the only place were he actually feel free, although it`s the same country that try to kill him.

3) Refer to antisemitism before and after Auschwitz according to Kertész.

Antisemites before Auschwitz didn't know how could it be to torture and slay millions of Jews. But the antisemites of the present want it again, that`s why it`s one of the worst things that coulf happen.

4) In what way do reminders of the past in historical books make us "much richer"?

Because we recieve different perspectives about an event so we can create our own vision of the historical event. Also we know that one who doesn`t learn from history is condemned to relive it`s mistakes again.5) Which metaphor does Imre use to exemplify the effect of FATELESSNESS on its readers?

If we don't know and give importance to learn about the horrors of the Holocaust, it will be like a box in your soul, that eventually wil open and come free to start commiting those atrocities again.