My Literary Essay

           In the book, “Paper Towns” by John Green, the Green talks about a senior in high school named Q, who has two best friends, Radar and Ben. Q is the average high school kid he has good grades, doesn’t get into trouble, has friends, not very popular, etc. However, one night, his crush, and most popular girl in school, Margo, came up to his window and asked him to help her on an eleven- step mission. At first, he was hesitant to go with her on a mission at night, but eventually, she convinced him to go with her. He thought it might make their relationship better, wishing that it might result in him taking Margo to prom. However, he never knew that it could’ve changed the way he acts, talks, and what he does. This made me think about if the author purposely tried to teach a lesson on why you shouldn’t change yourself so others will like you more.

            In the book, Q was a good, intelligent, and kind guy. He never would think to stay awake on a school night, or even on a weekend. He got lots of good grades, and never broke the rules. He did everything he could to stay on top of his work and keep everything going for just a few weeks until school officially ended. He was nice to his friends, helped them out when they needed it the most. For example, when Radar had girlfriend problems, he helped him out. Adding on, he barely got into fights with them, thus, they were very close. They would play games every day after they all finished their school work. Overall, Q was a very nice, intelligent person.

            However, he eventually changed after that night with Margo. He broke the rules, didn’t do his homework, went to bed late, and didn’t even study for his final government exam the next day. For example, Q took his mom’s car without her permission and left with Margo to help her with the eleven- step mission. In addition, him and Margo broke into three houses, Jason’s (Margo’s cheating boyfriend), Becca’s (Margo’s ex-best friend), and Chuck’s (the bully that bothered Q everyday) and spray painted their cars and house. Adding on, they broke into one of the most popular buildings in Orlando, Florida. Q even ran from a guy shooting a shotgun and the police. In fact, he skipped graduation (which he would’ve never done if he didn’t go with Margo that one night) just to find Margo when she never came back to school after that crazy night. Also, when he and his friends skipped graduation, he didn’t tell his parents, which is very usual because he never lies to his parents. Clearly, Q changed himself just for Margo to like him more so that he could take her to prom (which never really happened).

            After realizing this, I noticed that Green was probably trying to teach the readers a lesson on why you shouldn’t change yourself just for others to like you more. For example, at the end of the book, after all Q did for Margo, she still didn’t date him, nor did she stay friends with him, thus, all the changing with Q was a big waste. Adding on, Q could’ve gotten arrested when he went with Margo to get revenge on her boyfriend, Jason and her ex-best friend, Becca, this is something he would’ve never even thought about before, and he didn’t like getting in trouble, especially when it involves police. Another example of Q changing himself for Margo is when he spray painted her ex-boyfriend’s car, he would’ve never done that before because he knew that would have gotten him into huge trouble with Jason and his friends, but he still did it so he could look cool and “bad” in front of Margo. I think John Green purposely put these details in there to show that Q wouldn’t do these things normally, but he would just to fit in. Overall, I think that Green is trying to show us that changing yourself for others is not worth it.

            All in all, Q is a very intelligent teen that just wanted his crush to like him back, like all other teens. In result, he tried to be someone that he was not. Overall, I believe that John Green was trying to make his readers understand that changing yourself is never the answer to being cool, popular, or for your crush to like you. I think he was trying to send a message that being yourself is always the answer.

Link to my original blog post: http://amanisawesomeblog.blogspot.com/2013/10/iam-currently-reading-book-paper-towns.html

Non-fiction Critical Analysis

               This article, “Spread a Rumor, Go to Jail?” is about how a 16 year old boy named Yang Hui got arrested for spreading a rumor online. In fact, he was the first person to be arrested under this new law called “rumor mongering”. This law claims that if your post gets “more than 5,000 views and reposted more than 500 times”, you will get arrested. However, he wasn’t only arrested for posting a rumor online, they say that Hui’s offense might be the explanation of a local man’s death. Adding on, this article is about how China censored Facebook, Twitter, and blocks foreign media websites, they do this with what’s known as the Great Firewall.  I think that the author gives me hints throughout the article on what he is trying to make me think or feel.

                I think the author is trying to make me think that this is not a ridiculous law. For example, when he quoted, “The best way of putting an end to Internet rumors is for the government to stop disseminating lies,”  by a Chinese fiction author, Yu Hua, he made sure that the quote made it seem like this law could help convince us that the law was a smart idea that the government came up with. Adding on, he wants us to feel bad or sad because a local man died because of Yang’s opinion. In addition, the author probably wanted us to think about what we do online and think about what comments we post. They want us to think about rumors that we have spread ourselves or have witnessed being spread, thus, making us feel bad about it and making us think that this law could actually be helpful. Overall, he makes us think the law is helpful and feel good about it.

                All in all, I think that this article was very interesting. However, my opinion has changed a little bit because before I read this article I thought that spreading rumors wasn’t a big deal, but now after reading this article I realize that it can be a big deal in some cases. For example, it could cause deaths, like it did to a local man in China. I also would like to know what the rumor was and why was it so popular. Also I would like to know if the guy was popular, which could be the reason why the rumor was popular. Adding on, I would like to know why Yang Hui would spread the rumor in the first place. Overall, I thought this article was very interesting and changed my opinion on spreading rumors. 

Breaking Dawn, By Stephenie Meyers, SPOILER ALERT!!!!

             I was reading the book, “Breaking Dawn”, by Stephanie Meyer. This book was the last of the twilight saga series. This book was about how Bella   gets married to Edward so she can become a vampire, just like him. After the wedding, they went to Esme's private island for their honeymoon. However, during their honeymoon, but knowing that vampires can reproduce when having coitus with a human being, they had a half human and half vampire baby girl named Renesmee.  After giving birth to the rapid growing child, Bella became a vampire. However, Irina (another vampire that wants revenge on Bella) told the Volturi that they had a vampire baby, which is against the vampire rules. But, they actually didn’t, they had a half-human half-vampire, which is technically not against the rules. While reading, I noticed that a lot of things that I didn’t expect actually happened, but also things that I did expect to happen.            There was a lot of things that I didn’t expect to happen. One example is that there “werewolves” aren’t actually werewolves, they are actually shape-shifters. Another example is when Alice left because the Volturi were coming. At first, I thought that was really mean of her and Jasper to leave but in the end, it made sense because it was for a good cause. In fact, I definitely did not expect Irina to tell the Volturi because I didn’t think she would go that far, but obviously I was mistaken.  Moreover, when Irina lied to the Volturi, I thought they were going to punish her by just beating her up as a warning but instead, they actually killed her, which really surprised me because I was expecting Bella or one of the other witnesses or vampires to die, not her. Furthermore, I was the most surprised when Bella and Edward and their allies didn’t fight the Volturi. I was surprised because I thought that the Volturi was going to kill Renesmee because they thought she was only a vampire, but they actually gave Carlisle a chance to explain what was going on. Overall, I thought that a lot of surprising events occurred while reading this book.            Although a lot of unexpected things happened, things that I did expect also happened. For example, I had a feeling that someone would die because I knew the Volturi were very violent. Adding on, I also knew that Bella would improve her control over her shield because I knew that she would get angry while with the Volturi, which makes her shield stronger. Lastly, I also expected the Cullen family, werewolves, and some of other vampires were going to try to fight the Volturi because I knew they would piss them off with their comments about killing the baby. Overall, a few things that I expected actually did happen.            All in all, this book was a very interesting and entertaining book. I expected and didn’t expect some events to occur. Overall, this was a good ending to this awesome series.  

            

Blog Review, "Bossypants, by Tina Fey" By Annalise Edwards

             While reading blogs, I came across Annalise Edwards’ blog post, "Bossypants" by Tina Fey. She talks about the book and what it is about. The book is about the famous comedian named Tina Fey. She talks about how it was in high school and how she became famous. However, she talks about how she had to deal with the cyberbullying and sexism. Adding on, Annalise thought that it was not fair that when a non-famous person gets bullied like that, everyone freaks out and helps them out, meanwhile, when it’s a famous person, everyone just leaves it for them to figure out themselves. I agree with Annalise, which is one of the reasons why I chose her blog post. I think that it is unfair to celebrities and that they should be treated as a normal person would’ve been treated.

            Although I did not read this book, I can agree with most of the things Annalise mentioned in her blog post. For example, when she talked about how many celebrities get bullied but no one does anything to help them. I agree with her because I too think it’s unfair because many people think that it’s okay that a celebrity gets bullied because every celebrity has “haters”. Adding on, I agree with her when she says, “Just because a person's face is on a couple screens a couple of times a year doesn't mean that they don't have actual feelings that actually get hurt sometimes. No one ever seems to think about that, or even cares to wonder if they're getting affected by it in any way”. Overall, most of her claims or questions is similar to what I would have wrote.

            The way Annalise summarized the book made me want to read it too. When she talked about how the book tells the story of how Tina Fey became famous, or how high school was for her, that really made me want to know more specific details, thus, I wanted to read the book even more than before. Adding on, the way she described what Tina Fey mostly talked about in her book also wanted to make me read it because it seemed like a funny book. For example,  when she said, “As for the sexism Fey describes in the book, because her whole attitude towards negative actions comes across in a smartass fashion, she somewhat disses the men who had wronged her, putting in full-on detail why their way of thinking had been wrong, and she metaphorically laughs in their faces since it was because she fought her way against them that she reached her goal: even moderate success on television”, that made it seem like the book, most likely, talked about her love life and had a few funny jokes too. Also when she said, “By including these things in her book, she proves (or at least proved to me) why sexist is no way to be when it comes to the success of a show-all you need is at least a couple outstanding actors or actresses, and you'll end up with a smile on your face”, that made me think more of how Tina Fey dealt with the sexism and cyberbullying, which made me want to read it even more. Overall, after reading this blog post, I no longer think that this book is boring, in fact, I think it sounds interesting, so I will read it.

            All in all, I really liked reading Annalise Edwards’ blog post because it was easy to connect to. In addition, her attitude throughout the blog post really helped me understand what she was thinking. Overall, I think Annalise did a very good job on this blog post.

Breaking Dawn by Stephanie Meyer, SPOILER ALERT

  I am currently reading the book "Breaking Dawn" by Stephanie Meyer. In this book, Bella   gets married to Edward so she can become a vampire, just like him. After the wedding, they went to Esme's private island for their honeymoon. However, during their honeymoon, but knowing that vampires can reproduce when having coitus with a human being, they had a half human and half vampire baby girl named Renesmee.  After giving birth to the rapid growing child, Bella became a vampire. She had changed in so many different ways, like she is stronger, faster, thirstier, etc. I think that she is no longer herself, that she is like a new Bella. 
  Bella had changed a lot since becoming immortal. She has mostly changed physically, she become stronger, faster, colder, her voice has become bell-toned, huge temper, hungrier for blood, and her eyes are no longer brown, they are red. Adding on, she no longer shows emotions, like blushing, crying, or just the things that show her emotions, like her heart racing, get face becoming paler, stomach growling when she is hungry, yawning when she is tired, etc. However, after she changed, it affected but only her, but everyone else, like Jacob, he no longer loves her, he loves Renesmee. Also Charlie now knows what's going on with all of them being "unnatural". Edward had also changed, he no longer hesitates to kiss her. He also doesn't have to go easy on her, like when they make love, hug, run, basically everything that he couldn't do when she was human is what he does now. In addition, he gets along with Jacob, and Jacob gets along with everyone else. Overall, I think she changed, which also changed her surroundings.
  In conclusion, Bella had changed physically and mentally overall. This, everyone else   changes too in different ways than before she was human. 

Nonfiction Critical Analysis

  In the article, "Smoke Signals" by Alessandra Potenza,  they talk about the new e-cigarette.E-cigarette is an electronic cigarette that doesn't include tobacco, unlike the regular cigarettes, therefore, its healthier. Potenza talks about how some e-cigarettes are unregulated and are becoming more popular among young people. She talks about how some U.S officials are very worried that the e-cigarette is becoming popular among young people because they contain nicotine, which is the same addictive chemical in tobacco cigarettes. They are worried because more than 1.8 million middle and high school teenagers have tried e-cigarettes, and that the amount of young people using these have doubled in 2012 from the previous year. They are afraid that they would become too addicted to these cigarettes, especially because they come in different flavors. Adding on, they don't trust these cigarettes because 1.7 billion electronic cigarettes remain unregulated. I understood this text because Potenza keeps saying how the cigarette has bad chemicals, many young people use it, and  how people have been trying to ban it. For example, she says, "In 2009, after finding several toxic cancer-causing chemicals-including an ingredient used in antifreeze- in various types of e-cigarettes, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tried to ban them, calling them unapproved drug-delivery gadgets", meaning that they should be banned because they may have some chemicals that are unhealthy for you.
   While reading this article, I noticed that Potenza is trying to make us feel as if e-cigarettes aren't as good/healthy as they seem, that we are being lied to. For example, she says, "Because most e-cigarettes contain nicotine-the same chemical found in tobacco cigarettes- they have stirred debate all over the world." Adding on, her attitude throughout the article proved that she didn't approve of the cigarettes. For example, she says, "Part of the issue with e-cigarettes is the way they're being marketed: They come in flavors like chocolate, bubble gum, or vanilla, which are known to appeal to young people". Overall, Potenza feeds us facts to make us think that e-cigarettes are bad, therefore, making us feel betrayed in a way. 
    After reading this article, my whole perspective on e-cigarettes had changed. I no longer believe that e-cigarettes are healthy, that it can really help some people when it just makes them addicted to some other drug. In addition, I no longer want to try it, I used to see kids my age, or even younger, smoking e-cigarettes, which made me want to try them, to see how it feels, but now I know that it wouldn't be good for me. Instead, I believe that e-cigarettes should be banned because they are addictive, unregulated, and are making some young teens smoke. However, I do want to know a little more about why the e-cigarettes aren't regulated and how they got through without being regulated. Also i would want to know why they would put nicotine in the cigarette if they wanted people to stop being addicted to smoking. Overall, I think that e-cigarettes should be banned or at least stop from being sold to young teens, like they should have an age limit, like regular cigarettes.
   All in all, i think that e-cigarettes are as unhealthy as regular cigarettes are. Moreover, I think that they should be more cautious about who they are selling it to and what they have in the cigarette. 

What Difficult or Complex Things Happen In the Text?

   I am currently reading the book, "Forever in Blue" by Ann Brashares. This book is about 
four friends named Tibby, Carmen, Bridget, and Lena. They all go to college in different 
locations so they are always mailing each other things, especially the "Traveling Pants". The 
traveling pants are jeans that they all wrote on and they all share it. Adding on, they all are studying different things in college, Tibby is and Lena both have an apartment, Carmen is moving on with her job of helping backstage fir the drama club, and Bridget is in Turkey studying bones. However, a lot of difficult and complex things occur in the text.

  The most difficult thing to understand is why they were all in a room, except for Carmen, with candles and snacks surrounding them with the jeans in a big triangle in the middle of the floor. Its difficult to understand because I don't know why they did that or what was going on. In addition, I was wondering if the jeans were good luck or magical to them because they made the jeans seem so sacred. I also wondered why they wrote all over the jeans, was it a new trend in school? Is it a tradition? Did they write on it by accident and then just kept writing on it? All these questions made me think about how they started this tradition or whatever it is. I think that they probably started this by themselves, like one of them bought the jeans and kept getting good luck or something. In addition, whichever one bought it probably came up with the idea of writing on it, to claim it only theirs so nobody would still this good luck from them. Or they could just be witches with magical powers, which could explain why they had candles everywhere. They could have been doing some spells to make the jeans even more magical or powerful. Overall, this was difficult to understand because it was very confusing to understand because i didn't know what they were doing and why they were doing it.

  In conclusion, a lot of difficult and complex things happen in this book because there is no reason for why they do this or what they are doing. In addition, it makes me thing about the many different possibilities of why they do this, which makes me even more confused because I get mixed up with everything. Overall a lot of difficult an complex events occur throughout this fascinating book.