Brendan1128

Upon reading the end of this book, I would have to say that the main idea of this story is redemption. The final climax was intense and violent. Hassan's son was put through such terrible conditions, and it seemed like he would never be the same again. This story seemed to take a very deep concept, and then add even more depth to it by giving it a dark tone and violent side. I can't really decide if the ending is "happy"... to me it was kinda neutral. I can see the positives, but compared to everything that took place before the end it's tough to tell if this story has any true happiness in it. It was kinda like a roller coaster in the way that it would bring you up in the beginning with happiness, drop you from that high point and then make a bunch of bumps after that, but staying low. That's kind of a tough analogy to put in words, but this truly was a beautifully written story. It came highly recommended by... well... everyone, and it certainly didn't dissappoint.

Another connection between this book ATSS is the combining of historical events with this work of fiction. It was a technique that I liked in ATSS, and it's a technique that I like just as much in this book. This reading shows a stark contrast between the life that Amir used to have and the life that he aquires in the United States. That fact that he and Baba need to live in old apartment may be sad, but I found Baba's death to be sadder. Though times are hard, a significant thing to think about is how Amir almost seems to be affected by Karma. The fact that he and his new wife Soraya can't have kids is very sad, and, coincedentally, unfortunate. Hassan, however, not only married, but also had a son. This seems like great news... but then we find out that Hassan has died! Now it seems that Amir is going to make amends with Hassan's son, and all his guilt will be gone forever. This book contains many powerful emotions and also some very difficult scenarios. Nonetheless, the story itself is believable. That is an impressive thing for an author to accomplish.

As stated in the first blog, Hassan clearly looks up to Amir, but in many ways I find Hassan to be the bigger person. For example, Hassan is the one who stands up to Amir's bully, and Hassan is the one guards Amir's kite WHILE HE'S BEING ATTACKED AND RAPED! Amir, however, seems to not only be an immature person, but a cowardly one as well. Amir also seems to be very jealous towards Hassan's relationship with Baba, and that jealousy causes him to try and frame his friend for a crime. It seems that Amir's guilt caused him to act foolishly and irrationally, which is something I can understand... to an extent. The fact that Hassan leaves anyway, and Amir ends up feeling just as bad came of no surprise to me.

Alright, I know these blogs are about as late as can be... first let me start off by saying that the first thing I noticed about KR is its overall similarities with A Thousand Splendid Suns. The feel of the book the book and the way it's written... I can tell that both books are by the same author. Right off the bat we're presented with the concept of a caste system, and the idea of having a friend in a different caste system. Amir and Hassan are two friends who spend a great deal of time together. I think I understand what the title of the book signifies... the two boys have kite battles in their free time, and from the way the book describes it, it actually seems like a pretty epic activity. It's apparent that Hassan looks up to Amir, and Amir seems to have tough relationship with his father. From what the beggining of the book talk about I can tell this story is going to be primarily about friendship and honor among friends.

Through the advancement of technology we have been able to interfere with and even influence nature. To this day it's hard no to notice how much our race has affected our planet. Our effects are most evident when we look at things such as deforestation, extinction, but it can also be seen when looking at something as simple and widely accepted as electricity.

Frankenstein presents a very unique idea of tampering with nature, the idea of creating life from death. The repercussions that ensued from the creation of Victor's creature showed just how dangerous such an idea can be. Victor's creation goes on a rampage... all because nobody would “accept” him. Why didn't people accept him? Because he was unnatural and wasn't like everyone else...

The final chapters of Pride and Prejudice certainly provide us with a sense of closure. Each of the characters end up a certain way, and one could argue that Austen used her conclusion to relay a message to us. It was apparent that there were certain characters that Austen liked and certain characters that she disliked. For example, we as readers always liked Elizabeth and Jane and their chemistry together. They end up happily married and their relationship stays strong even after the story ends. Lydia however, doesn't end up so lucky. Her marriage to Wicham never seems to gain that “happily ever after” luster. There's some irony behind how Wicham ends up. He was initially a well liked and respectable man, but that was only our first impression of him. First impressions are an important aspect of this story, and this is fully apparent when noticing the fact that Darcy ends up being a good guy and Wicham ends up being a bad guy. In essence, I feel that the moral of this story was understand that people have many different layers, and it takes time to truly get to know someone... first impressions can be misleading...

For the latter part of the book, the relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy develops and matures. As we learn more about Darcy's past, we also begin to have different feelings about him. Austen new that her readers were going to create their own opinion of Darcy, and she was able to use that knowledge to influence us by giving us a bad first impression. Darcy's arrogance and rude remarks towards Elizabeth naturally caused us to despise, but as we learn more about him however, our feelings about him fluctuate just like Elizabeth's, and seeing that much of the story revolves around Elizabeth, we are connected with what she feels as well as believes.

As the story progresses we learn increasingly more about the different characters and their... well... characteristics. Compared to the other girls in the story, Elizabeth is certainly the most unique. She seems to be significantly more headstrong and is unafraid to express her beliefs. A perfect example is how she interacts with with a very rich and powerful character named Mr. Darcy. In the time period expressed in this book, it was common for women to look primarily for a rich husband. Elizabeth defended herself when Darcy openly insulted her, and that in itself is important because it shows that she has the strength to stand up for herself and not just give in to her society's standards. In a time where a caste system was prevalent, it seemed peculiar that Elizabeth didn't just suck up to Mr. Darcy after being insulted, because that's clearly what any other girl in her position would have done. Our first impression of Mr. Darcy is negative, and that first impression are very important.

Upon reading the first few chapters of Pride and Prejudice it became apparent to me that, for a few reasons, this story was going to be completely different in comparison to Robinson Crusoe. For one thing, there's more than just two or three characters... a lot more. The toughest thing to me about the characters is that all their names sounded similar, so distinguishing them was going to be a challenge. The language of the book is clearly dated as well, which causes some confusion, but hey, that was something I expected. One final thing, even after the first few chapters it was also apparent that the vast majority of the story was going to be dialog/overall character interaction.

Once the novel gets underway, it's progression seems to be pretty straight forward. The more time Crusoe spends on his island, the more resourceful he becomes, and thus creates a more comfortable life. After a large amount of time goes by, we see a drastic change in Crusoe's attitude about being stranded. At first he felt depressed and sympathetic about his predicament, but as time went on he became increasingly more adequated with being self-subsistent. He begins to see the island he's stranded on as "his kingdom", and begins to feel above all others. One can argue that this mental shift is a product of him taking a tough situation and trying to make the most of it...