Different Paths

So I've continued reading the Hobbit and it's starting to really turn into an adventure. So far Bilbo and his Dwarvin comrades have set off on their journey and been put through some rough spots along the way. Bilbo, although he knew he was getting into some sort of adventure, wasn't quite prepared for the reality of the situation. Within the first few days of adventuring the clan endured bad weather, floods, the loss of food as well as ponies, along with constant tiredness and hunger dragging down the group, ( Bilbo most of all as he is used to having 6 or 7 meals a day). I am starting to doubt that this group really knew what they were getting into and if their journey will be successful. It reminds me somewhat of the novel we read last year called Lord of the Flies. In Lord of the Flies a large group of pre-teen boys became stranded on an unmarked island after a plane crash. The boys were ill-equipped as well as unsure of how to handle their situation. They didn't know each other very well and therefore had troubles picking a leader and choosing how to handle things. Eventually they came to a consensus although throughout the novel their is fighting and strife amongst the boys. The Boy's situation reminds me a lot of how Bilbo must be feeling, bewildered and out of place. Hopefully Bilbo and his friends mission will turn out more successful than the boys coexistence.

Call to Adventure!

I've gotten a little further in the Hobbit, and thus far not too much has happened. Th timid Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, has been "called to adventure" which makes me guess this is going to be a straight up mono myth. Gandalf the Grey, a widely respected and also talked about wizard comes to Bilbo's house along with several handful's of dwarfs and urges Bilbo to join them in a marvelous adventure (having adventures is not something to be proud of where Bilbo is from ). The dwarfs, their leader Thorin, and Gandalf invade on Bilbo's inbred hospitality for two days with out a gracious remark, to Bilbo's annoyance, when at last the hobbit decides to join them. The clan heads off to steal back forgotten treasure from a violent dragon in far away mountains, pretty cliche. The beginning of their journey goes all too well until soon enough they are distraught by bad weather and empty stomachs. Bilbo's not all too sure if he made the right decision after all. Bilbo's sudden call to adventure reminds me a lot of Harry Potters. A sudden house call by an uninvited guest interrupts our protagonist's daily life, and proceeds to tell the hero of a world outside of the known. Then the hero is asked to join that world on an adventure, for Harry that adventure was going to Hogwarts, and ultimately defeating the dark lord Voldemort. For Bilbo, it is venturing out into the unknown-to-hobbit lands and seeking revenge on a dragon. As of now I predict that Bilbo will be successful on his journey and come back to his quaint Shire and home as a changed... man?

T-H-E- H-O-B-B-I-T yeah.

I have chosen to read The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien.I decided to read this particular book because I have always been a huge fan of the Lord of the Rings movies but have never gotten around to reading the trilogy. I figured before I read the three massive books, I might as well start from the beginning, with the Hobbit. As far as I know The Hobbit is about, the famed Frodo's, uncle Bilbo, and his first adventure. The story encompasses how Bilbo first left the protected and comfortable Shire to go an an adventure beyond his own imagination. It also tells us Lord of the Rings fanatics about the background of the Ring's passage to existence in the shire and how it got placed into Frodo's hands in the first place. I have a feeling this book will give me all the insight I need into Middle Earth and everything that went on before the tale of Frodo and the Fellowship. J.R.R. Tolkien was a master with words and probably had an imagination that ranged far further than his magnificent books. Yes. I'm a gigantic nerd for being so obsessed with Lord of the Rings but I am very excited to read the Hobbit.

Oodles of Odd's

Everyone has to overcome odds at some point in their life to move forward. In Stephanie Meyer's, Eclipse, the main characters overcome more than their share of odds. First of all, Edward Cullen, the handsome vampire in love with a mortal, has to overcome the day by day battle not to succumb to his instinct temptations and suck his girlfriends blood. The two cannot kiss, hug, or even be in close proximity to each other without the risk of Edward losing control. Another issue the two have to constantly overcome is their differing opinions on the issue of Bella transforming into a vampire and also her friendship with Jacob, a young werewolf. Edward, on one hand, cannot stand the thought of separating Bella from her soul just so that he can live forever with her, and he also disapproves of her intermingling with his born enemy, the werewolf clan. He believes that Bella is in danger every second she spends with her werewolf friends because they have very little control over where and when they transform into ferocious monsters capable of killing almost anything. However, in truth it is almost the same amount of risk for Bella to be spending time around blood thirsty vampires, than a clan of uncontrolled werewolves.

Caught Up in Love

The topic of love it one found in every word of every line of every paragraph of every page in the Twilight novel series by Stephanie Meyer. I am currently reading the third installment in the series called Eclipse. Eclipse thus far has revolved around Bella the human and Edward, the vampire's, undying love for one another. One unforgettable moment of Love in this book is when Edward refuses to allow Bella to transform herself into a vampire like himself, even though it would mean an eternity of immortal love together, due to the fact that he believes she would lose her soul. The two characters are torn because they both want nothing more than to be with each other and for the other to be happy. Bella on one hand insists that she desires to turn into a vampire, whatever the cost, so that she can live forever with Edward. Edward, however, is not so keen on the idea because he cannot bear the idea of his beloved Bella being put through such pain and losing all of her family for his sake. The two lovebirds are so caught up in what they want for each other they barely make room for what they want for themselves.

Attack

While reading Eclipse, by Stephanie Meyer, yesterday the book took an interesting turn for the worse. It has been revealed that the characters are about to enter a war. There have been multiple attacks in Forks, all the believed cause of a several "newborn", or recently transformed, vampires. These vampires are notorious for wreaking havoc and being more powerful and less predictable than fully developed vampires. The Cullens, Forks friendly family of "vegetarian" vampires, is bent on putting a stop to this. The Cullen's are now being forced to assemble an army of sorts so that they have some chance at beating the irrational newborns. Bella, Edwards one true love, realizes that it would be beneficial to the Cullen's cause if she were to transform into a vampire early so that she could help fight off the enemy. However, obviously Edward is not willing to risk his beloved Bella to some dangerous vampire warfare, so as of now Bella's staying human. Vampire war... commence.

Colonies at Risk

In the midst of reading Stephanie Meyers, Eclipse, I came across a passage about colonization. Not colonization familiar in any way to us, but vampire colonization. Hundreds of years ago, vampires ran wild, ravaging the countryside. They were most populous in the Southern U.S. and fought over territory (inhabited by humans ) as if humans didn't exist, or more as though they were livestock. The Vampires began to build up colonies in this area, to brand the territory as their own, as well as the people who lived on it. The Vampire colonization of the South had many similarities and differences to colonization we have seen taking place in the real world. One thing the Vampire colonization has in common with the European colonization of Africa and India, is that the dominating party showed no concern for the people they affected and took control of. One difference they have is that the Vampires colonized the humans without, for the most part, them even knowing, however when the Europeans colonized Africa, everyone was aware of their presence.

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Economy on the Rocks

This afternoon I read an article in the New York Times website titled  World Bank Says Global Economy will Shrink in '09 by Edmund L. Andrews.  This was a very intriguing article which discussed multiple issues.  One being that the decreasing rates of exports of developing countries are hurting the countries general well being and its primary cause is the banks.  Robert BZoellick, the president of the World Bank, wants wealthy governments to set aside a percentage of what they spend, called a "vulnerability fund".  This would be used to help lend a helping hand to countries in need.  Finally Eastern Asian countries are feeling this blow the hardest because of their high demand of their cheap goods has declined.  This has impacted them so heavily in both a direct and indirect way because this was a very important source of income.  In conclusion as most of us are realizing now more than ever, the world is going through a tough time becauseof the failing world economy. 

Holiday in Vamp-Land

While reading Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer yesterday, I came across an interesting passage about a holiday. But this is no normal holiday it is a Vampire holiday. The celebration is based around the Vampires restoration of peace many years ago in the Southern U.S. and Mexico. In the early 19th century, vampires ran wild and free across the countryside, using humans only as cattle ripe for the taking. Vampires began to build up their own private "herds" of humans without the humans even noticing ( except for some frequent disappearances). And when competition between vampires over territory and humans got tough, a new method was created. Vampires began to create their own private armies of newborn vampires by biting selected humans and setting them out to ravage their enemies. But this frenzy didn't last long. Soon the ancient vampire family known as the Volturi intervened and set things straight. This resolution has been celebrated for years and years, and was introduced in the twilight books from the firsthand perspective of Jasper, Edward Cullens reclusive brother. Jasper was bitten by a recruiting vampire and placed in one of her armies, yet he lives to tell the tale many years later.

Citation Previously Recorded

Bend It Like Bollywood

Bollywood has been a reoccuring theme in my life recently. First Slum Dog Millionaire wins the oscar for best picture, then we watch Bride and Predjudice in class. This weekend I watched a Bollywood movie (produced in the U.K and the U.S.) called Bend It Like Beckham and I have decided to use this movie as a visual text for my blog. Bend It Like Beckham is a very modern day story about a young girl who is passionate about soccer even though her parents do not support her. It sticks to the traditional Bollywood themes of traditional Indian values clashing with modern culture, as well as the very Bollywood like portrayal of an Indian mother. In all Bollywood movies I've seen the Mother figure is always portrayed as a very pressuring figure who pushes marraige onto her children. Bend it like Beckham not only illustrates the key themes portrayed in Bollywood films but also is a good hearted story about a young girl following her dreams to become a professional soccer player and break tradition.

Tooth and Nail

There are millions of cultures and sub cultures all around the world. Some are more popular than others, some are unknown to those not involved. Some mistake culture as being a factor of religious beliefs, however culture is something quite different. For instance, in Stephanie Meyers, Eclipse, there are 3 prominent cultures present in the small town of Forks,and these cultures are prone to clashing. First are the Vampires. The Vampires that reside in Forks are friendly, ununlike some of their more violent counterparts, and have made a life long oath not to drink the blood of humans. Secondly come the Werewolves, the werewolf clan lives right outside of Forks on an Indian Reservation called La Push. It is the werewolves inept responsibility from birth to protect humans from the Vampires, so therefore, even amidst the fact that the Forks Vampires are vegetarians, the werewolves aren't to kindly towards their paler neighbors. Humans, such as Bella Swan, fall right in the middle. Most humans, however, are blatantly unaware of the fact that either Vampires or Werewolves exist at all, not to mention that they might be living next door to one. Bella Swan the love interest of one vampire, Edward Cullen, and best friend of werewolf, Jacob Black, has quite the predicament on her hands. Clashing cultures never serve well in close proximity to one another.

Changing Times

There has been a lot of recent change in Forks, the small town setting for the Twilight novels. First of all there has been a change in Edward Cullen's attitude. He has always been protective of Bella, his one true love, but lately he's been a little over protective. He is so adamant on the idea that she is not to talk or make contact with her former best friend Jacob Black, a were wolf, that he disables her car in the middle of the night so she can't drive to Jacob's house. Edward, in my view, has gone from loving to kind of creepy. He shouldn't have control over every aspect of Bella's life. another character change that has recently occurred in the novel is Charlie's attitude towards Bella and Edward. Charlie despises Edward for the hardship he put Bella through when he left, but in the past few chapters Charlie has become more and more outwardly accepting of Edward, although no one knows if his polite behavior is only to please Bella. Charlie even allows, however reluctantly, Edward to accompany Bella on a trip to Florida to visit her Mother. many characters in Twilight have been changing, for the good or for the bad, no one can be sure.

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Hoping for Eternity

Last night, I read the next couple of chapters in Stephanie Meyers Eclipse, the third installment of the Twilight series. In the reading, I noticed a reoccurring theme of hope to be present throughout the novel thus far. One ongoing example of hope within Twilight is Bella's continuing hopefulness that she will one day be turned into a vampire so she will be able to live with her lover, Edward Cullen, for eternity. Bella begs and pleads with Edward to allow her to make the painful transformation but Edward refuses. He loves Bella so much that, indifferent to her wishes, he cannot bear the thought of letting her become a monster like himself. Although, in the past couple chapters a ray of reality appeared at the end of Bella's tunnel of hope. The Cullen family put the matter of transforming Bella to a vote and it came out in her favor. Edward was furious but, i believe, a little relieved with the thought that he would never have to lose Bella to death. This text shows that if you pursue something with enough hope and determination, you will mostly always be successful. Without Bella's consistency she would have never overcome Edward's opinion.

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Crossing Beliefs

Coincidentally, as I was reading Eclipse, the third book in the acclaimed Twilight series, last night I came across a passage about the difference in vampire and human beliefs about the afterlife. Edward, the vampire vantage point, expressed his beliefs that vampires do not go the the human heaven, or hell. Instead, he believes vampires are sent into another realm, like a state of non being, because he believes their soul is already lost in the process of vampire-fication. Bella, partly because she cannot stand the thought of being without him, believes that they must end up in the same place after they die. Vampires are, however, immortal and cannot die unless they are literally torn apart and burned, hence their supposed soullessness. Edward looks down on his own kind so much that he thinks of them as a kind of monster and cannot imagine that he would join the humans in the afterlife, since his kind hunt them in this life. The twilight series adequetly illustrates a profound difference in spiritual beliefs in the afterlife and present life.

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Bringing Home the Bacon

I've recently read a very interesting article called A Breadwinner Rethinks Gender Roles, by  M.P. DUNLEAVEY. This article was primarily about a women's thoughts on the concept of gender roles in marriage. In this brief editorial, a woman expresses her first feelings of happiness followed by feelings of uncertainty when she discovers tat she is pregnant and that her husband will have to quit his job and remain at home with the baby, while she is out earning the real money to support the family. The author of this article first states that her views on marriage are based solely on the idea on equality, although later she confesses that she felt uncomfortable being the prime monetary support in the family. She states that men in today's society are brought up with a sense of esteem and responsibility that women are not.  Although men are traditionally thought to be the breadwinners of the family, a recent survey shows that about a third of wives in today's society earn more money than their husbands, and about 43% of overall household income was earned by women.

A Breadwinner Rethinks Gender Role

Vampire Culture

In Stephine Meyer's Twilight series, the main character, Bella Swan, is exposed to a completely different culture from her own. The culture is that of the Cullen's, a family of vampires. In these novels there are vampires all over the world, and all of these vampires have a culture completely different from everyone else. The vampire people do not live together in clans they travel in pairs of ones and twos mostly because they have a kind of animalesque quality about them which keeps them from living civilized lives, and instead living as hunters. When Bella is exposed and drawn into this alien vampire sultures she is also putting her life at risk. The vampires, for the most part, are not in control of their senses as human beings, they are attracted to the scent of blood and follow it like a predetor to its prey. They rarely contemplate the outsome of their actions and live by impulse. The Cullen family is the one exeption to these culture guidelines. They live as civilized as possible and refrain from eating humans as their migrating counterparts do. Carlisle, the father of the family is even a doctor, which forces him to be exposed to human blood for long periods of time. The Cullens, and the vampire culture show us that for culture, race or grouping there are some exeptions.

The Trouble with Vampires...

In the city of Forks, where the unlikely romance depicted in Stephanie Meyers Twilight series, takes place, there is no shortage of trouble. To start off with, Bella Swan, an ordinary highschool girl from Arizona is madly in love with a deadly, dangerous, and moody vampire named Edward Cullen, not to mention he's crazy for her too. Secondly, Bella's best friend, Jacob Black, was morphed into a werewolf during the second book, and therefore became a sworn enemy and hunter of Edward and any other vampires. I have just begun to read the third installment of the novels, Eclipse, where the continuing story line starts right were it left off. With pure and interuppted struggle. This time around, Bella is struggling to overcome her dad's harsh grounding rules, which include being away from her beloved Edward during the afternoons. Howver, like any other troubles the couple faces, they seem to easily overcome it. Edward just sneaks up through Bella's window every night and puts to use his keen (almost batlike!) abilities to detect Charlie's movements and thoughts. Bella and Edward's addiction to one another, however romantic, will only lead to more struggle and strife in my opinion. I believe it will cause Bella to unknowingly cut herself off from the rest of the world, which is a dangerous place to be when your in a relationship with someone who could eat you.

Citation of Eclipse:

Meyer, Stephanie. Eclipse. New York:
Little, Brown and Company, 2007.

Stormy Weather

In the next few chapters of the book Im currently reading called New Moon by Stephanie Meyer, Bella encounters a natural disaster in the form of a storm. Bella decides to go cliff driving for the thrill of it, and partly to hear her beloved Edwards voice tell her not to jump. She plunges into the water and is soon greeted by stormy seas and dangerous waves. She struggles to survive in the tumultuous waters for several minutes and is then dragged under water. Water fills her lungs and she is thought to be dead. This intense part of the book shows that any natural disaster can turn a fun and safe activity into a deadly disaster. Bella was unfortunately the victim in this natural disaster and was almost killed because of it. Luckily she was saved by her best friend, and wearwolf, Jacob Black. Without Jacob's help, Bella would have been a victem of the storm.

Citation of New Moon:

Meyer, Stephanie. New Moon. New York:
Little, Brown and Company, 2005.

Clashing Concepts

While Alice the vampire was staying with Bella and her father it was almost impossible for Bella's new best friend, Jacob, to visit because of the simple fact that he is a werewolf, and therefore the sworn enemy of all vampires. Jacob grew very angry at Bella when he first smelled a vampire around her house, and she defended Alice, knowing that she meant no harm. Jacob no longer seems to understand that there is a difference between vammpires, just like humans. He only sees the evel in them and that makes it very hard for him to be with Bella, as a friend or any other way, simply because she was once in love with a vampire herself (and still is). Alice agreed to stay with Bella and Mr. Swan only after Bella endlessly begged her not to go, and after a particularly emotional conversation with Mr. Swan regarding Bella's health after Edward left. These last few chapters have realy displayed the idea that perception molds opinions, just as Jacob percieves all vampires to be evil, he believes that Alice is evil as well.

Alice to the Rescue

Within the next few chapters of New Moon Bella made several serious mistakes and had an unexpected visitor come to call. Bella was feeling risky and decided to take a jump off of a cliff for recreational reasons to land into story freezing water. Sh didnt count on being nearly drowned to death. She was about to give up on her life in the freezing water when all of a sudden Jacob came to her rescue and pulled her ashore. As she was pulled out of the water she saw what looked like a flame, and later remembered to be Victoria, the merderous vampires, hair. Bella was terrified of both Victoria, Jacobs anger at her actions, and herself. But all seemed better when she came home to find a familiar car parked in the driveway. She ran inside to find her old best friend and Edwards sister, Alice Cullen, to be sitting inside her house. She felt as if a piece of her had returned with Alice. It just goes to show how much other people make up any single person.

The World In Common

Within the next few chapters of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas Bruno has continued to visit his new "best-friend-for-life" Schmuel. Bruno and Schmuel find that, over numorous conversations, they are like the same boy growing up in different circumstances. Bruno has led a life of wealth and privilige, while Schmuel, on the other hand, has grown up in a flat above his fathers watch shop. One day Schmuel tells Bruno about when and how his life began to change. Schmuel says that at first he wasn't allowed to ride his bicycle anymore, and then soon after he had to wear an armband with a star on it. Bruno believes that the star Schmuel had to wear is the same thing as the red and black armband his Father has to wear. Schmuel later tells Bruno that he was forced to move into a tiny apartment with eleven other people for several months, and soon after him and his family were forced into a crowded train to come to the camp. Bruno finds their stories almost identicle, because he was also forced to leave his home to come move into the camp, although he says his train was not as crowded. These last chapters were very moving because they show how the most different two boys in the world, who, society says, should hate eachother, find they have the world in common.

Blind as a Child

Ive progressed quite a bit in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, and Bruno, although he may be oblivious, has been shown to be in a bad situation. He is the son of a Nazi general, in charge of running the dreaded prison camp that Bruno refers to as Out-With. ( I'm guessing you can deduce what the correct name is). Bruno is extremely bored in his new surroundings, escpecially with the lack of friends, when all of a sudden an unlikely answer to his prayers is found strolling along a barbed wire fence. Bruno meets a young Jew boy named Schmuel and they become instant friends. Although Bruno really has no idea what his friendship might seem like to the rest of the country, to him Schmuel is the nicest (and skinniest) boy he's ever met. Ever since their first meeting Bruno has walked down the metal fence in his backyard to see Schmuel every day. This book is a clean cut illustration of the innocence of children, and how sometimes their innocence is wisdom.

Little Boy Bruno

I have just began to read a new book, which I have been wanting to read for a long time. Its titled, The Boy In The Striped Pajamas. I have a basic understanding of what the plot of the story is but I'm anxious to read exactly what happens. The book opens with a wealthy family of four living in Germany. The story is told from the nine year old boy's point of view so everything that could be serious or dangerous is told to the reader through innocent and unsuspecting eyes. The boy's story begins with his family moving out of their mansion in Berlin to a small rural house in the, supposed, middle of nowhere. Bruno, the young boy, is upset becouse he must leave his three best friends and his nice house all because of his fathers demanding job as a General. I have a feeling that his father is not as responsible and kind as his wife illustrates to Bruno and his sister, Gretel.

Where Wolf?

In the last few chapters of New Moon by Stephanie Meyer, the chief character, Bella Swan, finds that her best friends Jacob is acting very strangly. He's acting evasive and harsh not to mention the complete physical transformation he's completed. Jacob cut his long black hair short, his skin turned a rustic brown, and his face became oddly familiar with the expression of seriousness. Bella felt confused, hurt, and worried about Jacob becuase it seems to her that all these changes have only occured to Jacob since he has been hanging out with a new, and shady, group of friends. Bella can only guess to what prompted these sudden changes, but at first she suspects that hes entered some kind of cult. But it turns out that she is extremely off. These chapters just go to show that you can't jump to conclusions in confusing situations. There could always be another reason.