// hate me

ugly - ways

ugly - ways

Scarred

Quotes from Socratic:

"Poor people just inhereit poor stuff. Poor equals poor. Rich equals rich." ~Alex
"How can you find spiritual worth?"
"One of the roots of America is freedom of religion."
"America is a land where people can call themselves Catholic and not have to go to Church every day."

THIS IS MY FINAL

While no one knows why or how people were created, or why we ended up where we are, there is one thing that is true of pretty much every country – that we know for sure; every country, that is, except America. When a person thinks of England, they think of English people, when someone thinks of Canada, they think of Canadians, and so on and so forth. But when a person thinks of America, they can not put everyone into one big nationality. This is because of the fact that Americans are made up of every different nationality in the world.
The question that must be asked then is this; why did people come to America? The answer to this question is because everyone considers America to be “free,” even though America is, in a lot of respects, no where near free.
Originally, as we all know, people immigrated here from countries that were ripe with religious persecution. They became sick of this, and decided that trying to make their own way in a wilderness they had never seen was better than having to fight every day for what they believed in. They wanted freedom.
What, then, is the definition of the word “free?” Freedom is being able to create who you want to be, and having the knowledge that a person can be whoever they want to be – within limits – and feel safe in the knowledge that they will not be punished for this.
Huck Fin would have balked at the above statement. He would have wondered what the limits are that were mentioned. Huck would have said that any country that had limits to its freedom was not really free at all. He would have said that the only reason as to why people ever came to America was because of the good hunting, or the free land, and great rivers, or some such thing.
Most people, however, prefer to live with the illusion that America is truly free.
America, however, has not always been free, and no one can pretend that it was. Somewhere along the way, our forefathers forgot why America was founded, and decided to own slaves. Yet they still kept the notion that America was a free land. How can a land be free when half the people in the country are slaves? These poor souls were not even counted as whole people when census was taken.
Sojourner Truth summed it up very nicely in her speech “Ain’t I a woman?” When I first read the speech, I thought that it was merely referring to women’s rights. But, on second glance, I saw that it had more to do with the fact that black women were treated differently than white women.
Our ancestors went back on the very idea that America was founded on. Sojourner talked about how she had heard a man once say that all women should be treated right, helped into carriages, and they should always have “the best place everywhere.”
She went on to say that no one had ever helped her into a carriage, yet she was a women. How is this free? It is just hypocritical.
Why, then, did people really come to America? Originally, yes, to get freedom. But why would they keep coming even after it had lost its freedom? As was mentioned above, Huck would have thought it was because of the great open land, which in itself gave him some sense of freedom. He thought it was because of the nature.
Yet how can this be when all people are doing now are taking up huge amounts of land to build their conglomerates and five floor super tech homes? These people consider essentials to be tennis and swimming pools. Going to BRIDGEHAMPTON, NY will give a person many examples of this. There, one will find houses that stretch farther than the eye can see, where people own at least two or three acres of land.
To find the perfect example of freedom, however, one might just want to take a glance at a painting done by Church, F.E. The painting is entitled The Hudson River Scene at Sunset. In the painting, the viewer sees, as the title suggests, the Hudson River. There are cloudy mountains in the distance, and foliage is seen all over the sides of the river. A person can just imagine that both black people and white people would be equal in a scene such as this. It is nature at its best and most alluring.
These painting would suit both Huck and Sojourner Truth.
That painting, however, was made many years ago. Since the, the foliage had been cut down and replaced with huge building which block the view of the gorgeous mountains.
This still leaves us with the mystery of why people continue to come to America. Basically, the reason why people come here is because it is so culturally diverse. It became that way because of people’s pursuit for freedom, and stays that way because people want it to.
The diversity in itself does make America have that sense of freedom that so many people cherish. No, a person may not be able to live off of nature anymore, or go on shooting sprees without punishment. But they certainly do not have to worry about being looked down upon just for looking a little different than the people around them.
So there is no way to make a country truly “free.”

If the country were really free, then not many people would be happy. There’s always someone that’s going to take advantage of the situation. If the country were free, then there would be no punishment for murderers and stealers. In make the country free, a person would have to hop into a time machine, and go back to when humans were first evolved – or made - to make sure that people don’t end up like that.
And we all know that that is not going to happen any time soon.

Challenge – you said this book was worth 40 points!!

TEST
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

Character matching

1. Duchess
2.Chessire Cat
3. Queen of Hearts
4. The Caterpillar
5. The White Rabbit
6. Mad Hatter
7. Alice
8. The Judge
9. Mock Turtle
10. guinea-pig

a. was a juror
b. Liked to take people’s heads off
c. Told a very long story
d. Liked to cause trouble wherever Alice went.
e. Gave a very lively tea party
f. Gave Alice some advice
g. Was also the king
h. was accused of stealing tarts
i. Had a baby she did not like
j. Very worried about being late

Put In Order

__ Alice shrinks for the first time
__Alice attends a tea party
__Alice nearly had her head taken off
__Alice is on trial
__Alice gets some advice from the catepillar
__The main character sees herself
__ Alice went down the Rabbit hole
__ Alice meets the fish servant
__ The main character cried a large pool of tears
__Alice runs into the Duchess

Object Identity

1. a door
2. Pieces of mushroom
3. A Carrot from the White Rabbit’s garden
4. A plate
5 Tarts
6. Cards
7. A key
8. A watch
9. Cakes that said “eat me”
10. A Thimble

Quote Identity

1. “`Their heads are gone, if it please your Majesty!' the soldiers shouted…”

2. “’But I don’t want to go among mad people,’ Alice remarked.
‘Oh, you can’t help that,’ said the cat; ‘we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.’
‘How do you know I’m made?’ said Alice.
‘You must be,’ said the cat, ‘or you wouldn’t have come here.’”
3. “`Please, then,' said Alice, `how am I to get in?'
“`There might be some sense in your knocking,' the Footman went on without attending to her, `if we had the door between us. For instance, if you were inside, you might knock, and I could let you out, you know.'”
4. “`How am I to get in?' asked Alice again, in a louder tone.
`Are you to get in at all?' said the Footman. `That's the first question, you know.'
It was, no doubt: only Alice did not like to be told so.”

5. “’Well, I'll eat it,' said Alice, `and if it makes me grow larger, I can reach the key; and if it makes me grow smaller, I can creep under the door; so either way I'll get into the garden, and I don't care which happens!'”

6. “`The Duchess! The Duchess! Oh my dear paws! Oh my fur and whiskers! She'll get me executed, as sure as ferrets are ferrets! Where can I have dropped them, I wonder?'”

7. “`Who are you?' said the Caterpillar. … Alice replied, rather shyly, `I--I hardly know, sir, just at present-- at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.'”


8. `I--I'm a little girl,' said Alice, rather doubtfully, as she remembered the number of changes she had gone through that day.

9. “…she came suddenly upon an open place, with a little house in it about four feet high. `Whoever lives there,' thought Alice, `it'll never do to come upon them this size: why, I should frighten them out of their wits!' So she began nibbling at the righthand bit again, and did not venture to go near the house till she had brought herself down to nine inches high.”

10. “`If you knew Time as well as I do,' said the Hatter, `you wouldn't talk about wasting it. It's him.'”

Essay
Would Huck consider Wonderland civilized?



ANSWERS

character matching

1. Duchess - i
2.Chessire Cat - d
3. Queen of Hearts - b
4. The Caterpillar - f
5. The White Rabbit - j
6. Mad Hatter - e
7. Alice - h
8. The Judge - g
9. Mock Turtle - c
10. guinea-pig - a

Put In Order

_2_ Alice shrinks for the first time
_4_Alice attends a tea party
_9_Alice nearly had her head taken off
_8_Alice is on trial
_5_Alice gets some advice from the caterpillar
_10_The main character sees herself
_1_ Alice went down the Rabbit hole
_6_ Alice meets the fish servant
_3_ The main character cried a large pool of tears
_7_Alice runs into the Duchess


Object Identity

1. a door – Alice had many troubles getting through the door in the beginning. It is the reason as to why she shrunk herself and then made herself bigger.
2. Pieces of mushroom – Helped Alice make herself into a giant when she was about to have her head taken off at the trial.
3. A Carrot from the White Rabbit’s garden – Helped Alice out of the rabbit’s house by shrinking her.
4. A plate – Almost took Alice’s head off when she went into the Duchess’ house
5 Tarts - Alice was accused of stealing the tarts, and nearly was beheaded because of it.
6. Cards – All of the hearts were cards – even the queen. This realization is what ultimately saved Alice in the end
7. A key – Alice did not have the key, so she could not get through the door
8. A watch – The rabbit kept consulting one, and the Mad Hatter loved trying to “fix” them; in other words, destroying them in creative ways, many involving butter.
9. Cakes that said “eat me” – Alice’s curiosity got the better of her with these- they made her a giant and caused her to get stuck in the Rabbit’s house.
10. A Thimble – The bird took Alice’s thimble, along with other things from her pocket, and handed them out as prizes after the Caucus-race.

QUOTES
1. `Their heads are gone, if it please your Majesty!' the soldiers shouted…
This quote just shows the reader how horrible living around and with the Queen of Hearts must be. The soldiers were always on their toes, hopping around and trying to please her. In this quote, they had not beheaded them – the soldiers hadn’t even found the cards they were supposed to behead.

2. “’But I don’t want to go among mad people,’ Alice remarked.
‘Oh, you can’t help that,’ said the cat; ‘we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.’
‘How do you know I’m made?’ said Alice.
‘You must be,’ said the cat, ‘or you wouldn’t have come here.’”

This quote tells us exactly what Alice has gotten herself into. Basically, the Cheshire cat is saying that no one would ever find themselves in Wonderland if they were not a little crazy.
There is now a sequel to this story; it is in the form of a game. In it, Alice had never really been to Wonderland; it had all been a dream. Yet she believed it to be true, and was going insane because of it.
In the game, the player had to make their way through an evil Wonderland, trying ultimately to kill the Queen of Hearts. This evil woman represents Alice’s fears.
Basically, what the Cheshire cat is saying is that Wonderland isn’t really a place, yet is everyone’s thought; what makes them happy and what makes them scared.
3. “`Please, then,' said Alice, `how am I to get in?'
“`There might be some sense in your knocking,' the Footman went on without attending to her, `if we had the door between us. For instance, if you were inside, you might knock, and I could let you out, you know.'”
I like this quote. It shoves in our faces how much we take for granted, and how we try to complicate the Hell out of the simplest things, such as trying to get into someone’s house.
4. “`How am I to get in?' asked Alice again, in a louder tone.
`Are you to get in at all?' said the Footman. `That's the first question, you know.'
It was, no doubt: only Alice did not like to be told so.”
Like the quote before, this is another one where Alice missed the obvious, as so many of us do. It also shows how reluctant she is to admit that others are right – although she will do it, if the need calls for it.

5. “’Well, I'll eat it,' said Alice, `and if it makes me grow larger, I can reach the key; and if it makes me grow smaller, I can creep under the door; so either way I'll get into the garden, and I don't care which happens!'”

Another great example where Alice’s curiosity gets the better. If curiosity really did “kill the cat,” then Alice would be one dead and mutilated feline! Her curiosity was what got her into Wonderland in the first place, and what got her into almost every one of her problems. Examples – the Mad Hatter’s tea party, the Duchess’ house, and many more.

6. “`The Duchess! The Duchess! Oh my dear paws! Oh my fur and whiskers! She'll get me executed, as sure as ferrets are ferrets! Where can I have dropped them, I wonder?'”

Another example of a quote that illustrates what living in Wonderland would really have been like for those poor creatures that inhabited it. Like the soldiers, the White Rabbit is always on his toes – he is the Queen’s messenger – and is constantly trying to find ways around being beheaded.
7. “`Who are you?' said the Caterpillar. … Alice replied, rather shyly, `I--I hardly know, sir, just at present-- at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.'”
Alice is a very bright girl. She recognizes that the changes she has gone through were not only physical, but also mental changes. She is able to see that she woke up that morning as an immature girl who wandered into Wonderland. But the Alice we see now would probably never have gotten herself into the mess she is in.

8. `I--I'm a little girl,' said Alice, rather doubtfully, as she remembered the number of changes she had gone through that day.

Another great example of Alice’s maturity. I think this one takes it a little too far, as, not matter how many changes she goes through, she will always be a girl. But I think she is not longer a LITTLE girl, but maybe a young woman.


9. “…she came suddenly upon an open place, with a little house in it about four feet high. `Whoever lives there,' thought Alice, `it'll never do to come upon them this size: why, I should frighten them out of their wits!' So she began nibbling at the righthand bit again, and did not venture to go near the house till she had brought herself down to nine inches high.”

Yet another great example where Alice’s curiosity gets her into deep water. Earlier in the book, the reader is led to believe that Alice has matured a bit. But this makes one think twice about that.

10. “`If you knew Time as well as I do,' said the Hatter, `you wouldn't talk about wasting it. It's him.'”

I love this quote!
I may be looking too much into this one, but here is what I think – it is an example of people trying to always be better than one another. Alice tried to make herself sound smarter than the Mad Hatter by giving some witty remark about time, and then…BAM! The made Hatter goes in for the kill. No one can get better than actually knowing Father Time.

Essay
Would Huck consider Wonderland civilized?

No, I do not think Huck would consider Wonderland civilized. As I said above, Wonderland is really a place compromised of all of our fears and what makes us happy, and what males us sad, etc. In Alice’s case, the Queen is her worst fears. In short, if all Wonderland is is our own thoughts, then Wonderland would be, for Huck, very uncivilized. In it, black and white people would be equal, and no one would be forced to pray. People would be hunting and floating down rivers.
There is one aspect, however, that Huck would consider to be civilized. It would be his Queen of Hearts. His worst fear is having to be civilized.

CHALLENGE
This has been coming for a while. Is there anything wrong with this? If you were the yearbook editor, how would you handle it? (5)

I think that the article in only a problem to those people who do not wish do discuss important issues, and would rather have themselves and their children remain in the dark – which would probably result in an early pregnancy, or some such nonsense.
Other than for those close minded people, the article – I think – was a very good idea. It was very brilliant for the author to have put it into something as lasting a year book, for it is something that does not get thrown away or forgotten quite as easily as a newspaper or a magazine.
It may have been a problem to some of the pregnant teenage mothers. They may have been offended had they not been featured in the article, or maybe even because people were drawing too much attention to the issue.
I think that the editor handled it beautifully. They let the article go in, and did not make a big deal out of it. If I had been the editor, I would like to think that I would have done the very thing.
I can not say that I would or would not have done the same thing, though. I could not predict the circumstances surrounding the debut of the yearbook and the article. For all anyone knows, that article may have come out because the author had been concerned about all of the teenagers getting pregnant, because no one seemed to care about them, or simply because she had nothing else to write about.
Had the situation been that many people had great disdain towards the influx of pregnancies, sadly, I do not think that I would be able to have allowed the article to go in, as I would not want to deal with people constantly harassing me about it.
In the end, it was pretty much the author’s choice. She represented the student body more than the editor does.
I think that, ultimately, it was really the mothers’ decision.

Chris Nolan told me that doing these questions would get me 75 challenge points. I hope he wasn’t joking, because if these do not count then I am going to have to kick someone’s ass…

1. Twain has a good time tweaking the widows. Why?
Twain obviously does not like people who live by other’s standards, which is exactly what those widows are doing. He thinks that to be civilized it to be doing just that. It was his way of making fun of those kind of people.
2. Why doesn’t Huck complain to them? Why does he stay silent?
Because, even though he complains to the readers, he is too considerate of others’ feelings to come right out and say something like that.
3. What is adolescent about Huck?
He does not realize that there is a whole big, real world out there.
4. Why does he use the word "niggers" so carelessly?
Because he grew up being taught that black people were supposed to only be thought of as slaves. I do not think he knew the word was degrading, and if he did, he thought that this was alright.
5. Why, do you suppose, Tom is quick to play a trick on Jim?
So he can prove how much better and smarter he is than Jim. Huck was raised very civilized, and is another person who thinks that white people are masters, and black people are slaves.
6. What is the difference between Huck and Tom?
First of all, Huck lives much more in reality than Tom does. Huck, honestly, had more intelligence than Huck, though not in the scholarly sense. Huck can easily survive by himself in the wilderness, but Tom could never do something like that. Huck could live his life through books and imagination, but Huck could never do that.
Why does he quit the gang, then?
Because the gang was based entirely on what Tom had read in books. Huck might have been able to get into the whole thing, had he read some of those books, but, since he has not, he has a hard time believing that a Sunday School picnic is really a gang of Arabs.
7. Why does Huck believe in superstition if he is so matter of fact with everything else?
Because he was probably raised to respect superstition, instead of religion.
8. Twain, true to form, makes fun of Pap. Why?
Because Pap is such an asshole of a character. Twain wanted us to realize that, without actually coming right out and saying it.
9. Pap gives a classic red-neck speech. Why does he hate the black man?
Because, like Huck, Pap was raised to think that blacks and whites were not equal. Huck, however, thinks of black people towards the friend end of things. Pap only thinks of them as slaves. He is so not ready for change, and for him to see a black man that is a teacher is just horrible. He is close-minded.

Huckleberry Finn: Chapters 6-8

Introduction Huck gets a move on.
Questions Answer the following questions fully.
1. How has Huck figured out how to deal with Pap?
He decided to fake his own death. This was not only his way of dealing with Pap, but also of fooling the widow, so that he would not have to choose between the two. (He actually, I think, liked neither of them.) He carefully cut his way out of the cabin by using an ax to cut a hole in the wall, and then covered that up. He then used the ax to hack through the door, and made a mess of the inside of the cabin, to make it look like someone had broken in and killed him. He put some pig’s blood and his own hair on the ax. He then dragged the pig down to the water, and threw it in. He took a canoe he found, and made his way down the river.
2. What is ironic in Pap’s speech about the dressed up black man?
Pap thinks that the black man is not good enough to be an educator. He thinks that, even though this man has had way more education than he, that the man, because he is black, should not be free. This is ironic because Pap is nowhere near as worthy enough to be a professor than the black man is. The black man deserves it more, because he has worked terribly hard for the position. Pap has not, as I said before, had any.
3. Why doesn’t Huck talk about returning to town?
Because he has finally managed to get himself away from civilization, and he honestly doesn’t want to go back to the town any time soon. Even after he is practically forced back into the town, he makes plans to “light out for the territories.”

4. Huck wishes Tom Sawyer was there. Why is it a good thing that he isn’t?
Because Tom would have made it so much harder to live in the wilderness. Huck does anything any old way, pretty much in the easiest, fastest, and most efficient ways. He mainly thinks about surviving. Tom, however, would need to have some scheme for doing something, and would ass a million more steps than was needed. He would make something as simple as picking berries take all day.
5. One of the hallmarks of this book is the way nature is portrayed. How does Huck look at the river?
Huck looks at the river like it is the home he had never had. It was like he had left it when he was just born, and had finally found his way back.
6. Why does Huck start to think that praying might work after all? What does this show you about Huck?
Huck thinks that praying might work because nothing else has. He had learned that you should only pray for other people, and I think that he had finally really learned to care for someone other than himself – Jim. This shows us just how much Huck has grown since he left the town.
7. Why is Jim so scared to see Huck?
Because Huck had succeeded in faking his death and Jim thought Huck was a ghost. Also, slaves back then were very superstitious.
8. Why does Jim run away?
Jim ran away because he overheard his owner and her sister (or someone) talking about selling him. He also ran away soon enough to not get blamed for Huck’s murder. To be honest, I think he began to think of his owner as family, and was too heartbroken when he learned this to stay.
9. How is Jim rich?
Jim is rich because he has many people that care for him, and is pretty quick for a slave. Even if doesn’t actually have a lot of people loving him, those that actually do love him, love him a great deal.

Huckleberry Finn; Chapters 9-12

Introduction Huck and Jim get comfortable.
Questions Answer the following questions.
1. What do Jim and Huck do while they are living on the island?
They set up shelter for themselves in a cave. They set up traps in a lot of places to catch animals, and pick a lot of strawberries. While on the island, Huck tried to play a trick on Jim, and only succeeded in getting poor Jim nearly killed. He was bitten by a rattle snake. Each of them takes turns keeping a lookout, and I think they only live during the night.
2. Why, do you suppose, Jim goes and checks out the dead man and asks Huck to stand still.
Because he probably recognizes the dead man as Huck’s father. He also does not want Huck to be scarred in such a way at such a young age. He also does not want Huck to incur any more bad luck than he already has.
Where else has Jim taken charge over Huck?
Jim had taken charge over Huck when they were talking about where to stay. Huck did not want to stay in the cave, and Jim made the decision that they were actually going to. Jim told Huck just what to do to save him when he was bitten by the rattle snake, and Huck did every one of them.
3. Why does he go to town?
Huck does into town to see how much information that they had gathered on Huck’s murder. He finds out that Pap was nearly lynched for it, but that he left town. He also discovered that Jim was wanted for the murder.
4. Does Huck act as if he knows Jim is black and Huck is white?
No, because the woman says right off that a slave was wanted for his murder.
5. How does Huck get found out?
First of all, he forgets his name, and then says that his full name in compromised of all of the names he had said. He then acts too much like a boy. He can’t thread a needle, and hits a rat right in the head, and he also caught something in his skirt wrong.
How does this trick show the difference between Tom and Huck?
This shows the difference because Tom would have thought all of these things out before hand, and would have thought from the perspective of being a girl. He would have thought of a million-and-one things to say had he made a mistake, and wouldn’t have made any of the mistakes Tom did.
6. Life on the river is often described as something close to ideal. Is it?
For Huck, life on the river is close to ideal. He can be away from civilization, and go right back when he wants to. He can go wherever he wants, whenever he wants, and does not have to worry about disappointing anyone.
7. Why does Jim bolt for the raft instead of exploring the steamboat?
Because he thinks he hears ghosts, and is very superstitious.
8. How does Huck show his practical side?
Huck shows his practical side by not being scared by the voices, because he knows that they are not ghosts.

Huckleberry Finn: 13-15

Introduction Huck and Jim escape
Questions Answer the following questions fully.
1. How do Huck and Jim escape?
They escape by taking the robbers’ get away boat.
2. Why does he tell a lie to rescue the bums on the wrecked boat?
He tells a lie because even though he knows that these people are bad, he feels bad for them. He also knows that they are going to leave a man to die, and I think that he thinks no one deserves that sort of shit.
3. Huck is out argued by Jim. What does that show about the two of them?
It shows that they are very close. People who live together (even if it is only one of the two) sooner or later learn that it is easier to just pretend that they are right, rather than argue with them. Huck does not want to argue with Jim anymore because they care about each other.
What does the Solomon thing show you about Jim?
That it is a very rare man that Jim thinks is great. Jim, I think, is very unwilling to admit that someone is better than he is. Jim also does not understand a lot of what Solomon did.
Why doesn’t he like Solomon?
He does not like Solomon because Solomon almost cut a child in half, and Jim did not understand this. He just thought that Solomon was cutting the child in half to be rid of the problem.
4. Does Huck think he has won the argument or not?
No, I think that Huck is wiser than to think that he can really win an argument with Jim. I think that Jim is pretty ignorant, and will not realize if he is right or wrong, but just wants to sound smart.
5. What is the plan for Huck and Jim?
6. How do Jim and Huck try to find each other in the fog?
Huck does not actually find Jim until the fog clears. Anyway – Jim makes a whooping sound so that Huck can hear where he is. Jim does not make these noises enough, though, so they keep missing each other.
Why doesn’t Huck panic?
Huck does not panic because he knows that the fog will eventually clear.
7. What trick does Huck play on Jim?
Huck pretends that he had never really been lost in the fog, and that Jim had just been dreaming the whole time. He told Jim that he had been sleeping fretfully.
Why do you suppose Jim goes for it?
Because he trusts Huck so much.
8. Why is it a cruel trick?
Again, because he trusts Huck so much. Jim feels that Huck was only using his trust to make a fool of him.
9. What strange thing does Huck do afterwards.
Huck goes into their teepee and apologizes to Jim. He gets on him hands and knees and begs for his forgiveness.
Why does he do it?
He does it because he realizes that Jim is really a good friend, and because Jim told him that he was heartbroken to think that Huck had died, and left him all alone.

Huck Finn: Chapter 16

Introduction Huck gets pangs of Conscience and trouble raises its head.
Questions Answer the following questions.
1. Why does Huck get pangs of conscience?
Because he realizes he is trying to break the law in helping to free a black man. He thinks that he will go to Hell for it. He also thinks that he is being cruel to Jim’s owner, who had never done anything bad to Huck.
Why does he feel bad? Isn’t he doing a good thing?
He feels bad because he is helping to free a black man, which is against the law. He is really doing a good thing, because color doesn’t matter, and he is really just freeing another human. But in his society, it is a bad thing.
Has he thought about what he is doing?
At first, he thought only about having a person to keep him company and to help catch food, which is what Jim was. He did not think about the fact that it was against the law.
Why is Jim happy?
I think that Jim is happier than he was when he was not free, but he will not be happy until he is reunited with his wife and children.
2. How big is Jim’s family?
Wife and a few kids. Not really that huge.
How are we supposed to interpret Huck’s words?
We are supposed to think that Huck is foolish for thinking himself in the wrong for freeing a black man. I don’t think he was foolish to reconsider it, because of where and when he was raised.
Why does he leave the boat?
He leaves the boat to go and tell someone that he has a runaway slave on the boat with him.
2. Who does he run into on the river?
He runs into a bunch of men on a raft, who inquire about runaway slaves.
How does he lie?
He tells them that his Pap is in the boat, and that his family had died of sickness, and that his father is sick. He tells them that no one will come near them, even though it is only the fever. He leads them to believe that his “Pap” had smallpox.
How are his lies different from Tom Sawyer like lies?
His lies are different because Tom Sawyer was very specific in his lies. He had all of the details, and could let them off seamlessly. Huck’s are different because they are more vague.
3. What do they think the rattle snake skin did?
They think that it was giving them the bad luck that they had been experiencing.
When did they miss Cairo
In the fog, or when they are almost hit by a steamboat.
What is the importance of missing that town?
It is the first and only free town in that area. Jim would have been free as soon as he set foot on that soil.
4. How does the steamboat ruin their plans?
Because their raft is ruined, and they just float around for a while afterwards, not really knowing where they are going. The boat made them go a way down the river that they might not have.


Huckleberry Finn 17-18

Introduction We will do these chapters in an odd way. You will only need to answer one of the following questions. However, please answer it in one full page of writing.
Question Answer one of the following questions.
• Twain is at his sarcastic best with the Grangerfords. What are the elements of their lives that he makes fun of?
• Huck is back with white people and he acts in the style that he is accustomed to. How does he treat his slave? How does Buck and the rest of the Grangerfords?
• Huck is back with white people and he acts in the style that he is accustomed to. How does he treat his slave? How does Buck and the rest of the Grangerfords?
Huck treats his slave like he is just a man following around after him. He is not used to having a slave, so he feels odd having someone do everything for him. Huck’s slave really likes him, because all Huck only asks a very few things of him, and lets him loaf around for the rest of the day.
Buck and the Grangerfords treat their slaves as though they could not possibly live without them. They hardly give them a break, and order them around day and night.
Huck is not used to being around people like the Grangerfords. He hated civilization, and the Grangerfords were probably the worst kind of civilized he had yet experienced.
They had many slaves, and, like I said, ordered them around. They owner fine horses, and a huge house. They practically had their own boat and dock.
Worse, however, is the fact that they have a feud. Not one of the members of either family can even remember why the feud was started. Poor little Buck and his siblings, and even their parents grew up learning that a feud was something that every respectable family should have.
They kill the other family without even thinking about it, and would look down upon their family had they not died in some great manner.

• Huck is, at his best, very practical. How is he practical in leaving the town?

Huck Finn 19-20

Introduction
Question Pick one of the following questions and answer it fully.
• Huck doesn’t say a word about the danger the Duke and the Dauphin pose for Huck and Jim. Are they dangerous?
• Huck spends the first several pages describing life on the river. What makes it edenic? Is this Melville’s river, or Emersons?
• Why does Huck and Jim put up with the two of them? Why doesn’t he tell Jim the truth?
Why do Huck and Jim put up with the two of them? Why doesn’t he tell Jim the truth?

Huck and Jim out up with the two of them because they are some people to help keep them company. At one point in the book, Huck mentions that he would rather not argue, if it meant the whole “family” got along.

They also bring quite a bit of adventure, and Huck really likes that. They also bring a lot of “booty” to Jim and Huck.

Huck does not tell Jim because he can see that Jim feel very honored to be in the company of such great people. Even if they do treat him like shut, and he might as well be back in “slaves-vile”, he feels very great serving people like the Duck and the King.

Jim might also think that Huck was only playing a joke on him again.


Huck Finn 21-23

Introduction A word about lynching and pilfering from the town.
Questions Answer on of the following questions in a page of writing.
• Twain has a lot of fun with the "Arkansas" town. What is so ridiculous about them?
• Are we supposed to like Sherburn or dislike him? How does Twain feel about the man that shot someone in the middle of the street? Is he right when he speaks to the crowd?
• Why did more people show up on the second night than on the first?
More people show up on the second night than on the first because they had heard from the people who had gone the night before that it was a terrific show. • Why did more people show up on the second night than on the first?
More people show up on the second night than on the first because they had heard from the people who had gone the night before that it was a terrific show.
I also believe that this shows us something about we human beings as a whole. It shows that not a lot of people are willing to do anything before everyone else has already done it.
It shows us that the people who went on the second night were afraid of going and being made fun of for doing it.
More people are also willing to go to a show once they have heard it is great, and aren’t brave enough to go and find out for themselves, as was mentioned before.


Huck Finn: 24-30

Introduction This long section has little to distinguish it. They have a fun, twisting time with a story of an attempted swindle.
Questions Answer one of the following questions.
• Huck clearly likes the three women. Why? What qualities are good about them?
• Twain, for all his warbling, seems to like the Doctor who comes for the Duke and the Dauphin and tries to expose them. What units Sherburn and the Doctor?
• Why isn’t Jim involved more in the story?
• How is this section also about the mob?
• Who is worse: The mobs of people or the Duke/Dauphin?
I think that the Duke and the King are much worse than the mob.
The mob does not know that what they are doing is wrong. They are just doing what they had been raised to do. They were going to get revenge for someone who they thought had died unjustly.
The king and the duke, however, definitely know that what they are doing is horribly wrong.
More over, as I said before, the mob was trying to avenge someone that they thought should not have died, and, when talked to, were able to see the error in their ways.
The Duke and ther King, however, are being assholes to people that they had never met, to people who had never done anything bad to them. They also could never see the error in their ways.
They tried to steal thousands of dollars drom girls they had never met, and I don’t think that the mob would have done that.

challenges
Write another chapter.
I purposely wrote in the way I did, as the narrator of the story was not that well educated.
The Color Purple

Dear God,

I decide to leave Mr. _____ and go get help with the Reverend Mr. ______ and his wife and me baby. I wish Celie coulda seen the way I stand up up to Mr. _____!
I tell him that I ain’t gonna take it no more, and that I gonna go and live with better people. I tell him I find my baby, and I gonna go help them good folks raise that child right.
So I pack up what little I got, and walk on foot to them nice people’s house. And my, it big! It got many bedrooms, all bigger than the house I live with pappy in.guh y5grc
Reverend Mr. ____ see me, and give me a weird look. Ask me what I am doing there, he get all protective.
His wife come out, and smile when she see me. She tell Reverend Mr. ____ that I be the woman who let her sit on the wagon.
I start a cryin, put on a real good show. I know it wrong, God, but I want so to get away from Mr. ______! I tell them I kicked out of my home, first time in my life I lie bout something that bad.
Well, she take me in her arms, and lead me inside that house quick as lightening. A maid – they have a maid! – come and take my things, and whisk away into back of house. She take me into kitchen, and make me some mighty good food. I so grateful, and I tell her so.
Soon enough, my baby come into the kitchen. I had some doubt, but when I see her, I tell you, my doubt was gone! I know this baby mine, God, I knows it.
I ask the name of the baby, and she tells me it Ophelia.
I go on about how that be such a pretty name, and whatnot. She tells me that she ain’t her real baby, per say, but as soon as she had her, she knew that she must be name Ophelia. She say she just knowed it.
Next day, they tell me they need a maid. They say they can pay me, and I will stay at their house.
So I settle in as a Nanny and a cook. I find my baby, and am taking care of her too! She the most adorable baby in the entire world. She have nappy hair, and I love every strand. I sit and comb her hair every morning. I sing her songs every night, and she go to sleep without fussin’.

Dar God,
Soon enough, they say they is going to Africa, and would I like to come? I said sure I would, I would be able to go right away!
In a week, we going to the ship to Africa. I so excited, I ain’t never been no wheres before! And to be going to Africa, where I’s from, is the best thing ever!
We going to be on the boat for six months, they tell me after we aboard! I don’t know if I a gonna make it! I gonna get so crazy with being in the same place for so long, I don’t know I’m gonna be able to not jump over the side of the boat!
First few weeks of the voyage are horrible! I am sick over side of the boat all the time! I try not to eat too much, for fear of losing it all. The Reverend Mr. ____ and his wife tell me I need to eat more. But I can’t not do it!
I ain’t never been sick like this before. Not never! And they keep telling me the more I take the boats, the less sick I gonna be. They say that the voyage ain’t gone be nearly so bad. But I can’t think of it being anywheres near this bad. I just may stay in Africa!

Dear God,
Few weeks pass since I been on boat. I ain’t gettin no wheres near as sick as I gettin before!!! I can eat, and God, I been eating a lot since the sickness stopped!
I taking care of Ophelia again, now that I ain’t losing my lunch no longer. Or any other meals, for that matter.
Ophelia the sweetest girl ever! I wish pappy had let me keep her! I woulda had so much fun raising her, and I may still be where I am! I love her like I raised her.
Reverend Mr. _____ keep looking at me weird, when he think I not looking. He look at me a lot while I trying to soothe Ophelia when she upset, even after the Reverend Mr. ____ and his wife ain’t able to.
I hear them talkin sometime, before I fall asleep. We all share the same room.
I sleep on the floor, with Ophelia.

Dear God,
Ophelia ain’t bein an angel like she used be when we was at their home. She wake every night, crying as though she tryin’ to ward of the Devil. I hold her and sing lullabies to her and tell it is goin be alright.
Ophelia been gettin sick lately, and I ain’t been ale to figure hide nor hair of it. She wake up and I swear she got the fever.
But the Reverend Mr. _____ and his wife ain’t think so. They think she just sick like I been sick.
I say no, that can’t be. They even tell me so at the start of the voyage. They say that after a few weeks, I won’t be losing my lunch no more.
They say that I be wrong. They tell me I shouldn’t act all uppity like I been acting, telling them that I’m right and they be wrong. They say that they almost doctors, and I ain’t even finished any grade school education.
And that hurt. I been feelin mighty low since they were mean to me like that. I think the Mrs., she feel bad about it. I see her givin me worried looks.
They tell me that small chillen can’t get over the sickness as quick as I did. They say she might be sick the whole time, and maybe even on the way back.
I sure love Ophelia, but I been prayin to you God. I sure ain’t been enjoyin taking care of the poor chile, and I ain’t gonna be able to stand it if it happens the whole way back.

Dear God,
We reached Africa at last!
But my, when I stepped my feet down on that solid ground, I felt like the ground was a movin around worse than the waves ever did.
I been holdin Ophelia when I stepped down, along with all my other things and some of the Mrs’ things.
I nearly dropped all of it! I tell you, the Reverend Mr. _____ almost beat me he yelled at me so loud! I ain’t gonna hold it against them, though. If someone had a been holdin my chile, and I nearly dropped it, then I woulda almost beat them too.
We are stayin in these little huts, smaller than the house I done lived in with pappy. All four of us live in the same hut, and there be less room then there was on the boat.
We all sleep on floor, like we all slaves. It take me back to what mammy and pappy used to tell me.

Dear God,
Since we gotten to Africa, Ophelia’s fever ain’t gotten no better. She broken in small red dots, and they look like someone cut her all over. She been itching herself mighty fierce, too.
I sucked up my pride and I done told the Reverend Mr. ____and the Mrs. that they need to send this poor little chile to a doctor. They just laugh, and tell me there ain’t none good ones in Africa.
Her fever gotten hotter, too. I think I gonna have to take her to the village doctor, at least.

Dear God,
We back in America. I livin with Mr. _____ again.
Ophelia done died! She died o’ something to do with chickens. The Reverend Mr. ______ done blamed it on me, and sent me back here. He said that now the Mrs. was gonna die of heartache.
They both covered all over in red dots.
Mrs. took me to her bedside before I lef though, and told me the only reason she done took me in was because was Ophelia’s mammy. She knew that from the moment she done set eyes on me in town.
I don’t think I have nothin’ to live for no more.

THIS IS MY FUCKING STORY ABOUT MEETING THE CLASSMATE!!!!

The salty smell of the sea, the gentle rolling of the boat, the sound of small waves lapping against the sides. The day seemed beyond perfect, with the sun shining down on our unprotected heads, our bare arms shining white, as though challenging the sun to brown them without our permission.
Valley of the Dolls and a bottle of chilled Heineken in hand, I wander the deck listlessly, trying to pick a seat unoccupied by a tourist who would inevitably end up leaving their clutter all over the beach for others to clean up, who would spend their few days in their multi-billion dollar houses and then leave for the year, contented with the fact that it wasn’t money wasted.
I settled down onto the plastic seat, sitting towards the soft breeze, and opened my book. Just as I was becoming entirely absorbed in the book, I hear a person settling themselves next to me; a little too close for comfort.
Grudgingly looking up, I saw a face that immediately struck me as familiar. A little more filled out perhaps; a little more hair, but definitely someone I knew. The face brought back to me right away the distinct feeling of walking tentatively over hot sand, of bonfires and cobblestones.
“Cedric.”
The two-and-a-half-hour ferry ride passed quickly, as we both exchanged memories of our youth on Nantucket. Cedric had become a pilot for the Air Force, and I mentioned that I was now making a living as a writer. It soon became clear to me that Cedric had quite an obsession with Iris.
Through out our lengthy conversation, he kept referring back to her, asking me if I remembered this instance or that day. I smiled and said that I did; but, to tell the truth, I remembered very little about her, except for the fact that she had died too young.
The boat docked all too soon, and we left each other after he gave me his address, and I said I would check in on him from time to time.
A few nights later, Cedric stopped by my hotel room, the light summer rain dripping off of his matted hair. He had come by, as he told, to drop off a manuscript of stories that he had written about Iris, hoping that, since I was a writer, I could give him a few helpful comments on them.
He asked if he could come in to dry himself off. I lied to him, making up some excuse about having to meet my friends in town.
With that, Cedric dashed into the rain, and out of my life. I never did understand how he found out where I was staying.
Shrugging it off, I picked up the manuscript, and began to read.

Blink 182 spilled out of the opened window of the Masda Protégé at an ear blasting volume. Mike and I were just finishing up a game of hack in the parking lot off Jetties. We loved to watch the tourists, making jokes about the fat ones, and trying to talk to the skinny ones.
I’m sure I was about sixteen then. It was right about when we were supposed to be wearing baggy pants and Gundam shirts, shoes with the tongues sticking out, and spiky bleached hair.
My whole summer back then seemed to be made entirely up of going to town or the beach to hack, grabbing a bite at the shack that was conveniently placed at the end of the beach, so the people who had paid millions of dollars to be there wouldn’t have to walk too far to get a three-dollar hot dog with extra catsup and mounds of relish.
Just as Adam ended, and Incubus started up, we finished the hack session, shut off the car, and headed to the shack to grab a bite. Having once worked there, I knew most of the employees, and got a discount.
When I reached the takeout window, I was astonished to see not the familiar face of Stacy, but shocked to see the face of a woman that I would soon come to know as Iris.
Luckily, it was right before her break. She came out the door, untied her apron, let her hair loose, and took my hand. We walked down the boardwalk, oblivious of the others trying to use it, and sat together, watching the waves splash against the shore and the children playing in the gentle surf.
Relatively soon, we were known as a couple. The names Cedric and Iris were often spoken one with the other; I liked it that way.
As so often happens on small islands such as Nantucket, a rumor started circulating. To me, however, it was the truth, even though I should have known better and now despise myself for taking it so seriously.
I was at a party with Iris one night when I heard it. Iris had gone off in a group to use the bathroom, or whatever that nonsense is that girls do. My buddies and I, all adorned in Metallica shirt and cargo pants were gathered around the blazing fire, Heinekens in hand.
"So, Cedric. You and Iris are still together, even after what happened. If I were you, I woulda lost that bitch as soon as I heard."
I spit out my mouthful of sour beer. "What are you talking about?!" I already had my hands made into fists.
"I heard she slept with some guy. Some summer guy."
After Josh said this, every one of my friends agreed that they had also heard the rumor, and that I was the most whipped boy they knew. Every one of them told me to dump her, and that I was a gutless jerk if I didn’t.
I decided right then that my relationship with Iris was not as important as what my friends thought of me. That night, I planned and executed a horrifying breakup with Iris, which sent her flying away in tears.
If she had been emotionally sound, she would have known not to drive after drinking, even if it had only downed a few beers.
Iris died that night. She was hit by a drunk driver, whom she could have avoided had she herself been totally sober.
It was my fault that she died, and I never even found out about it until I called her parents the next day, realizing how wrong I was, and that I should have found out from her if the rumor was true.

Putting down the manuscript, I couldn’t help but let out a sad sigh. I knew that Iris had been killed in a car crash. But I had no idea as to the circumstances.
It was all Cedric’s fault.

Natalie Barrett
Huck Finn Quiz

"It was a close place. I took it up, and held it in my hand. I was a-trembling, because I'd got to decide, forever, betwixt two things, and I knowed it. I studied a minute, sort of holding my breath, and then says to myself:
"All right, then, I'll go to hell"
Chain of Why’s
1. Why does Huck think he will go to Hell?
Because he is helping to free a black man.
2. Why does he think it a crime to free a black man?
He thinks it is a crime to free a black man because he was raised to believe that black people are slaves.
3. Why is a black man a slave and not a white man?
Because white men came to America first, and think themselves superior.
4. Even though it is against the law, is freeing a black man really wrong? (I know this does not begin with why)
No, it is not wrong. In short, not all laws are right - and not all white people deserve to be free.

FOUR QUESTIONS
1. Why does Huck think he will go to Hell?
2. Does Jim end up being set free in the end?
3. In real life, would we be sent to Hell for doing something against the law, even though we know the law is wrong? (Such as the law in certain countries that says men are allowed to beat their wives, and women are not allowed to show their faces.)
4. In the movie Labyrinth, would Sarah go to Hell for trying to free he little brother, even though what she was doing was right?



"She done it, too; and she done it beautiful. She done it so beautiful it was good to hear; and I wished I could tell her a thousand lies, so she could do it again.” I DID NOT SEE THE SECOND PART OF THIS QUOTE
I says to myself, this is another one that I'm letting him rob her of her money. And when she got through they all jest laid theirselves out to make me feel at home and know I was amongst friends. I felt so ornery and low down and mean that I says to myself, my mind's made up; I'll hive that money for them or bust. "

Chain of why’s
1. Why does Huck rely on lying so much?
Because lying has gotten Huck out of many predicaments.
2. Why does only lying help him out of these situations?
Because sometimes people would rather believe lies than the truth.
3. Why would people rather believe lies than the truth?
Because lies can be just what people want to hear sometimes. The truth
can often be harsh.
4. In the end, do most people end up telling the truth (in some way or the other)?
I think that yes, in the end, lies get to be too much for people to handle, and they end up revealing the truth.

Four Questions
1. Why does she feel bad?
2. Will Huck ever feel bad about lying so much?
3. How is the oldest boy in the movie Rent a Kid similar to Huck? How are their situations different?
4. Do people think about other people’s feelings anymore, or do they just lie and tell the truth for their own means?


"But I reckon I got to light out for the territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she's going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I can't stand it. I been there before."

Chain of Why's
1. Why does Huck not want to be civilized?
Because he does not want to live be someone else's standards.
2. Why do most people want to live by everyone else's standards?
Because they want to be accepted by society, even if it means they will not be happy.
3. Why do people not care if they are happy?
Because most people consider lonliness - and being outcasted - as worse than being unhappy.

Four questions
1. Why does Huck want to get to the territories "before the rest?"
2. Will Huck - even though he is so independant - really make it in the territories without anyone to keep him company?
3. Is America civilized? If we are, then is the country really as free as we claim it to be?
4. Is Ahab civilized?



"You can't pray a lie…I found that out"

Chain of Why's
1. Why would anyone try to pray a lie?
Because they are doing what others consider is right or wrong, even if they do not believe it themselves.
2. Why would they lie to themselves like that?
Because it is easier than knowing the truth.
3. why are lies better than the truth.
Because the truth can be terribly harsh.

Four questions
1. Why is Huck trying to pray a lie?
2. Will Huck end up realizing the truth is right?
3. Is Cher all one big lie?
4. Are people who only pray because they are forced to better or worse than people who pray lies? Or is it the same thing?

SATIRE
Barr - I changed what you said I should.

Life as a waitress is often hard. We get paid so little, and have to deal with the horrible rudeness of many of our customers. They think that just because they are tourists, they are our saviors.
Nevertheless, I always managed to keep a cool head and a smile on my face. I managed to finagle a sizable tip from many of my customers.
There was one person that sticks out in my mind, however.
Let me just say that I love working at Café Belavita, and many of the other waiters and waitresses and hostesses and whatnot are like family to me, and we often have a wonderful time. We would all gather in the back corner of the restaurant when there was a lull, and make fun of those assholes that we served until there were tears brimming from the corners of our eyes.
It was a particularly slow day, as the weather was unusually warm for the early spring, and many people were taking advantage of the day and going to the beach, not sticking themselves inside to be served cold food that had been sitting there since that morning.
It was the perfect day for my friends to come in, as I could spend as much time with them as I wanted, and not piss off the boss. There were about five or six of them, and I remember that they were being quiet for a change; I think they were just hung over from the night before. Anyways, they did order an awful lot of bread.
I was sitting with them, enjoying a cool glass of water, and a laugh, when the door burst open suddenly. I felt so bad for the hostess – one of my good friends. She had been half asleep by the door, and the man who headed the group of people coming in looked like he wanted to give her a haranguing for not being at his beck-and-call right away.
The hostess seated the party. They were obviously above us, and you could tell they knew it. She happened to seat them in my section, as a bit of a joke I think.
Pulling myself away from the laughter of my friends, I sprung over there. I had had a really good day, and I did not want to ruin it by getting anyone pissed off at me.
“Can I get you something to drink?”
“Do we get free refills?” The head of the party demanded of me.
“Well, no-“
“Why not?! We pay enough to come and live here; why can we not get free drinks? Get the manager; I wish to have a talk with him.”
“My pleasure.” I managed to squeeze out between my teeth.
I went into the kitchen and grabbed him, giving him a look that told him not to mess with this customer.
“He’ll be right out. Can I get you all something while you wait?”
They all ordered drinks, and the man got water. Why was he worrying about free refills when he was getting water?!
The manager must have settled the dispute, because when I came back out with the drinks, the entire party was smiling and being jovial. After I took down their orders, and went and got my friends their food, I was able to sit down with them once again.
From their table, I could hear the group of people chatting. I heard the head of the group mumble something about free condiments, and half-priced desserts.
All too soon, I had to get the party their food. As I was doling it out, the man was talking about how he had recently donated large sums to charity – he had a huge grin on his face. I thought that a man who donated money to charity could not be all that bad, even if he was cheap.
When I sat back down with my friends, he was talking about some new home he had bought on the island, or some such thing. Soon he started on about the grand works of art he had purchased.
“Do you know who that is?” My friend, Jason, asked under his breath.
“A very rich man!” I joked.
“No, seriously. I saw his picture in a magazine. His name is L. Dennis Kozlowski. He is supposedly some business tycoon. I read some pretty iffy things about him. There was something about tax fraud squeezed somewhere in there.”
“How could a man be as cruel as you are trying to make him look, when he has donated millions of dollars to charities?”
“Ha!” He laughed under his breath, and I could sense more than a little frustration, “All donations to charities can be written off, can’t they? No tax-paying for our good old pal Kozlowski!”
Ironically, this man never left a tip.