Journal #5

     In Cry, The Beloved Country, Paton characterizes men to be the powerful leaders. Men are the ones who are correct and make the choices. Such as Kumalo's brother who is a very good politician. Woman however are characterized to be the mothers, and to take care of the house. Or Kumalo's sister who is a prostitute and a liquor seller. It seems like woman will do anything for money, whether be prostitution or selling liquor. Msimangu told Kumalo, "I sent for you firstly because she is a woman alone" (53). This shows that woman are dependent on men, and need them for protect them

Journal #4

    One quote that i think may contribute to the theme of Cry, The Beloved Country, is "If there is mist here, you will see nothing of the great valley. The mist will swirl about and below you, and the train and the people make a small world of their own" (41). This quote points out how strong the culture is from the people and how the emotional effect that the setting has on someone. It adds to the tone of the book with the mysterious adjectives that describe the mist. Another quote that stood out to me was, "Kumalo's voice rose a little, as does the noise of a child, or indeed of a grown person, who wants others to hear" (43). This expresses that Kumbalo is an important character that has something important to say that might have a big part with the conflict or outcome of the novel. I also noticed that Paton repeats "the small child" throughout chapters 1-4 instead of using a name for the child. This decision creates an unknown about this character which makes the reader intrigued.

Journal #3

    The theme that I identified in Lord of the Flies was: fear as a form of coercion creates a survival instinct, especially in children. This theme is developed throughout the whole book, beginning with when the boys found themselves on an unpopulated island full of mysteries. The doubt of survival created fear in everyone, especially the younguns. Golding continued to introduce fear as a major topic with the introduction of the nightmares about monsters and dangerous creatures on the island. When the boys actually saw some sort of beast, the fear grew into epic proportions. Coercion occurred when Jack divided the tribe. He threatened to kill the boys if they didn't follow him. Separating the camps, the war paint, and Rodger's twisted violence all contributed to the oncoming mayhem.

Journal #2

     I think the novel would have been very different with female characters because it would have brought in a  lot more issues. Many of the decisions would have been judged upon gender which would of changed the whole meaning or purpose of the book. There also would have been more distractions and drama between characters. With teen girls and boys on an island with no supervision, there would have been relationships and romance that would have totally changed Lord of the Flies. 

Journal #1

    From the first page in Lord of the Flies, there were many observations made that really made sense with the rest of the book. One was the alliteration of the letter S. Golding uses the sound of S throughout this whole passage as he described the setting and characters. The sound of S rolls of the tongue easily and  flows with the rest of the text. The sound is calming and soft. I think Golding chose to repeat the letter S to create a mood right away. Even before he begins writing he shows importance in the letter with the title of the chapter, "The Sound of the Shell". This letter could also be a way of foreshadowing. Piggy's spectacles are very important in the book and they to begin with the letter S. 
    Another part that stood out was when Golding was describing the bird; "a vision of red and yellow, flashed upwards with a witch-like cry". Not only does this help describe the setting but this image of the tropical bird also connects with the image of fire. That foreshadows the huge island fire at the end of the book. I think Golding chose to foreshadow that event because it is the climax of the book. Its the reason they get rescued and its also the effect of their madness.