Blog 7

Pobby and Dingan is one of the a little books which is about kids and their thoughts. Last one is Persepolis. At first, when I read about this book, I didn't really understand what is really about. Two imaginary kids are the title of the book, and some parts of the main characters. I even didn't understand how people's reaction. They act really strange. But words by words, pages by pages, I have already read about half of the book. Then I started to understand a little bit about what the author tries to tell us about. All the fake and strange parts in this book have relationship with psychology, and the kids' world. The words in this book are really simple, but there are enough emotion in the words. Some of them really surprised me. When Kellyanne asks Ashmol to make a funeral of Pobby and Dingan, and she says that Ashmol can use the huge opal as the cost to pay of funeral, in Ashmol's thoughts there is a sentence: I never thought Death is such important. That one really shocked me. I can understand and know every single words here in this sentence, but I still can feel that kind of strong and powerful emotion and confusion. That is the first time to let a 8 years old kid starts to get in touch about death, which is the problem that human beings tried to figure out about thoudsands of years. Of course no one gets the answer, and it is still one of the biggest fear in human being's mind. Whole of the book when the author starts to talk about emotional things, he uses the same style with this. Simple words with strong meaning. I although can say the style of the whole book is just like a young kid is telling you a story, he even doesn't know well about vocabulary to describe and modify, but he uses his pure emotion to tell you what he thinks. I like this book because it was just like an epitome of my childwood. I can hardly remember what it was about, but after I read this Pobby and Dingan, it refreshes my childhood memory a lot. For example about the imginary friend. I think everyone would have this kind of special experience. When people were young, some of them are quiet, or maybe the environment doesn't allow them to have a well-connected community. So they have to play and spend their time longly, maybe their parents don't spend a lot of time with them. That makes them have a habbit to be alone, but they still want to have some friends. For the kids, the mostly happen thing is they always talk with themselves. Then they start to imagine if there are some friends near them, and they will care about them, and show their friendship, and spend their time with them. When I was young, I didn't try to have an imaginary friend, but I tried to make some of my toys become my friend. I did for the things like this is I made my shoes like a god. I respect them, and I pray to them for fortune of next day. I can feel the same in this book, which shows the desire to be socialized. 

Goals

This is the first marking period of my second school year here, and my classes are getting harder. In last year my English class was not that good, I didn't understand what the class went on and I didn't talk. So in this marking period, I tried to talk more in class and get more participation about class. I focus more in class and I tried to write better essays, although writing is the worst part of my English learning.  I think I already improved about my reading skills, especially about poems. I think I am getting started to know more imformation about poems, in the past I didn't really understand this kind of form of literature. I think I still need to improve about writing, which is my weakest part. I will improve myself to do more valuable writing works. I don't know about my grade in this marking period of English class, but for my goal about next marking period is getting at least 1/3 letter grade, and I wish I will reach A- . 

Although I am not good at English class. For next marking period, I will try to care more about homework, and do them especially blogs on time, not like this ( I am already late). I believe I will get better day by day.

Quiz

1. Who do you think the poem "Streets" is about? Why? Use evidence from the poem to explain your answer.

I think the poem Streets is about the author's father. From the first of the poem " a man leaves the world he lives and grows up, and in the second stanza there are figs. I think this is the evidence that shows she is writing about her father in this poem.

2. In "Streets," how many lines are there in stanza 4? How many sentences?
8lines, 5 sentences.

3. In stanza 3, there is an example of personification. Say what it is and explain why that is an example of personification.

"The sky which sews and sews, tirelessly sewing, drops her purple hem. " It is personification that Nye makes the sky into a needlewoman. The author uses "she" and sew as a action that human do. 

4. Identify two things being contrasted in the poem "Streets" and discuss why the author might wish to highlight that contrast. What is the message she sends in that contrast?
The author contrasts in the poem are about two kinds of people. One is the people who sleep completely at night and waking refreshed in day, and other one is the people who dreams all the time and live separatly in past and now. I think the author wants to show that in some way that her mother said about her father is a dreamer, always lives in the past and lost world.  She wants to show us that there is also a kind of person who is like his father, in the lost world all day long. 

5.How many stanzas are in the poem "Hidden" and how many sentences are there?
3 stanzas, 3 sentence.

6. In "Hidden," what do you think it means to "tuck the name of a loved one under your tongue for too long"? Explain your answer.
I think if people just hide the one they loved and without a word, it will become a pity.

7. Connect the poem "Hidden" to any other poem or poems we have read by Nye. How is "Hidden" similar to those others in theme or message? Explain.
Hidden tells us that we need to love, before we lost the chance to love. For other poems that Nye wrote, I think this is the similar theme.

8. In the interview, Nye stated that "the fuel that feeds her" is poetry, words, language. In this poem, though, it seems like the "fuel that feeds you" refers to something different. What do you think it refers to? Use evidence from the poem to explain your answer.
I think it refers to the people that they see you as their important part of their life but you don't see them important, or it's about something you don't really interested in, but in the future you find you really need it but you don't have chance.  No one sees what you used to have, but you will know what you lose after it gone. 

Quiz

1)      Review these lines:

Skin had hope, that's what skin does.

Heals over the scarred place, makes a road.

What do you think these two lines mean? Offer an interpretation and back it up using

specific evidence in the poem.

I think skin here that the author wants say is, skin as a symbol of protection, just like skin protects animal's body. Here skin means protect people from war, she hopes "skin" as a symbol to peace, and heal the people in the war. She believes that heals can make a road for people to escape of pain.

2)      What could skin be a metaphor or symbol for?

              l think skin that author uses here, she wants skin as a symbol for protection and peace. Skin protects animal's body. She wants there will be a "skin" to help all the people in war can escape from the pain of war, just like a strong protection and leads people forward to be peaceful.

4)      Based on what you know about the poet, what is the significance of the line "Love means you breathe in two countries"?

Two countries had war together for a long time. We know the background is about the war between Israel with Palestine. Nye thinks both two countries have no reason to have war expect for nationalism and territorial dispute. She thinks it's not the reason that is enough for people to die and lose their family and life. She beliebes love exceeds countries' boundary lines, it's all around the world. We need to love each other because we are all human beings. Breathe in two countries has the meaning with people live without any thought about different countries. They are all like a one huge family.

Summary for the poem

Here is the summary of the poem My Father and the Fig Tree. 

This poem talks about the author's father and his favorite plant--- Fig Tree. She wrote about her father's life which is around fig trees, and the author's memory about fig trees. 

To compare with other fruits, her father only cares about his fig trees, and he always complains about why there's no any fig trees in their houses in United States. He always tells folktale story to his daughter which are all about fig trees. It seems like fig trees in everywhere of his life, even in religion. 

His present for Allah is a great fig tree. So as author rememebrs her father, her memory is full of good smelling of figs. Fig trees also mean hometown and motherland for him! So that's one of the reason that author's mother said her father " What a dreamer he is. Look how many things he starts and doesn't finish". Also for the new gardens in their house in United States, her father doesn't care about other plants. Maybe because his heart is already left in his hometown. In the last, her father sang a fig tree song, he seems happy with the fig trees aroung him. What a typical Arabic people he is!

Poems

Papa told me that, Arabics' life is mysterious.

Faith is more important than other things.

He went to Arab as a guest.

"People around the world think their life is strange and sick,

but I think they are just faithful.

Poems

Papa told me that, Arabics' life is mysterious.

Faith is more important than other things.

He went to Arab as a guest.

"People around the world think their life is strange and sick,

but I think they are just faithful.