Scribe Post 1/19/11

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TemK6CF6lF0&feature=related

Yesterday, brave Beaver Country Day children trekked into the unknown. Some call it vast, some call it beautiful, others call it dangerous, but to Joe Kavalier it is simply Antarctica. In part 5 of Kavalier and Clay, Chabon decides to focus on Joe and his life in the Navy at a base in Antarctica. While Joe isn’t fighting arms to arms in Europe with Nazis, it seems as though he gets his chance. After a tragic carbon monoxide poisoning leaving only Joe and another solider, who goes by Johnny, it seems as though they will never get rescued. One long, cold, wintry day, Joe hears German over the radio. Immediately in his state of cabin fever he tells Johnny that he wants to go after the German, who ends up being a geologist. Johnny fixes up his sea plane and the two head off, midair Johnny dies of a bursting appendix. Joe seems to survive and continues on to clash with fantasy meeting reality. All Joe has ever wanted was to kill a German, and while the one he finds is a geologist no less, there is no stopping him. It is when the two meet that Chabon’s focal point changes to the German geologist, we find that the geologist is fond of Americans and is excited to be able and talk in German, “no less” to a young and educated man. A scuffle breaks out, which in short, Joe kills the German. As he drags the corpse through the tundra, it does not dawn on him until he has reached his destination, that he has murdered a man. In that moment, it breaks Joe’s heart to realize what he has done. Leaving his parents behind, Thomas dying, not saying goodbye to Rosa without knowing she was pregnant with his child had not broken his heart until then. The moment Joe struck the German’s head, reality met his fantasy world, the dream of punching Hilter, just like the Escapist does is suddenly not fulfilled. We then find Joe slowly drifting into depression and drug use. In the cabin that he used, tourists later find the picture of Houdini that Thomas drew for Joe, discarded. By leaving it behind, Joe has left go of his family just like he did when he burnt Rosa’s letters and pictures of their child, Thomas.

THE END

P.S. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mq4XILM4Etg
Alexys-wanna pick this up?

Invisible Man Chapters 8-10 Class Discussion

On a sleepy Monday morning, the 11th grade English class came together. Taus started the questions rolling by asking Mr. Neal what his favorite element was. Lets just say Mr. Neal had a difficult time answering. First siding with Au (gold) and ending with Barium. As a class we then discussed the chapters 8-10 in Invisible Man that were read over the weekend. We analyzed those chapters by going over thoughts or questions us students had come up with. We particularly went into depth of young Mr. Emerson, Taus giving us the lead, “Is there something wrong with him?”, he asked. Mr. Neal replied with, “There is nothing wrong with him per say, but there is definitely something invisible that Ellison is trying to make visible”. With that question said and put out into the minds of us students, books were torn into trying to find the answer.

We began analyzing young Mr. Emerson’s ways and some came up with answers. We first described him, he was nervous, odd, that there was something up with him. Imogene gave a wild guess “He is gay”, Alexys connected the gold cuff links that young Mr. Emerson wore back to Dr. Bledsoe.

In the end as a class we decided that young Mr. Emerson is exotic and probably gay, but was trying to help Invisible Man the whole way by telling him that he did not in fact want to meet with his father because he was a cruel soul. At the end of his spiel he tells the Invisible Man that he already was his fathers prisoner and that the Invisible man should not follow into his footsteps.

Thats it folks....!

The next Scribe-r (?) is EMMY...good luck.

-Imogene Edson