Thursday, August 28, 2008
Evolution and Death
"That night, before falling asleep in my motel bed, I finalized my plan. It was a bad plan, I knew it, but couldn´t come up with nothing better."(pg 257) Th pupil had finally concreted a plan to save human kind from a terrible ending. He was going to consult it with Ishmael but as he got to the carnival he saw it had moved; worst than that Ishmael had died. He couldn´t believe it. "Are you telling me he´s... dead?"(pg 261) I could see, even feel his disbelief. I was much like him because I thought he would organize a plan with his pupil. The narrator picked up all of Ishmael's materials, even the poster he had in his office. I could see that a part of Ishmael was there with his pupil, he was present in him. The narrator would then discover that the poster had two sides. "WITH MAN GONE, WILL THERE BE HOPE FOR GORILLA? The message on the other side reads: WITH GORILLA GONE, WILL THERE BE HOPE FOR MEN?"(pg 262-263)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Leavers Ideas Possible?
As the narrator try´s unsuccessfully to buy Ishmael, a very interesting chapter starts. Why? He begins to tell his pupil about the leavers story. His first lesson of the day begins by asking a previous question "How did man become man?"(pg 236) After some time of discussion, the pupil found an answer."Man became man by living in the hands of the gods."(pg 237) This reminded me of many things in that appeared before in the book, such as the discussion of why Adan took the fruit which belonged to the gods. This time the class would continue and came to a point which was very interesting, the premises for each culture. "The premise for the Takers is the world belongs to man. The premise for the Leavers is the man belongs to the world."(pg 239) These facts would make me think: If the man belongs to the world all his creations belong to the world as well. Also this made me think that the leavers story was that one, to live as though they belonged to the world. The pupil would the deduct that if we followed the leavers way of life we would continue evolving. As Ishmael continued they would come to more important information. "The world doesn´t need to belong to man, but it does need man to belong to it."(pg 243) This seemed to conclude the class, all Ishmael had taught his pupil was to come to this point of the learning.
After long hard work the narrator would be interested in saving the world, and asked Ishmael from were to start. He would answer in a predictable manner but then give him a clue. "You can´t change these things with laws. You must change peoples minds."(pg 249) This sentence would really impact me. I know understand why some people break laws. They break them because in their minds they believe differently as the laws tell them. Getting to the Takers minds will be better than giving them a law of what to do. Ultimately Ishmael told his pupil that the Leavers way of life would let them be free. "There is no significant difference between the inmates of your criminal prison and the inmates of your cultural prison."(pg 252) This shows me that Ishmael believes that we are being trapped in our own prison created by the Takers. After weeks of class, Ishmael would tell his pupil that his teachings were done. Th narrator in disbelief tells him he will be back tomorrow.
After long hard work the narrator would be interested in saving the world, and asked Ishmael from were to start. He would answer in a predictable manner but then give him a clue. "You can´t change these things with laws. You must change peoples minds."(pg 249) This sentence would really impact me. I know understand why some people break laws. They break them because in their minds they believe differently as the laws tell them. Getting to the Takers minds will be better than giving them a law of what to do. Ultimately Ishmael told his pupil that the Leavers way of life would let them be free. "There is no significant difference between the inmates of your criminal prison and the inmates of your cultural prison."(pg 252) This shows me that Ishmael believes that we are being trapped in our own prison created by the Takers. After weeks of class, Ishmael would tell his pupil that his teachings were done. Th narrator in disbelief tells him he will be back tomorrow.
Michelle Obama´s speach
While we listen to Michelle Obama’s speech with a partner try to decide which punctuation mark should be used and where it should be putText of Michelle Obama's speech at the conventionBy The Associated Press – 1 day agoprepared remarks of Michelle Obama wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama for her address to the Democratic National Convention on Monday night in Denver as released by the Obama campaign:
OBAMA: As you might imagine, for Barack running for president is nothing compared to that first game of basketball with my brother Craig.I can't tell you how much it means to have Craig and my mom here tonight. Like Craig I can feel my dad looking down on us. Just as I've felt his presence in every grace-filled moment of my life.At six-foot-six, I've often felt like Craig was looking down on me too - literally. But the truth, is both when we were kids and today, he wasn't looking down on me — he was watching over me,and he's been there for me every step of the way since that clear February day 19 months ago, when — with little more than our faith in each other and a hunger for change — we joined my husband Barack Obama on the improbable journey that's brought us to this moment.But each of us also comes here tonight by way of our own improbable journey.I come here tonight as a sister, blessed with a brother who is my mentor, my protector and my lifelong friend.I come here as a wife, who loves my husband and believes he will be an extraordinary president.I come here as a Mom, whose girls are the heart of my heart and the center of my world — they're the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning, and the last thing I think about when I go to bed at night. Their future — and all our children's future — is my stake in this election.And I come here as a daughter — raised on the south side of Chicago, by a father who was a blue collar city worker, and a mother who stayed at home with my brother and me. My mother's love has always been a sustaining force for our family, and one of my greatest joys is seeing her integrity, her compassion, and her intelligence reflected in my own daughters.My dad was our rock, although he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in his early thirties he was our provider, our champion, our hero. As he got sicker it got harder for him to walk, it took him longer to get dressed in the morning. But if he was in pain, he never let on he never stopped smiling and laughing — even while struggling to button his shirt, even while using two canes to get himself across the room to give my mom a kiss, he just woke up a little earlier and worked a little harder.He and my mom poured everything they had into me and Craig. It was the greatest gift a child can receive, never doubting for a single minute that you're loved, and cherished, and have a place in this world. And thanks to their faith and hard work we both were able to go on to college. So I know firsthand from their lives — and mine — that the American dream endures.And you know what struck me when I first met Barack was that even though he had this funny name, even though he'd grown up all the way across the continent in Hawaii, his family was so much like mine, he was raised by grandparents who were working class folks just like my parents and by a single mother who struggled to pay the bills just like we did, like my family they scrimped and saved so that he could have opportunities they never had themselves. And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values, that you work hard for what you want in life, that your word is your bond and you do what you say you're going to do. That you treat people with dignity and respect even if you don't know them and even if you don't agree with them.And Barack and I, set out to build lives guided by these values, and pass them on to the next generation because we want our children — and all children in this nation — to know that the only limit to the height of your achievements, is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.And as our friendship grew and I learned more about Barack he introduced me to the work he'd done when he first moved to Chicago after college. Instead of heading to wall street ,Barack had gone to work in neighborhoods devastated when steel plants shut down ,and jobs dried up ,and he'd been invited back to speak to people from those neighborhoods about how to rebuild their community.The people gathered together that day were ordinary folks, doing the best they could to build a good life, they were parents living paycheck to paycheck, grandparents trying to get by on a fixed income men frustrated that they couldn't support their families after their jobs disappeared, those folks weren't asking for a handout or a shortcut. They were ready to work — they wanted to contribute they believed — like you and I believe — that America should be a place where you can make it if you try.Barack stood up that day and spoke words that have stayed with me ever since he talked about "The world as it is" and "The world as it should be." And he said that all too often we accept the distance between the two and settle for the world as it is — even when it doesn't reflect our values and aspirations. But he reminded us that we know what our world should look like we know what fairness and justice and opportunity look like, and he urged us to believe in ourselves — to find the strength within ourselves to strive for the world as it should be. And isn't that the great American story?It's the story of men and women gathered in churches and union halls, in town squares, and high school gyms — people who stood up and marched and risked everything they had — refusing to settle, determined to mold our future into the shape of our ideals.It is because of their will and determination that this week, we celebrate two anniversaries. The 88th anniversary of women winning the right to vote, and the 45th anniversary of that hot summer day when Dr. King lifted our sights and our hearts with his dream for our nation.
OBAMA: As you might imagine, for Barack running for president is nothing compared to that first game of basketball with my brother Craig.I can't tell you how much it means to have Craig and my mom here tonight. Like Craig I can feel my dad looking down on us. Just as I've felt his presence in every grace-filled moment of my life.At six-foot-six, I've often felt like Craig was looking down on me too - literally. But the truth, is both when we were kids and today, he wasn't looking down on me — he was watching over me,and he's been there for me every step of the way since that clear February day 19 months ago, when — with little more than our faith in each other and a hunger for change — we joined my husband Barack Obama on the improbable journey that's brought us to this moment.But each of us also comes here tonight by way of our own improbable journey.I come here tonight as a sister, blessed with a brother who is my mentor, my protector and my lifelong friend.I come here as a wife, who loves my husband and believes he will be an extraordinary president.I come here as a Mom, whose girls are the heart of my heart and the center of my world — they're the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning, and the last thing I think about when I go to bed at night. Their future — and all our children's future — is my stake in this election.And I come here as a daughter — raised on the south side of Chicago, by a father who was a blue collar city worker, and a mother who stayed at home with my brother and me. My mother's love has always been a sustaining force for our family, and one of my greatest joys is seeing her integrity, her compassion, and her intelligence reflected in my own daughters.My dad was our rock, although he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in his early thirties he was our provider, our champion, our hero. As he got sicker it got harder for him to walk, it took him longer to get dressed in the morning. But if he was in pain, he never let on he never stopped smiling and laughing — even while struggling to button his shirt, even while using two canes to get himself across the room to give my mom a kiss, he just woke up a little earlier and worked a little harder.He and my mom poured everything they had into me and Craig. It was the greatest gift a child can receive, never doubting for a single minute that you're loved, and cherished, and have a place in this world. And thanks to their faith and hard work we both were able to go on to college. So I know firsthand from their lives — and mine — that the American dream endures.And you know what struck me when I first met Barack was that even though he had this funny name, even though he'd grown up all the way across the continent in Hawaii, his family was so much like mine, he was raised by grandparents who were working class folks just like my parents and by a single mother who struggled to pay the bills just like we did, like my family they scrimped and saved so that he could have opportunities they never had themselves. And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values, that you work hard for what you want in life, that your word is your bond and you do what you say you're going to do. That you treat people with dignity and respect even if you don't know them and even if you don't agree with them.And Barack and I, set out to build lives guided by these values, and pass them on to the next generation because we want our children — and all children in this nation — to know that the only limit to the height of your achievements, is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work for them.And as our friendship grew and I learned more about Barack he introduced me to the work he'd done when he first moved to Chicago after college. Instead of heading to wall street ,Barack had gone to work in neighborhoods devastated when steel plants shut down ,and jobs dried up ,and he'd been invited back to speak to people from those neighborhoods about how to rebuild their community.The people gathered together that day were ordinary folks, doing the best they could to build a good life, they were parents living paycheck to paycheck, grandparents trying to get by on a fixed income men frustrated that they couldn't support their families after their jobs disappeared, those folks weren't asking for a handout or a shortcut. They were ready to work — they wanted to contribute they believed — like you and I believe — that America should be a place where you can make it if you try.Barack stood up that day and spoke words that have stayed with me ever since he talked about "The world as it is" and "The world as it should be." And he said that all too often we accept the distance between the two and settle for the world as it is — even when it doesn't reflect our values and aspirations. But he reminded us that we know what our world should look like we know what fairness and justice and opportunity look like, and he urged us to believe in ourselves — to find the strength within ourselves to strive for the world as it should be. And isn't that the great American story?It's the story of men and women gathered in churches and union halls, in town squares, and high school gyms — people who stood up and marched and risked everything they had — refusing to settle, determined to mold our future into the shape of our ideals.It is because of their will and determination that this week, we celebrate two anniversaries. The 88th anniversary of women winning the right to vote, and the 45th anniversary of that hot summer day when Dr. King lifted our sights and our hearts with his dream for our nation.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Leavers leave things to chance?
As every other day, Ishmael and his pupil begin his class as though it was any other day until the pupil asks about the leavers. this question astonished me because if he was so interested about the leavers wouldn´t he have already asked that question. Ishmael wasn´t as surprised as me. I think he thought the narrator would ask that question. "Why are you interested in knowing the story?". (pg 212) I believe the answer to this question was pretty easy to get. Still the narrator could only say that his reasons were almost unexplainable. "Again, why not learn it?" (pg 212) Ishmael got mad at his pupil, and so he was pushed to explain him why. First told him why the takers story was important to know. "So they can stop enacting it." (pg 213) Then Ishmael would go back to the point of why it was important to know the leavers story. The narrator told him that the story was necessary to know so that if they gave up the takers story, they´d have a story to switch to. This argument convinced Ishmael.
As the discussion of the story of the leavers started, an important question was formed. "How did man become man?".(pg 215) The question wasn´t answered but it was held to be answered later. the teacher continued with his class asking all kinds of questions. "According to Mother Culture, what kind of event was your agricultural revolution?"(pg 215) This began a discussion which would lead to the beginnings when Cain and Abel were alive. The pupil says that as Cain did, takers determine to kill leavers if needed to expand to territory covered by them. Then Ishmael as a good teacher gives a task to his pupil, he will act as a leaver and the narrator as a taker. The taker must convince the leaver that his life is better. " The man lives on the knife-edge of survival and has to struggle perpetually to keep from falling."(pg 220) The pupil says this trying to convince Ishmael that in the takers ways they control their lives, they play god. Their discussion circles around food supply, leavers pick it up and if ther´s no food they stay hungry, instead takers control their food supply. "What the gods provide is enough for your life as animals- I grant you that. But for your life as humans, you must provide that."(pg 226) This line expresses how takers play god, providing what they need for themselves to live. Not depending on the gods. Finally, after a long discussion they com to a conclusion. "The takers are the ones who know good and evil, and the leavers are...? The leavers are those who live in the hands of the gods."(pg 229)
As the discussion of the story of the leavers started, an important question was formed. "How did man become man?".(pg 215) The question wasn´t answered but it was held to be answered later. the teacher continued with his class asking all kinds of questions. "According to Mother Culture, what kind of event was your agricultural revolution?"(pg 215) This began a discussion which would lead to the beginnings when Cain and Abel were alive. The pupil says that as Cain did, takers determine to kill leavers if needed to expand to territory covered by them. Then Ishmael as a good teacher gives a task to his pupil, he will act as a leaver and the narrator as a taker. The taker must convince the leaver that his life is better. " The man lives on the knife-edge of survival and has to struggle perpetually to keep from falling."(pg 220) The pupil says this trying to convince Ishmael that in the takers ways they control their lives, they play god. Their discussion circles around food supply, leavers pick it up and if ther´s no food they stay hungry, instead takers control their food supply. "What the gods provide is enough for your life as animals- I grant you that. But for your life as humans, you must provide that."(pg 226) This line expresses how takers play god, providing what they need for themselves to live. Not depending on the gods. Finally, after a long discussion they com to a conclusion. "The takers are the ones who know good and evil, and the leavers are...? The leavers are those who live in the hands of the gods."(pg 229)
Monday, August 25, 2008
Chapter Ten Ishmael.
The uncles arrival was the begining of an unfortunate series of events. When his uncle was supposed to be there for one day he stayed for two and a half. Then he begins to have a tooth ache which made him miss two other days of learning. The narrator begins to feel very nervous because he feels that not going to Ishmael for a long time will end up in a bad thing. The day he finally decided to go he wasn´t surprised to see that Ishmael was no longer there. "The gambler who puts his last hundred on odd and watches the ball hop decisively on 18 will tell you he knew it was a loosing bet the instant it left its hands. He knew, felt it."(pg 189) This reflects how certain the pupil was that Ishmael was no longer there. His search for him would then begin.
As intensely as he looked he seemed to find people he wasn´t looking for. His search seemed to be endless, he even put a newspaper ad giving a message to Ishmael's last pupils.Until he decided to search in a carnival, were he finally found Ishmael, better known there as Gargantua. As any other being he, Ishmael, began to feel that his pupil was no longer interested in learning so he began to act as if he was of no use anymore. "I didn´t invite you to make yourself my patron, so kindly refrain from patronizing me."(pg 195)Ishmael tells this to the narrator traing to make him come to sense, he is his pupil , not his patron as said over there. After some dialogue the narrator convinces Ishmael to continue his classes with a very impacting sentence. "So what are you going to do? Do I just become failure number five or what?"(pg 195) This makes Ishmael come into reason and continue the class. Though both of them are all mind into the teachings, a family starts to see the pupil talking to the gorilla. Ishmael tries to stop him from talking but he can´t. He then makes the pupil go.
The next day both of them kept going with their teachings. Culture was again brought into the discussion with Ishmael giving the narrator an other definition of it. "It´s the sum total of what has passed along, of course, not just information and techniques. It´s beliefs, assumptions, theories, customs, legends, songs, stories, dances, jokes, superstitions, prejudices, tastes, attitudes. Everything." (pg 199) The leavers seem to recognize their past and accept it letting it become part of their culture. Instead the takers mother culture say that everything of the past should be discarded. They believe this because mother culture convinces them from thinking that hunters lived in misery and that those past peoples are not worth. so takers believe that they need laws to live because they only want one right way to live and that's what laws give them. That's why the prophets are so important to them, because they give them laws to teach them the way to live. "The takers accumulate knowledge about what works well for things. The leavers accumulate knowledge of what works for people."(pg 206)That was concluded after a long discussion between Ishmael and his pupil.
As intensely as he looked he seemed to find people he wasn´t looking for. His search seemed to be endless, he even put a newspaper ad giving a message to Ishmael's last pupils.Until he decided to search in a carnival, were he finally found Ishmael, better known there as Gargantua. As any other being he, Ishmael, began to feel that his pupil was no longer interested in learning so he began to act as if he was of no use anymore. "I didn´t invite you to make yourself my patron, so kindly refrain from patronizing me."(pg 195)Ishmael tells this to the narrator traing to make him come to sense, he is his pupil , not his patron as said over there. After some dialogue the narrator convinces Ishmael to continue his classes with a very impacting sentence. "So what are you going to do? Do I just become failure number five or what?"(pg 195) This makes Ishmael come into reason and continue the class. Though both of them are all mind into the teachings, a family starts to see the pupil talking to the gorilla. Ishmael tries to stop him from talking but he can´t. He then makes the pupil go.
The next day both of them kept going with their teachings. Culture was again brought into the discussion with Ishmael giving the narrator an other definition of it. "It´s the sum total of what has passed along, of course, not just information and techniques. It´s beliefs, assumptions, theories, customs, legends, songs, stories, dances, jokes, superstitions, prejudices, tastes, attitudes. Everything." (pg 199) The leavers seem to recognize their past and accept it letting it become part of their culture. Instead the takers mother culture say that everything of the past should be discarded. They believe this because mother culture convinces them from thinking that hunters lived in misery and that those past peoples are not worth. so takers believe that they need laws to live because they only want one right way to live and that's what laws give them. That's why the prophets are so important to them, because they give them laws to teach them the way to live. "The takers accumulate knowledge about what works well for things. The leavers accumulate knowledge of what works for people."(pg 206)That was concluded after a long discussion between Ishmael and his pupil.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Ishmael
The lessons that Ishmael gives to the narrator have moved me. They have made me think about the path our society has taken. Is it the good way or the preferd way? Douring my life I have had desitions to make although not very important ones. Some such as: Do I go to soccer practice or go to the movies with my friends? Do I read my book or stay plaing video games? Al these decitions have a good answer or a preferd answer. And as Ishmael tells his pupil, or even us, we as human beings have confused the good answer with the preferd answer.
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