The Crucible... strict society

Best book so far! And i am not just saying that because it is short! It really was good and it made a very clear point to me, but first- the blog!

Puritanism is based on belief that only a few select people are getting into heaven. With that said, Puritans try to maintain a Goddly and holy life. But if anyone questions that, they're thought to be unholy. So in the beginning of the Crucible, Parris' daughter, Betty, is dancing naked with a black slave named Tituba. Reverend Parris catches them both doing this. After this scene, Betty passes out, which causes the townspeople to suspect witchcraft. Because of this a group of girls start havoc amongst the town accusing women and men of being witches. They do this because theyre trying to cover up what they were doing in the woods. These rebelious girls are the reason that some women and men of the town are declared witches and get hanged. The reason this all happened is because some girls just wanted to do something that wasn't considered holy, but while they did this they didn't want anyone to know. If the Puritan town found out then the girls would be considered "Unholy" and were going to hell.

I think the point Arthur Miller was trying to make is much deeper than just a time in history made into a play. I believe Arthur is trying to say that it is impossible for a human to be perfect. We are all going to make mistakes, but that is no reason to believe that we are all going to hell, no matter if you have made one mistake or a billion.

There were so many surprising aspects to this book: the drama, the lies, the unfair judging, and all the people affected. The whole town became infected with this disease of fake witchcraft. The witchcraft was really themselves!

The Scarlet Letter

This book was a very uncomfortably read for me. Everything down to the pastor slowly dieing to the life and struggles of the girl, Harriet. By uncomfortable i meen that it was hard to get through. The writing style was a bit more complicated to understand and the story was adult. I admire Hester in a way, thinking that even through bad times keep your head up and make the best of a bad situation.

The plot of this novel was simple but well made and creative. The longer the Reverend knows about the himself being the father, the more guilt that gets built inside, and eventually it takes his life. The husband (chillingsworth) really only wants the Reverend (Dimmesdale) to be guilt about the whole thing, so once the Reverend dies, so does the husband a bit later.

The time period of this book is what really stunned me. In today's society we almost call this socially acceptable; yet in this time period, it was beyond imagineable. The way women were treated was not the propper way a woman should be handled; it was rude to make girls where A's on their chest. As a result, Hester is forced to be single the rest of her life.

The book was a bit hard to follow, but it had a pretty smooth plot that would be good for any modern movie. That is just my oppinion. One mistaker should be forgiven and forgot. It is even more sad to think of some of the punishments the women sometimes had to go through. If I was a girl, I just cant help but wonder if this would offend me. Nonetheless, it was a well written book, with a plain, firm dialogue that did not sway much with emotion.

It is a good and bad reminder: How far we have come in women's rights and how far we have let society slip and accept what used to be unacceptable.

The Great and twitterpaited Gatsby

"The Great Gatsby" book has been another well written novel. Fitzgerald creates a story that seems to be copied by so many modern day love movies, but ends it in a way that is always risky. Let me explain; I didnt like the ending: Gatsby gets murdered and never gets back with Daisy! But that's strangely the thing that I like about this book; the author strays from the typical "Happily Ever After" ending and it just oddly intriuges me.

I also really liked Gatsby. Isn't he a sort of an oddball? That's what I think anyway because he is this guy that throws huge parties and doesnt drink. He loves a girl so much that he buys a huge mansion close to her. He tells extravagent stories about his past that people ponder if they are false or true. He is just Jay Gatsby!

I enjoyed the way Scott Fitzgerald writes the novel in such a way that it seems to be written by Nick. It makes the book a lot more realistically written.

The time period of the novel was so interesting: Cars and parties and love almost seem like modern day things, but once remembering that it is in the twenties, it enlightens my perspective on the whole thing.

The beginning three novels have been amazing and I can't wait for the fourth. I still like "Grapes of Wrath." I have to admit that I couldn't get into this book as much as "Wrath." But nonetheless, "The Great Gatsby" was an intresting read because of the love, the time period, and the crazy ending!

The Grapes of Wrath!!! and hope, faith, and family

WOW! "The Grapes of Wrath" surprised me more than i ever thought it would. The book reminded me that life can be very unfair and tough, at least more than I thought it was. But more than that, it enlightened my "third eye" in showing me that hope, faith, and family matter more than a piece of bread.

First things first, this book did not seem like a fun read. I meen lets be real, the first chapter was talking about the red and gray country of Oklahoma - BORING! But once the pages of chapter two came rolling in and Tom Joad was introduced, the book started its engine. I think it was very nicely written with subtle dialects, unlike Huck Finn with whole words spelled differently. And also, the way the characters of the book were slowly written onto the page was a smooth transition (starting with Tom, and then before you realize it you have a whole family in one car!)

There was one constant on how the book was written: almost every other chapter had a side story that tied into the main story with Tom. Chapter three was about a random turtle at first. But later on I realized that the turtle was symbolic in a way. Let me explain, the turtle never stops moving. Sure, there are obstacles it faces, but it still never stops moving forward. The family is like that little turtle: no matter what impossible challenge meets them, nor big truck that tries to hit them off the road, they always keep moving forward. It comes down to this in life, it is never the end of the road, and the day we stop moving is the day we start dying.

Another big impact to me in this novel was death. Wow, death was like a spreading infection from the beginging to the end. It started with the dying land and then moved on to the family. The dog was hit hard by a moving car; the grandpa had a very vivid stroke; the grandma eventually just died; the ex-preacher, Casy, was hit in the head and died from his crushed skull; and the baby that readers have been waiting through the whole book was stillborn. But despite death, most of the family stuck together the best they could.

Faith. When a journey comes down to life or death, faith is all you have. "The Grapes of Wrath" came down to that very thin line very quickly and remained there till the very last page. This had to be the key thing that kept me intrested in this book. Driving to California, they could only hope for it to be a good land. Faith. Sometimes you just have to believe.

This novel, like I said, surprised me. I only wish I had more time to just read it and appreciate it more than I already have. The end of the book seemed to not end on a good note, but it ended on a hopeful one. Rains have come; the floods washed away their past lives for the hope of something better. Tom has finally matured into what I belive is his destiny. So has Rose of Sharon. I will end my blog with a quote from the leader of the family, who ultimately kept the family from completely falling apart, Ma Joad. "It's too much -- livin' too many lives. Up ahead they's a thousan' lives we might live, but when it comes, it'll on'ybe one." pg 134