Three Day Road

1)

The key scene in the book, in my opinion, is the one where Elijah eats human flesh, and tries to have Xavier eat it. This is because a key theme in the book is Elijah’s descent into madness, and Xavier’s growing alienation from him. I feel that this scene represents this, not because it is a point of no return, but because Xavier is forced to admit that Elijah will have to be killed. For Xavier, this is the turning point where he realises that Elijah has really gone too far. 

 2)

Page 310“ ‘Is it horse?’ I ask, pulling gristle from my mouth.

Elijah smiles his wicked little-boy smile. ‘No. It is human. German, to be exact’

I jump to my feet before I know that I do it and approach Elijah with balled fists. Then I find myself reaching for my knife. But what he has said makes me gag and I kneel and stick my finger down my throat. The contents of my stomach come out in a slimy glob.

‘X! Calm down!’ Elijah say. ‘I am only joking. What? Do you think I’m crazy? I was kidding. It’s just horsemeat.’

His forehead creases innocently and the gleam of the trickster is in his eyes. He pops some meat in his mouth and swallows. ”

 3)

One of the themes in this book is Elijah’s relationship with Xavier. At first, they are comrades, joining the army together. Then, Xavier becomes jealous of Elijah’s recognition and alienated from what Elijah does. They become further separated, with Elijah plunging further into darkness and Xavier feeling more and more isolated. This scene is a prime example of this isolation, with Elijah doing terrible things in front of Xavier, and even trying to trick him into eating it. This scene is a prime example of “Elijah’s transformation into a windigo”.

The Boy In the Moon

A) Comment on Ian Brown’s impressions of the L’Arche communities in Montreal and in France that he visits. (Chapters 11 and 12) Provide specific support by quoting the book directly. 

Ian Brown is thoroughly impressed by the l’Arche communities. He is amazed at how well disabled people do when they are treated with respect and as equals, and how the staff learn from the arrangement as well. He also gained self confidence from the experience and gained more respect for disabled people even though he has a disable son. “I realized I was afraid of everything: afraid to take a shower, for fear of waking everyone up; afraid to come down to breakfast. (By nine in the morning the house was alive with noise – long high moans, train hoots, ays and oohs and clapping). But something about the unassuming nature of life in the foyer fixed that.” (page 217). 

B) Describe what you have learned about life with a profoundly disabled child. How has Brown’s memoir altered/clarified your attitude? Provide specific support by quoting the book directly.

  This book has shaped my understanding in subtle ways. I think it has helped me understand that disabled people are just as human as anyone, but cannot express themselves as fully as us. It has also brought to my attention how needy these people are and how much help they require. I also think it has helped me to lose my adversity to them by becoming familiar and learning more about them. “At 10:47 that night, Brenda roused Cliffie from the TV. ‘Cliffie, time to go to bed.’ ‘Mom’, he said. Nothing delayed about that tone. ‘Why can’t I stay up? I’m a teenager’. He had the routines of normal life down.” (page 129). 

 

C) Provide three questions for Ian Brown.

    i)  What was the hardest part about raising walker?

    ii) Do you think you were driven to rationalise Walker’s existence?

    iii)  Why are so many parents of disabled children so intent on raising them and trying to get something out of it, rather than wanting to abandon them?

Blog post on Scott Fitzgerald

Part A

Scott Fitzgerald
Scott Fitzgerald appears to have brilliant writing, but is emotionally undeveloped and dependent on Zelda. He is very innocent, relying on his friends and spouse to guide him on his travels and console him. Zelda also easily leads him into drinking, becoming addicted with no way to bring himself out of his pit. Despite this, he is a good-natured person, being loyal and positive towards his friends even when drunk or in a bad mood.

Proof:
Page 181:
“They would quarrel and then make up and he would sweat out the alcohol on long walks with me, and make up his mind that this time he would really work, and would start off well. Then it would start all over again”

Page 181:
“Scott did not like the places nor the people and he had to drink more than he could drink and be in any control of himself, to stand the people and the places, and then he began to have to drink to keep awake after he would usually have passed out. Finally he had few intervals of work at all.”

Page 184:
“He was very difficult that fall but he had begun to work on a novel when he was sober. I saw him rarely when he was sober, but when he was sober he was always pleasant and he and he still made jokes about himself.”

Part B

Page 169, bottom half.
I love this section of writing because it describes beautifully Scott’s immaturity without being snide as well as successfully injecting humour into the scene. The entire section is fun to read and yet this does not detract from the deeper meaning that it means to convey.

Page 186:
“Nobody thought anything of it at the time. It was only Zelda’s secret that she shared with me, as a hawk might share something with a man. But hawks do not share. Scott did not write anything any more that was good until after he knew that she was insane.”
This piece is quite well written because it leaves quite an impression on you. Instead of simply telling you that she is insane, he builds into it the implications of what it means and gives you a nascent sense of dread.

Page 1:
“It was a sad, evilly run café where the drunkards of the quarter crowded together and I kept away from it because of the smell of dirty bodies and the sour smell of drunkenness.”
I love this passage because it is very evocative, and done in a clever way. Rather exhaustively describe the café, Ernest simply supplies subjective observations and allows the reader to supply their own vision.

Part C
1. Do you think Scott is a good (moral) man?
2. Do you think Zelda had a positive effect on Scott and his life, or a negative one?

Plot Summary

The story begins with the main character, Daniel Thomson (referred to as Zach), living in the mental ward of a Peterborough hospital. He isn’t insane, but he has a unique condition in which he can only eat a certain type of sundae, and can’t be exposed to sunlight. His peaceful life is shattered, however, when a strange man crashes in to his hospital, and tries to get him out. He fails, but the mystery deepens as Zach is met by his uncle who tells his that his father was a vampire hunter, and Zach himself is a vampire. Worse, he is also being pursued by the “Baron Vrolok”, who is intent on killing Zach after his father tried to kill the Baron many years ago. He also tells him that the police chief in Peterborough is working for vampires. Not much time passes, however, as the strange man returns, and breaks him out of the hospital, successfully this time. Zach learns that the man is also a vampire called Mr. Entwhistle. Mr Entwhistle tries to keep him safe. He is separated from Mr. Entwhistle, however, and is forced to flee away with his friend Charlie, all the while being pursued by the police. Eventually, his uncle takes him to a safe area, but it turns out that his uncle is actually deluded working for Vrolok. However, Zach manages to best Vrolok in a final confrontation and save the day.

Diction and Character Development

The diction in this book is well done, entertaining, and believable. The descriptions are not long, but they are enough to convey a mental picture of the action. It is also suite well to the character: he is 15, but has lived inside and at night throughout his life. The language conveys his immaturity well, demonstrating innocence through a use of small words and withholding of judgement throughout the book. The character development of the characters is smooth and uncomplicated; there are few discrepancies between the beginning and end versions of the characters. The dialogue is believable as it is consistent with the character’s personalities and does not go in any unnatural direction.

Page 162 (after he has recently discovered that he is a vampire and has been chasing a deer) “My eyes locked on the buck’s throat. An instant later, it was dying with my fangs in its throat.”

I like this passage because it gives very little detail, yet conjures a vivid image, that of him drinking its blood. This demonstrates the author’s skill of creating vivid images with few words. The abruptness of it also helps, too- rather than describe his lunge, the author simply cuts straight to the buck dying.

Appealing Passages

Page 146 (He is staying with his friend, Charlie, and meeting a female friend of his at a party)

“She was sitting beside me. When she spoke she had this habit of reaching out to touch my arm, as though she needed to get my attention every time she had something to say. It made my insides tumble.”

This passage is good because it is a great example of how the author uses diction to make the main character seem childlike. Rather than using advanced or complex phrases, he sticks to simple words arranged in a simple way, which manages to evoke more emotion than if he had used more advanced language.

Page236 (At the climax of the book, where he realizes that his uncle has been tricked and that Vrolok wants to torture and kill him)

“His eyes dug in to my brain. What he saw there made him smile, and that’s when I realized that my uncle had bee duped. My sanity was just fine. I didn’t need a test to tell me that. Neither did the Baron. This was about revenge. It was about cruelty. It was about evil and torture and death. And unfinished business.”

 

This passage appeals to me because it gives the main character a difficult moral and ethical decision, yet at the same time reaffirms his sanity and integrity and so is a comforting passage to read in relation to one’s real life troubles.

Night Runner