Songs About Classism: Atonement Ian McEwan

This is a song that describes the feelings of someone who has been affected by the class system and relates directly to Atonement, as a person of a lower class has been blamed for something because the people of the upper class had no one to blame. This song shows how people of the lower class feel when they have been incorrectly blamed for something that they have not done, just as Robbie felt in the novel by Ian McEwan.

Blog Post #5: Atonement by Ian McEwan

This picture relates well to the main theme of classism in my book, as when a person of the lower class is convicted of committing a crime, they suffer more than people of the higher class. In the picture, a person has been put behind bars, and they appear to be an average person, whereas on the other side of the picture, the woman appears to be of a higher class and has been able to get away from being convicted of committing any sort of crime. In the book Atonement McEwan shows how a person from the upper class can get away without being charged for a crime they have committed, and that by being in the wrong place at the wrong time, a person of the lower class, can be convicted of something they had never done. This picture sends a strong message about the topic of classism, which is that people are often proven guilty of things they haven't done, because someone is unwilling to take the blame.

Leadership Qualities - Which is Most Important?

The most important quality that a leader should have is the ability to listen to what other have to say. In governments like democracy, an elected leader should be the voice of the people, not just the voice of a couple of people. When leaders listen to their electorate, it shows the people, that as a leader, they care about what others think, and are willing to take into consideration the viewpoints of everyone. As a leader, it is their job to bring prosperity, whether to a nation, or just a small community. In the book Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card, one of the character, Graff, talks about how he should not be able to dictate the protagonist, Ender's, life. In his words, he states, "I don't even think it's right of me to decide the fate of Ender Wiggin,"(Chapter 8, page 98) as a response to Major Anderson, whom Graff was having a conversation with, about who should be able to dictate the fate of the whole world. This quote shows that no one should be able to decide for everyone, based on what they think, and that if Graff was a good leader, then he would choose to take into consideration what Anderson was saying and consider changing his opinion on how Ender's future at Battle School would shape up. A leader may have the best intentions, but things may not always turn out as they like, which is where the opinions of their citizens becomes important. If one mind can think in a million different ways, then imagine how many ways a million minds can think. In Chapter 9, on page 136, Card wrote in Valentine Wiggin's point of view, "Peter knew how to exploit fear in his writing - she had to keep coming to him for ideas". This shows that while Valentine may think of the logical way to do things, Peter chose to use violence to get people to see the way he did. While good leaders may not always do the right thing, sometimes it may be for the best of everyone. In Chapter nine, Graff visits Valentine after Ender has been gone for two years, to ask her to write him a letter. Valentine at first refuses, as she now understands that all of Ender's letters were kept away and not sent to her family because they needed him to be isolated. However, Graff knows that Ender is stuck at a certain point of their game, "The End of the World" to be exact, and cannot get past it. Eventually Graff resorts to writing out his own letter and formatting and styling it in the way Valentine usually wrote her letters. This letter gave Ender the determination to continue o with his game, and eventually succeeded in getting past "The End of the World".  This shows that leaders also need to do what is best for their people, as if Ender had not gotten beyond that point in the game, he could not be their successor against the buggers.

When Frustrations Begin - Atonement

            After a long day at school, constant nagging from parents, frustration with homework, and problems at work, one can very well become frustrated. It may not always be to a specific person, it could just be in general, and there may not always be a way to vent it out. While coming to school may seem as if it is not that hard, the amount of stress one undergoes is tremendous. Lessons, group work, and assignments all pile up and cause frustration when they cannot be done all at once. Not to mention peers who do not do their part, as well as teachers who don't explain things using your learning style. Not knowing what is happening can often cause a person to become frustrated, which may occur regularly.
            Frustration is when you feel disappointed, or dissatisfied with something. In my ISU book, the protagonist, Briony, is disappointed with the way The Trials of Arabella; her play that she was putting on for her elder brother, Leon, was coming together. The fact that her cousins could not understand her vision of the play was setting her off, and making her want to say something. However, as she pitied them over the separation of their parents, she did not want to make them feel any worse than they already did. Her mother, who suffered from massive migraines, nagged her despite her tremors that rolled through her skull. While Briony was on summer vacation throughout the first part of the book, one could tell that her cousins were upsetting her more than what was necessary. Briony eventually gave up on putting on her play, and ran to a meadow that she had once found on the outskirts of Tallis' property. While Briony chooses to find a peaceful place to calm down, other people may have a different approach to coping with frustration. While one person may take a jog, another might take a deep breath and continue on. Everyone copes with frustration in different ways, but it is important to know what triggers frustration, and what one can do to help.

Blog Post #3 - Atonement by Ian McEwan

Although the book was not as well recognized as some other international bestsellers, Atonement has had a movie based upon it, and has won a Golden Globe Award. It was given a 8.3/10 stars by Rotten Tomatoes, showing that despite the twisted plot, people have enjoyed it. The movie itself has been compared to others like Pride and Prejudice, Becoming Jane, and Head in the clouds.  (SPOILER!though many of you may not like this book at all ...otherwise read on) At the end of the book, we see that Briony has grown old and has grandchildren frolicking around. We hear about how Robbie was innocent and how Lola was actually raped by Paul Marshall, a friend of Briony's older brother, Leon. Paul Marshall was of the same class, and due to Briony's hatred for the fact that Robbie and rejected her, she blames him, and Marshall is off the hook. Lola actually ended up marrying Marshall, but it was not said as to if it were forced or if it was her own choice. Briony, during her adulthood, managed to find her sister and Robbie, who were a part of the second world war. By becoming a nurse like her older sister Cecilia, she managed to find her and apologize for her actions. Eventually she took back her accusations, and Robbie remained purely innocent of committing any crime. The ending of this story showed how innocent people can be blamed for crimes that they have not committed, and must take the blame of things that people who are higher up in the classist pyramid have done. While the upper class may have seen this as a benefit, the middle and lower classes were at a disadvantage during this time.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Retell:  
              The movie The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, is about a boy named Bruno, who is the son of a Nazi commander, and a Jewish Concentration camp inmate. The boy is forced to move from his old home in Berlin, to a new one in in a place called "Out-With". The young boy loves to explore, and goes out into the forest to do just that. Bruno comes upon a fence, where a boy wearing striped pajamas, no shoes and a cap is seated. The two boys become friends and learn that they have many similarities and differences. Bruno constantly brings the boy food and toys for the both of them to play with. One day, Bruno is told by Shmuel, that his father is missing, as Bruno decides to help him find him. In order to get past the fence, Shmuel brings Bruno striped pajamas, and he brings a shovel from home. The boys are accidentally herded into a group of people going into the gas cambers, and take their last breaths in there together.

Reflect:
            This movie showed how a child's innocence may lead them to do drastic things. While Bruno was fulfilling his end of the friendship, the two of the boys were met with their untimely death. "Out-With", which Bruno heard incorrectly, was actually "Auschwitz", and "the Fury" was actually "the Fuhrer". While Bruno thought it was adventurous to go into the woods and explore, he did not realize the consequences he would have to face later on. Going under the fence was something that Bruno did not think much of, as he did not know what it meant to be inside of it, and it led to him getting killed. Due to his childish approach to things, he did drastic things, which had drastic consequences.

Relate:
          After watching this movie, I can relate it to the quote below, as prior to the Canadians infiltrating the Jewish concentration camps, the soldiers thought that these camps were just a myth. Prior to this, these people thought that concentration camps would not be as bad as others said they were, which was almost as if they were seeing an illusion. The quote relates  both to the Canadian soldiers, as well as The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, because it shows us that ignorance is bliss, and that if one does not know about something, then they have no reason to act upon it. People choose to ignore things, because it may taint the way in which they see things.

Blog Post #2 - Atonement by Ian McEwan

Classist Ways by Kiranjot Assi

Snap! Crack! Whip!
Did I do something wrong?
I never noticed,
the residue on these silver spoons.
The determination in me,
was still strong.
I wanted to impress you,
and change your classist ways.
But I think,
that I have made a mistake.
The only reputation I have,
is the money I earn,
not luck, intelligence, or even concern.
I care  for you,
cook for you,
keep all your trash.
But you only keep me around,
to beat and thrash.
When something happens, that is wrong
I take all blame.
You never look back, do you think I'm insane?
I want to be free,
and not have a tag.
To be known for who I am,
and not by my class.
And then, I think, as I rot in jail,
The only way  out of this misery,
is to come out of my reverie.