Theme Handout

Censorship causes diminished individual thought.

The theme “Censorship causes diminished individual thought” is important to our understanding of the story because the characters in this book are incapable of thinking for themselves because the government controls everything for them.

This theme connects to our modern-day society because this kind of censorship still happens today in some countries. It is important to be aware of this theme to prevent this extremity of censorship from happening in our nation.

Part 1 Quote:

"Are you happy?" she said. "Am I what?" he cried. But she was gone-running in the moonlight. Her front door shut gently. "Happy! Of all the nonsense."(Bradbury 7)

Part 2 Quote:

“We have everything we need to be happy, but we aren’t happy. Something’s missing. I look around. The only thing I positively knew was gone was the books I’d burned in ten or twelve years.”(Bradbury 78).

Part 3 Quote:

“It’s strange, I don’t miss her, it’s strange I don’t feel much of anything,” said Montag. “Even if she dies, I realized a moment ago, I don’t think I’ll feel sad. It isn’t right. Something must be wrong with me.”(Bradbury 147)

Timeline:

• Montag meets Clarisse, a person who is observant of the world around her, and she makes him question the world that he is living in. Montag has never before questioned the society around him, and begins to open his eyes to his surroundings.

• Montag reads a book to Mildred's friends, and they also begin to think deeper thoughts than they originally would.

• Beatty tells Montag that there are no need for thinking and books, as everything in society is censored.

• Montag and Faber devise a plan to stop the censorship of books, but Montag is being chased after by the government.
• Montag runs away into a society where people are free to think what they want, and there is no censorship of books.

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. [Book Club ed. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2013. 7, 78, 147. Print.

Bilbo Baggins

On dynamic character in my book, is Bilbo Baggins. He starts out at the beginning, and is extremely shy, and doesn't want to go on any adventures, or explore the world. He is content with being an average hobbit, with an average life. The book describes him as "shy, with no magic about them, except the ordinary kind, and no sense for adventure". But after the wizard Gandalf shows up, Bilbo has a whole different outlook on adventure.


Bilbo begins showing characteristics like ingenuity, bravery, and intelligence. Hey finds the secret in the trolls cave, and also finds himself outwitting Gollum in Chapter 6.  He displays bravery, when in Chapter 12, he descends into the Smaugs layer alone, and also finds Smaugs weak point. Bilbo shows many character traits, that are uncharacteristic of a Hobbit like him. Bilbo is used to living an extremely comfortable lifestyle, but here is showing valiance.

At the end of The Hobbit Bilbo Baggins is an adventurous man, with a sense of excitement, and is unhappy with an average life after the adventures that happen in The Hobbit. "... [Bilbo] was no longer quite as respectable". This is refering to Bilbo after his adventure, and how to the community he lived in, he was viewed as queer, because of his sense of adventure.

Should NCAA athletes be paid?

Recently, I read this article, about whether NCAA athletes should get paid or not.

People who oppose this say that, Collegiate athletes, are already paid through scholarships. And that the cost of paying Collegiate athletes would be much too high. They argue, that through their scholarship, collegiate athletes receive compensation through, free or partially funded education, expert coaching, food, and a place to stay. 

Others, who have the opposite view point will say, that while the athletes coach is making million's of dollars, the athlete himself is only compensated by a higher education which doesn't have any immediate monetary value. And that if the athlete gets injured, their entire scholarship could be taken away, and the athlete could be left with nothing. 

I feel as though colleges should pay their athletes, because it gives them a reason to actually stay in school, and not graduate early. If they were getting payed, collegiate athletes would have no reason to get out of school, and put themselves in the NFL draft, just so they could support their family at home. In addition collegiate athletes also put in 40 hours a week just for their sport, and on top of that have to manage all of their college classes. And their school, athletic director, and coach, are all profiting off of them, while they get nothing.

Perserverance

In my book A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier,  A boy named Ishmael Beah, at the age of  twelve, becomes and unwilling boy soldier, after his village in Sierra Leone is attacked, Ishmael and his brothers go wandering from village to village in search of food and shelter. And eventually become soldiers in the child army. They become killing machines, and become addicted to various drugs. Eventually Ishmael's Lieutenant in the army turns them over to Unicef, and they go to America for rehabilitation.

Ishmael's story of perserverance reminds me of the story of Registre, a Haitian immigrant whom, through perserverance, was able to live his dream and get into medical school.

J.R.R. Tolkien - The FellowShip of the Ring

I am currently reading The Fellowship of the Ring, a fantasy story, that takes place after The Hobbit, which was the prequel to this series. The main character of this novel is Bilbo Baggins' nephew, Frodo Baggins. The novel starts out with Frodos 33rd birthday. and then goes onto to talk about the history of the Ring, which Bilbo discovered in The Hobbit.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (3 January 1892 - 2 September 1973) was an English writer, poet, and university professor, and is known as the father of modern fantasy literature, or high fantasy.

Tolkiens' son Chirstoper published all of his works which he had written throughout the course of his lifetime. Tolkien used to serve in the army as an officer during World War 1. He also earned the 5th rank on list by Time of Most Earning Dead People. He is a great inspiration to all fantasy writers around today. Kudos to you Mr. Tolkien

The Hobbit : Setting

J.R.R. Tolkien is known for his extremely descriptive settings; The Hobbit is no different. From the beginning of the book, The Hobbit  straight away by describing where the main character: Bilbo Baggins lives. The second sentence of the book is " Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole and that means comfort". Straight away the book starts out with a colorful, descriptive sentence, and pulls the reader right into the world of Bilbo Baggins.

This book takes place in a fantasy universe in which, there are wizards, draves, dragons, elves, and hobbits, along with many other made up creatures. The first chapter of the book starts out by describing Bilbo Baggins. He is a well-off hobbit, and likes to live a quiet life in his affluent little hobbit-hole, avoiding any conflict and adventure. One day an old wizard named Gandalf stops by and Bilbo is thrown into a whirlwind of action