continued ASP summary

   

                                                     

    In A Separate Peace by John Knowels the continued chapters (3-10)  it talks about how Gene and Phineas are becoming rivals. It also talks about how over time things change. We see this being shown when they say that war creates a life of fear. I think this because over time you become more and more scared about something (being the war) then you were in the past. This shows how the war develops Genes character. It shows how the war has become his reality and how much it has affected him. When Gene says, "I felt fear's echo" (10), it shows how much fear has shaped his life to make him the man he is now.

   The later chapters show the values of friendship. Gene and Phineas learn the truth about each other. Gene tells Finny that he pushed him out of the tree in hopes that Finny will somehow forgive him for what he had done. It shows how telling the truth and having loyalty is what shapes and keeps a friendship strong. That's when Gene says to Finny, "Finny, I've got...but there's something I've got to tell you!" That's when we really see the friendship progress and strengthen. It also shows how Gene used to have hostility towards Finny, like when he pushed him out of the tree, but now he doesn't have it and is trying to gain his loyalty again.

   Therefor, that is what has happened in the last 7 chapters that we have read. A lot has happened and many things have changed to shape how the story is now. Who knows what is going to happen next!

Ch.1-3 ASP

   In the first three chapters of A Seperate Peace by John Knowels takes place in England. There is group of boys that set the stage and are the characters. The main character, whose name we do not know, seems to strive to have fun. Even though the private school they attend is strict, the group of boys always seem to find something mischievous to do. They skip classes and meals and don't obay the rules. But for some reason they never seem to get caught and even when they do, they don't get a punishment.

   I can see the boys need for adventure when they make a secret club called The Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session. In the club they do risky things that they find fun. One of the things they do in the club is jump out of trees. By jumping out of the tree it shows your true courage and bravery. But one of the boys doesn't think its fun and doesn't like doing it. He does it anyways but we start to see a split in the group of boys because they have different interests.

   The theme that I see being shown is peer pressure. In the 3rd chapter one of the boys doesn't want to jump out of the tree. But everyone else is taunting him to do it. Finally when he is so scared to jump out one of the boys jumps with him so that he doesn't get hurt.

Poverty Poem

When hunger kills the innocent man,
When disease kills the innocent child,
When life becomes unbearable to the innocent family,
Poverty can be blamed.
Our world is damaged by poverty, But
you just have to look at the brighter things in life--and not let poverty bring you down in sorrow.

A high school story

In high school everyone wants to be apart of the "popular" crowd. At my school the cool crowd is called the "Fab 5".These types of girls that are in it bully everyone; and I mean everyone. No one is as worse as Vanessa. Victoria, Marissa, and Courtney are rude too, but none of them compare to Vanessa. Everyday I herd them call me names, "Your such a boy Heather", they would say to me. Or, "Why do you dress like a man?" I knew I was different then most girls my age, but I knew I wasn't a boy. I was only 14 years old, but I knew I had to do something to make it all stop. I would go crazy if I didn't.

Over the next few weeks I did everything I could to avoid Vanessa. I walked down different halls, sat in a different lunch spots; I even took the late bus home so I didn't have to see her or any of her friends. But nothing stopped her. I would find notes in my locker saying the same things that she would say to me, the only difference was it was signed "secret admirer". I knew it wasn't from an "admirer" because why would an admirer say my clothes were ugly and tell me to get a new hair style. It was obviously from Vanessa.

Everyday the bus would drop Vanessa off at her house before it would drop me off at mine. We lived in a small town so the bus took us directly to our houses. There was just one strange thing about where Vanessa got dropped off at. There was one huge house, and right next to it was a tiny barn that always had a car parked outside of it. I wondered who lived there.

I was so curious who had lived there I got the courage to walk up to her when we all got onto the bus the next day and asked her who had lived there. Right when I asked her she got as red as a burning stove and looked away. No one had ever asked her that question because everyone just assumed that she had lived in the huge white picketed fence house that she had got dropped off at everyday. After a while of getting the silent treatment I calmly asked, "does your maid live there?" She firmly answered "I don't have a maid". I asked her a series of questions hoping to get the answer of who had lived there, I don't know why, but I was beginning to get more and more curious as to finding out the answer because Vanessa wouldn't tell me.

We were almost to Vanessa's drop off and I wasn't letting her leave without getting an answer. So I turned to her and asked her my final question, "Do you live there?" Tears went flying off her face as if they were scared to touch her skin. All she did was nod her head yes and drop it down in embarrassment. I was completely shocked, I literally did not know what to do. Was I supposed to laugh? Was I supposed to say sorry even though she has made my life miserable? I was frozen in shock. "Please don't tell anyone!" she said. I knew that she has literally made my life horrible but for some reason deep deep down, I kinda felt bad for her. I told her that I wouldn't tell anyone and she had a relived look in her eyes.

The next day at school I was ready for the usual name calling and slapping books out of my hands like always. Except when I walked by Vanessa she was silent. I was so surprised, Was it finally over? Was all the bulling finally done? I was asking myself all those questions throughout the morning but I knew the answer at lunch. I did my usual and bought my lunch and was walking back to the table I usually ate lunch alone at. Vanessa yelled my name before I could sit down. She told me to come sit with her and her friends. One of them mumbled "What are you doing inviting that nerd over here?" Vanessa kicked her from under the table and told her that I would be eating lunch with them from now on. I honestly couldn't believe my ears. I thought it was a joke. But it wasn't, she was being serious.

When the lunch bell rang to go back to class Vanessa told me to hold on a minute and talk to her. So all her friends left and I was left face to face with one of the people I thought I hated the most in high school. "I'm not doing this just because you know the biggest secret of my life. I just wanted to let you know that. I'm doing it because you're trusting and none of my other friends would keep that secret". I told her that I understood and that I would never tell anyone her secret. After a couple minutes of talking she apologized to me for everything and told me the only reason she had made fun of me was because she just judged me on my appearance but now that she actually knew the real me she wanted to be my friend.

I never thought the day would come that Vanessa and the "Fab 5" would stop bulling me. But it finally had, and i was so glad it did. It took a huge weight off my shoulders. Now I didn't have to be afraid to go to school and I didn't have to change who I was as a person either. Vanessa was now my friend because of the person that I real am. Ever since that day Vanessa told me that she lived in a tiny barn and was very poor, we've been best friends ever since.