2.9 Reading Responses

Daniel Hadida
Title – The Soldier
Author/Poet – Rupert Brooke

First Paragraph – Intro – talking about the text

Second Paragraph – 1st Interest about the book

Third Paragraph – 2nd interest about the book

Fourth Paragraph – Why would I recommend this text

“laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness, In hearts at peace, under an English heaven” Rupert Brooke’s war poem “The Soldier”  is about Rupert Brooke expressing his feelings to what I believe is a personally experience of himself or maybe someone who he knows well that had a perspective on war. In this case World War One (WW1).  About dying for your own country.. “The Soldier” by Rupert Brooke is a real eye opening text in my opinion that I believe everyone would have the same emotions as I did a type of emotion where one would feel bad for the soldiers who put their life at risk for their countries, Rupert talks about the thoughts of a solder before being on the breech of death. I find this poem by Rupert Brooke teaches the world that their are a lot of men all around on both sides that are like the messages in this text. this should be teaching the world that we shouldn’t be needing to send these good and quality men off to die in battle. Like pigs raised for slaughter.
Personally by reading this poem I find it unreal that the human race did that to themselves not once but twice. “If I should die, think only this of me: That there’s some corner of a foreign field That is for ever England. There shall be In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;” From this quote in the poem it makes me astonished just reading the text as I feel I could of put myself in The soldiers boots and I felt after reading very sorry for those who had to go through that. Good men who have put there life on the line for their families, their country and for the next generation. From this quote i feel a strong relevance to today’s society where we celebrate what the men did for example Anzac day where people of the new generation learn what those humans did so we can mourn the ones we lost and praise the ones still with us. I would recommend this text to nearly anyone as it gives a perspective of how hard and painful life was for a soldier in World War One. This text teaches I imagine men who want to plan to head off into war, leaving the ones they love behind. While most people who charge into War changes who they are, an incredible experience. This text personally connects to me as it makes me amazed with what with the soldiers go through when it comes to traveling a long and painful road, being away from the people you love the most like family and friends and when you and your friends are about to die. This connects to the rest of the world historically as it reminds in my opinion nearly everyone especially for people who want to join the army that war isn’t all glory. War is painful and heartbreaking.
Personally reading this text connects to me as I felt so much guilt as I got to understand what nearly every soldier would go through, with the death of someone you know. Trenching through the mud for long periods of time, not seeing your loved ones like friends and family for possible ever and having moments before  your own death or someone else’s, realizing that your dying for your country. Perhaps contemplating what they are actually fighting for i the end. “Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given; Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;” This quote that is found in this piece of excellence text to me represents the soldiers point of view on missing home seeing and missing the simple things like the environment with the sights and sound of their home country. In my opinion from reading this text I personally think people who plan to head off into war should look back at this poem made by Rupert Brooke. “The Soldier” to maybe not put their own lives at risk for their country and perhaps think is what your country believes in worth fighting for. 

Daniel Hadida
Title – The Book Thief
Author – Markus Zusak

First Paragraph – Intro – talking about the text

Second Paragraph – 1st Interest about the book

Third Paragraph – 2nd interest about the book

Fourth Paragraph – Why would I recommend this text

The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak in August 2004 and published 2005. This text is narrated by a neutral perspective. Death. The Book thief is about Liesel a young orphan in 1938 pre WW2 arrives at her new foster family with parents Rosa and Hans Hubermann a house painter. We find out at the start of the book thanks to  Hans who noticed that Liesel could not read. From there we see that Han attempts to teach Liesel how to read. We see that Liesel from that moment she grows up loving books. Even though Liesel’s new family barely scrape by their life, their situation becomes even more risky when they secretly shelter a Jewish boy whose father once saved Hans’ life.
In this reading report i will be explaining two different parts of the text that interest me and why I would recommend this book.

My first aspect of ‘The Book Thief’  by Markus Zusak, which to me was a most important character in the text: Hans Hubermann. When Liesel first arrives to Himmel street (heaven street) her brother had just died in front of her eyes and her mother has sadly left her. Through all that, it’s understandable that she didn’t want to get out of the car at the start of the text. Hans is the man who eventually gets her out. When Liesel begins to start having nightmares, Hans was always the one there for her every night to calm her down. “Trust was accumulated quickly, due primarily to the brute strength of the man’s gentleness” When it’s ‘come to light’ that she doesn’t know how to read Hans turns Liesel’s routine nightmare into a time of learning. Hans taught Liesel to read and eventually to write and may have even sparked Liesel’s love for books. The best part of Hans Hubermann in my eyes though has to be when was his accordion playing. “I often look at his fingers and face when he plays. The accordion breathes.” Liesel loved when He played the accordion because she could just stop and listen and forget about the troubles in the world. “No one can play like you.” Papa didn’t have do be a good musician it was the it twas just the way he played every note and chord with passion and happiness that came through his playing. In a way I can relate to Liesel as I have a strong passion for music, not only playing it but for me It is my favorite way to relieve stress and like Liesel it distracts me from the World.

Another aspect of the book thief by Markus Zusak which I liked was how the Hubermann’s were not part supporting the Nazis until deep into the ww2. I enjoyed this because it showed how not all Germans during ww2 were for supporting the Nazis to win because of the terrible things they to the Jews. I imagine many Germans at that time had friends which were Jews. We this with Hans Hubermann and Max Vandenburg who turned up on their door one cold night. Max becomes a great friend for Liesel Meminger. Max is stuck in inside hiding for months as, if he was seen by anyone, the Hubermann’s would be taken. Since Max doesn’t get to see what the day looks like he asks Liesel to describe it for him everyday when she comes home. Which I found very emotional. “The sky is blue today, Max, and there is a big long cloud, and it’s stretched out, like a rope. At the end of it the sun is like a yellow hole…” Max paints this image of the wall of the basement with two figures, Max and Liesel, walking along it. Liesel finds it her responsibility to look after max and keep him happy and entertained. So, when Max gets he sleeps in her room and Liesel reads to him everyday. Whilst this was happening Liesel wonders why the Nazis hate the Jews as  the one she knows is so kind to her. I like how Mark Zusak shows that not all Germans blindly followed the Fuhrer and that some were against his plans. For me personally I feel lucky living in new Zealand as we get freedom of speech so if we don’t agree with something we can speak out about it. Compared to Nazi Germany where if one speaks his mind out to the public that most people have a different view on he would end up dead. Which I find disgusting cause I believe in different opinions o make the world a better place.

I would recommend this text as it shows you a perspective of the German families that did not support the Nazi party and that some of the families like the Hubermann’s hated Hitler as much if not more than the UK and the USA. This text also shows a different narration as presented by Death. This got me interested in the text as it shows a neutral point of view of  World War two.


Daniel Hadida
Song- Happier
Album – Divide
Artist- Ed Sheeran

First Paragraph – Intro – talking about the text
Second Paragraph – 1st Interest about the book
Third Paragraph – 2nd interest about the book
Fourth Paragraph – Why would I recommend this text

 – Happier
Walking down 29th and Park
I saw you in another’s arms
Only a month we’ve been apart
You look happier
Saw you walk inside a bar
He said something to make you laugh
I saw that both your smiles were twice as wide as ours
Yeah, you look happier, you do
Ain’t nobody hurt you like I hurt you
But ain’t nobody love you like I do
Promise that I will not take it personal, baby
If you’re moving on with someone new
‘Cause baby you look happier, you do
My friends told me one day I’ll feel it too
And until then I’ll smile to hide the truth
But I know I was happier with you
Sat on the corner of the room
Everything’s reminding me of you
Nursing an empty bottle and telling myself you’re happier
Aren’t you?
Ain’t nobody hurt you like I hurt you
But ain’t nobody need you like I do
I know that there’s others that deserve you
But my darling, I am still in love with you
But I guess you look happier, you do
My friends told me one day I’d feel it too
I could try to smile to hide the truth
I know I was happier with you
Baby, you look happier, you do
I knew one day you’d fall for someone new
But if breaks your heart like lovers do
Just know that I’ll be waiting here for you
“Happier” is a single released by Ed Sheeran when his third album “Divide” came out 3rd of March 2017. In my opinion this song represents heartbreak of someone who you loved finding someone else and having to deal with this fact. Happier for me represents anger, sadness and regret. anger of seeing someone you fell for in someones arms. Sadness showing that there is nothing one can do and regret saying that you could have done any better to keep what you had. This song personally has a major influence on me cause I’ve had the same experience in recent events.
My first aspect to Happier by Ed Sheeran is the line “But if breaks your heart like lovers do Just know that I’ll be waiting here for you” This line gets to me emotionally as it represents care for the person you have lost even though they have broken your heart. For me personally this line connects because I have experienced heartbreak from recent events and this line inspires me to not be angry or upset at the one you loved for what they have done to you but instead think about what they did mean to you and try your best to still be for them even though they are not yours anymore. Another part of this line in this song is the tone of Ed Sheeran’s voice goes from singing in the same tone from going to a octave higher giving a bit of an emotional feel to the end of a heart warming song giving everyone who listens to this in depth a teary moment. “But I guess you look happier, you do” This quote from the song “Happier is in my opinion is another reference to instead of being angry at them instead try your best to try to be happier by being happy for them instead of angry.  Another song that is similar to this text and the meaning of it all is the song “We Don’t Talk Anymore” By Artist Charlie Puth. This song like “Happier” is about heartbreak and losing someone you love or loved.
My second aspect to the song Happier by Ed Sheeran is when Ed Sheeran sings “Ain’t nobody hurt you like I hurt you, But ain’t nobody love you like I do”
This line for me represents regret of once being in the relationship and thinking you could have done better to keep him/her happier.I can imagine a lot of people may read this text and think. Personally this gets me to me deeply as in my past relationship I nearly always think to myself that I could have been better towards her. This line could also represent the fact that you accidentally hurt the ones you love the most when you are inside a moment of frustration and sadness. For me another symbolism of regret in this song is when Ed sings “I saw that both your smiles were twice as wide as ours” For me I believe that this represents regret as you are looking among the person you loved and the new person she or he is with now and thinking, losing sleep on weather they loved them more than they loved you.
I would personally recommend this song to inspire people that go through heartbreak like I did. To not take it out with anger and hatred for the person you loved or the person she fell for but instead release it in an emotional way because everyone who goes through it goes through the same thing so in a way the song shows you that you are not alone, you can talk to people this is hinted at I believe when Ed Sheeran sang the line “My friends told me one day I’d feel it too” In conclusion I find personally this is the most powerful song ever when it comes to heartbreak. I think this as it is a perfect song to what I have gone through with my past relationship.

Daniel Hadida
Title – Interstellar
Director – Christopher Nolan

First Paragraph – Intro – talking about the text

Second Paragraph – 1st Interest about the book

Third Paragraph – 2nd interest about the book

Fourth Paragraph – Why would I recommend this text

“We used to look up at the sky and wonder at our place in the stars, now we just look down and worry about our place in the dirt.” This quote was represented in the Film “Interstellar” by  the main agonist Cooper one of the more beautiful films I have ever watched. Interstellar is based in earths future with climate change, a global crop blight and is making Earth slowly uninhabitable. This film is about NASA trying to find a new home and they are going to need help from Cooper the main agonist of the film. Cooper is one of the only remaining people on Earth at this time who is an expert of interstellar space. In the film NASA is at a low point as on Earth no one believes in even the Apollo landing  so this makes NASA having to plan long term, going into the future and they believe that humans in order to live must leave this planet. In this time period NASA has two plans. “Plan A” being working out the equation to control gravity and travel through space and “Plan B” is to attempt to move the human race to another planet they found a way of succeeding at this as they fund a worm whole near Saturn that lead to another solar system. Which they found that someone placed there. The sacrifice of this journey is having to leave earth and your family for a very long time.

My first interest about this text is that the end related very much so to the start of the film Where Murph who is Cooper’s daughter started noticing “A Ghost” pulling off books off her shelf and after a while she started researching Morse coding and saw that one message specifically said S.T.A.Y we saw this the moment Cooper had to leave to complete NASA’s mission. At the end of the film where Cooper found his way inside a black hole he entered what some believe as the 5th dimension we saw that the directors idea of the 5th dimension is your own personal timeline. In this scenario we saw that Cooper’s timeline was mostly Murph’s bedroom stuck inside her bookshelf trying to get out, hitting the books off the shelf by doing this and after a while of doing this he started sending Morse coding to Murph and his previous self to tell his previous self to “stay” and not to leave his family behind. Whilst this was happening Cooper received contact from TARS who is a futuristic robot machine  and when that happened they realized if Cooper can deliver information to Murph’s timeline he can deliver the equation of how to control gravity which was the original plan. so people on Earth can travel through space as the only way that they can do it they found out was to learn from inside a black hole which they didn’t think was possible until Cooper found his way inside one. I love this aspect of the film “Interstellar” the director Christopher Nolan did very well to relate the end of the film to the start as from the beginning the answer to how to understand and control gravity was in Murphs bookshelf on the watch that cooper gave her before he left.

My second aspect of interstellar directed by Christopher Nolan is the Love and Time in the film. “Love is the one thing that transcends time and space” This quote by brand represents her love for someone who went on the same mission. inside the worm hole but never came back in this scene she seems to be trying to debate to cooper and the rest of the crew on their mission that love has a bigger meaning that just an emotion she tries to explain how she has these feelings for a person who she hasn’t seen in years and who is half way across the universe but still has those feelings. I find this is well represented in this film as in the end of the film we can easily see that love may have a bigger meaning in existence for example the father and daughter love from cooper and Murph after Murph not seeing him in years on earth the love between them was still there and traveled all the way through a black hole  where no one has been before and across the universe.

I would highly recommend this text to anyone even if you are not a sci fi freak like I am cause i think from what happens in the text it would get to people emotionally like it did with me for example when Cooper had to leave for the mission and didn’t now if he was coming back and having to tell Murph that fact. That scenario in this text hit me hard and reminded me of back in World war two when fathers and older siblings would have to go to war. I would almost definitely recommend this film to sci fi fans as my number one suggestion as it gets you thinking the deeper meaning behind the film like how did all of that happen is could that possible happen to us in real life.

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Title – Game Of Thrones: A Storm Of Swords

Author – George R.R Martin

First Paragraph – Intro – talking about the text

Second Paragraph – 1st Interest about the book

Third Paragraph – 2nd interest about the book

Fourth Paragraph – Why would I recommend this text

“Leave one wolf alive and the sheep are never safe. When people ask you what happened here, tell them the North remembers. Tell them winter came for House Frey.” This quote was represented in the text Game Of Thrones Season 7 episode 1 “The Dragon and the Wolf.” Post of The Red Wedding from the TV Show version. This quote was said by Arya Stark when she poisoned an entire house of men. The Frey’s for revenge after killing her whole family and all of house stark in the third book for Game Of Thrones “A Storm Of Swords” and what is now called “The Red Wedding.” Called for obvious reasons. This certain chapter has gone down as one of the most significant and shocking moments in fictional history. Rob Stark planning to get married to someone who the head of the Frey house didn’t want them to marry so they decided with the help of the Lannister’s who is a house that the Stark’s are at war with. They attacked the whole of the Stark house. No survivors. This Book: A Storm Of Swords is based on following on from the previous two books on Game Of Thrones with the War between the Stark’s and the Lannister’s.

My personal first interest with this book is The Red Wedding with how shocking and terrifying it was. During a normal book that people usually read you would expect that the main characters live. Of course in some books you would get a little worried with some circumstances but you never actually witness the main characters death realistically. However in this book of Game Of thrones A s]Storm Of Swords the author George R. R. Martin basically ignored all of that and made this episode. Rob Stark, the king of  the North, Catelyn Stark the mother of Rob Stark, and Talisa Stark, the wife of Rob. The biggest characters of the first and second book all meet their fate in this chapter at the same time. Shocking the entire Game Of thrones fan community including myself who read it a few years after The book came out.

My second interest with A Storm Of Swords the Third chapter of the Game Of Thrones series was Arya Stark who is for personally one of my favorite character in this entire series. We get to see her grow through the book after seeing her own father be executed wrongly for treason against the king in the first book. We see in this book Arya learns the hard facts of life in the worst ways possible and it makes her believe and inspire to be a solder which was odd to say the least for a girl that age to aspire to be. “I’m not a lady, Arya wanted to tell her, I’m a wolf.”

This quote is a reference to the Stark’s. Her family’s sigil which is a Dire Wolf. Arya showing that she is proud to be a Stark and one of the last ones alive and that she is not shy to show that she is. I imagined at this time in Arya’s life was lonely and full of hatred after seeing your whole family all die from the same family. The Lannisters. After witnessing all that Arya made a bucket list type idea listing all the names that did her wrong weather if they were part of her family’s murder or stealing her sword, Arya wanted them dead. From this book I found we got to see Arya grow into a character that mourned for her family in vengeance and in a book like this that mind set is what keeps her alive for the books to come.

I personally highly recommend this text to people who enjoy something different to a normal book where it can get very predictable with who is going to live and who is going to die. This text with the incredible writing of George R. R. Martin defies everything a normal text stands for with main characters and instead gives this text a realistic feel. I find that this text for me personally teachers the reader that life can be unfair and from there it is up to you weather you give up or keep fighting for those people around you. However I must say I DO NOT recommend this text to people who are quite skirmish to reading gore. This text “A Storm Of Swords” and all other Game Of Thrones books are not exactly pleasant to read. From this text we learn that this book can be shocking with The Red Wedding but yet at the same time provides hope from the youth like Arya Stark from that we learn that if one leaves one wolf alive the sheep are never safe.

Title – Once
Author – Morris Gleitzman

First Paragraph – Intro – talking about the text

Second Paragraph – 1st Interest about the book

Third Paragraph – 2nd interest about the book

Fourth Paragraph – Why would I recommend this text

“Everybody deserves something good in there life at least once” this was a quote represented in the text “Once” By author Morris Gleitzman. Saying that every single person on this planet deserves at least one good thing in their life. From this quote we see a reference to the title itself. Once representing to me that no matter who you are everyone deserves at least one bit of good in their life. In the text “Once” we see a young 10 year old Jewish boy from Poland. Felix Salinger as our main character and narrator.
We see that this text is about this 10 year old boy who started in a orphanage in the Poland mountains trying to find his parents in World War Two and his journey through hard times and friendship.

My first interest in the text Once by Morris Gleitzman was the friendship between Felix Salinger and Zelda. After Felix fleeing from the orphanage is was staying at on the quest to find his own parents he came across Zelda from a burning house with what he assumed to be her dead parents. Felix decides to bring her with him to protect her, confronting her parents’ death by telling her stories.  Felix likes to use his imagination a lot throughout the story and keeps a notebook with him filled with stories he has came up with over the years.  The friendship we see between these two for me was probably one of my favorite duos I have ever seen. I personally just enjoyed the sass that Zelda had towards Felix from her own catch phrase towards Felix: “Don’t you know anything?” This made me feel the reader a realistic idea of the text making me think twice if the book is actually a fiction or not. Despite the sass of Zelda towards Felix we saw that Zelda cared for Felix and saw him as a older brother as she was always with him and always wanted to be with him as that was the place she felt most safe in the scenario they were in.

For me my second interest from this text Once by Morris Gleitzman was Felix’s imagination. I find it is incredible even though this book is identified as fiction that a ten year old boy in World War 2 with a large majority of Nazis in Europe trying to rid of all Jews like Felix and yet it seems from the text that his imagination is what motivates him, his imagination in way is why he is still alive. Felix loved to use his imagination throughout the text kept a notebook with him filled with his own stories that he made throughout the years of having it. His love for his own imagination saved Zelda’s own life in a strange way. His stories that he made kept Zelda mind at ease. Felix’s stories towards Zelda distracted her mind away from the thought of her parents and from that opened up her to Felix giving Felix the motivation to keep someone happy and to not give up even though the circumstances were life threatening and from that his imagination saved a little girls life.

Even though this book says it is a children novel I would recommend this text to anyone. This text shows the power of friendship that even though life may be hard you can’t underestimate friends to keep you company and encourage you to keep moving. Morris Gleitzman’s Once also shows that a little boys imagination can go a long way. Felix Salinger shows us that just your mind alone can influence you more than you can believe. Your imagination can motivate and impact you to never give up and from Felix we can also learn that from your own attitude and imagination you can influence your friends attitude towards you and towards how they see the world. This was represented by Felix’s affect towards Zelda.

 

3 Replies to “2.9 Reading Responses”

  1. Daniel, I see that you are working on this response currently, which is great. Make sure you develop your ideas further by including supportive evidence (quotations) from the poem – you will need a few of these.
    Also, explain “why” the reader might feel a certain way or learn about a specific idea. How do you get these thoughts from the lines in the poem?

    You have made a good start with this response. Please send me a message if you have questions.

  2. This is an honest response, Daniel. Well done for choosing a text that you had a strong connection to. To strengthen this response, I would consider including additional specific lines from the text to support your ideas. Also, when you discuss what the singer-songwriter was presenting through the lyrics, consider what other interpretations could be possible. I.e. How might the song affect other listeners differently? Lastly, there is room for cross-references to other songs with similar themes/ideas – consider making connections to other texts here.

  3. Daniel, it is good to see that you have finished this project, and that you have included a number of personal reflections across this assessment. Have a final read through and ensure that you make your own judgments about what you think the “authors” were trying to teach you as the reader through these details you have selected. What overall judgments could you make about the writer’s purpose?

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