Independent readind assigment: Staying True

Keeping one’s spirit alive is hard in a world which could be cruel at times.
Salman Rushdie once said “Literature is where I go to explore the highest and lowest places in the human society and in the human spirit, where I hope to find not absolute truth but the truth of the tale, of the imagination and of the heart.”. The quote means that you can find so much of yourself in what you read. In the novel by Sarah Dessen Keeping the Moon, the characters are easy to relate to in your actual life. The main character in the novel, Colie, is someone who is trying to find who she really is. The spirit is something that no one can really lose.

This novel has a lot to do with the human spirit. Each character is different, but in some way the same. They are all trying to keep their spirits alive while overcoming the obstacles in their lives. Everyone’s spirit is very sensitive, no matter how big, small, tuff or delicate you are. The world is not always a happy place, so it is hard for one to stay true to others let alone themselves. In the novel one character, Isabel, knows that trusting only yourself is the safe way out. The novel lets everyone know that it does not matter what people think of you it is what you think of yourself that matters. Living a life where you make others happy is not a life at all. Being yourself is the most important thing that you can do in your life.

In Keeping the Moon all the characters have a very different spirit. Colie is someone who is very insecure and not sure about herself. When ever she is feeling out of place or insecure she touches her lip ring, as for comfort. Her lip ring is like a baby’s blanket, something she uses to comfort herself and a defense mechanism. Mira, Colie’s aunt, is someone who doesn’t care what others think or say about her. She doesn’t care about her appreance, just as long as she is happy with her life. Morgan is someone that is also insecure about herself. Morgan’s fiancée is someone that seems to bring her down a lot. She wants everyone around her to be happy. Isabel is very confident and independent. She does not care what people may say about her attitude. Norman is someone who is very creative and sweet. He wants everyone around him to feel special. Kiki Sparks, Colie’s mom, wants everyone to find the real them. Now that is not over weight, she wants everyone to feel as happy and proud as she does. Norman collects sun glasses; it might be to hide the trouble between him and his father away. When Colie feels out of place or insecure she touches her lip ring to find herself. Colie wears a trench coat to hide herself. She hides her body image so no can see, to make fun of her. Mira always needs he cat, Cat Norman, around or needs to know where he is at all times. Her cat is the only one she can depend on. Although Isabel puts out the impression that she doesn’t need anyone, she will always need Morgan, her best friend, around to care for.

The way people present themselves and talk can say a lot about a person. When Colie talks she is very timid and careful with what she says. She does not express a lot to anyone, and at times even to herself. Isabel speaks with attitude not afraid to hurt someone with her words. Morgan speaks with a care in her tone of voice, taking the other person’s feelings in mind. Mira and Norman speak to others with generosity in their voices. There were many conflicts in the novel. Colie had trouble with Caroline Dawes and with herself. Caroline Dawes is a girl that goes to school with Colie and appears in the same town Colie is in for vacation. Caroline spreads rumors about Colie, in which she says that Colie is experienced with boys. Colie was also teased about her weight, now she has lost weight, but still insecure about it. Colie does not believe in herself. When someone compliments her she does not know how to take it, as well as she does not know how to respond to someone treating her nicely. Colie does not have friends, but when she goes to Colby she becomes friends with Morgan, Isabel and Norman, three very different people. The town of Colby has a problem with Mira because she is so different and does not care about what people think. The town is ashamed of Mira. Norman’s father is ashamed of Norman because he is in to art and not business like his brothers. This is the reason for the poor relationship between them.

So many people in America are teased, wether it be about their weight, how the act or look. In the novel it expresses how people can be so cruel as in reality. Being over weight, different and insecure can mean being easy targets for being bullied. Not everyone out in the world can be nice. People will do what makes themselves happy about being themselves. This novel definitely reflects real life. It reflects real problems that people go through, like the judgments some hear. The novel was good in the sense of letting everyone know that they were not the only ones that go through tough times. Wether it is being over weight, unsure of yourself or bullied.

The world around us is a tough place for everyone to keep their spirit up. “Literature is where I go to explore the highest and lowest places in the human society and in the human spirit, where I hope to find not absolute truth but the truth of the tale, of the imagination and of the heart.” was said by Salman Rushdie. What is meant by this quote is that you can relate your life to what you read in literature. Keeping the Moon
by Sarah Dessen is a novel that can easily be related to reality. The characters are all people that the reader can identify with or know someone that identifies with them. At times it is hard for one to keep our spirit up, but staying true to yourself is the most important thing anyone can do.

Reflection:

I think using the blog as a portfolio was a good idea. For me it is more organized and easy to find things I have written. I thought that my blog was going to be very plain, but it actually isn't. Using the blog as a portfolio is good because its easy to access and to see. I won't need to actually carry a portfolio around with the literature I wrote, I can just look onto my blog. I can use the blog to my advantage.

The more I used the blog, the more I got used to how to use it. I thought it was going to be hard for me because I don't really use the computer that much, but it got easier and easier every time. I think my blog has come out good for me because I really did try my best on it. At first I did not know how to load pictures on to my blog, but now that I know how to I think my blog looks a lot better. I just wished I knew how to put music on to my blog to make it more interesting.

How to make post to your blog:
1. Log on to your blog.
2. After logging on to your blog, click on to New Post. It should be in the box labeled Manage Your Blogs, at the bottom of that box next to a green cross.
3. After clicking on New Post begin typing your post.
4. When you are finished typing your post up, at the bottom of the page click Publish, in the small orange box with white lettering.
5. Your post will then be posted on to your blogger.
6. If you click Save as Draft, the post will not be posted, but saved on to your blog account.

How to edit or delete a post:
1. Log on to your blog.
2. After logging on to your blog, click on Posts, you can find it in the Manage Your Blogs box.
3. After clicking on Posts, you should see all the posts you have posted or saved to your blog.
4. Find the post you wish to edit or delete. Click Edit on the same row where your post is located on to edit your post. Click Delete at the end of the row where your post is located on to delete the post.

Kate Chopin:

Kate Chopin's career was said to have launched after her novel At Fault was published. When her novel The Awakening was published it was said to have terminated her career, at the same time she reached her highest artistic achievement with it.The novel was about a tragic heroine who does not want to settle for less than a full and satisfying answer to one of Lear's questions, "Who am I?". The bad critiques she recieved for the novel The Awakening was the reason for her writting career to stop. The novel has been ignored for half a century, but is now rediscovered. Critics now have dicovered new ironies and maybe some that Chopin has not even intended for in the novel.

2 May 2007 .
"Kate Chopin- Chapter 8 The Awakening." Twayne's Author series. 2 May 2007 .

"On the Differences Between men and women":
I feel that the article could have taken place in real life. Some aspects of it were a little over exaggerated, on the girl's part. The main idea of what was going on, I can see happening. The character Elaine was emotional and sensitive, and when she wanted to hear a positive response from Roger she didn't get it. I would have probably thought the same things she was thinking, but not so deeply as she did. The character Roger, I think, like any other guy would have said nothing as well. Women are more sentimental about their relationships than men are. For this couple, I would advice that Elaine not read too much into things. I think that Roger should ask Elaine what she is talking about, so that he won't be so confused about what she talking about. We can definitely change our communication structure by explaining to each other exactly what we feel and by listening to one another. If we don't listen or pay any attention to what is going on, then we will never learn.

"Can't we talk?":
I do think that Tannen does come up with realistic situations. The situations that Tannen came up with I have seen in real life before. Each couples situations are different, but the similar at the same time. Each wife wants her husband to consider her feelings before they do anything. Each husband wants their wives to not be sensitive. To each couple I advice that they talk to each other. Not only talking about how her husband doesn't listen to her or consider her feelings, but both talk. Especially the husband about how he feels about his wife telling him how he does not care. I believe that if every couple really talks to one another they will have a healthy relationship. I think that talking to each other is the most important key to a good relationship. When things are left unsaid they are kept inside and it just builds inside.

How men and women socialize and communicate:
In a study done in San Francisco, they stated that women are more likely to use the Internet to get their jobs or tasks done. When men are more likely to use the Internet as diversions "silly things". When men talk they talk in a self importance and information matter. When women talk they talk in a more intimate way with a connection. Women see men as self-centered and men see women as insecure. For a man it is sex that allows his needs for love. When a woman receives love is when her hunger for sex is known. The way men and women communicate and socialize come from how the communicated and socialized when they were younger. Girls communicate and socialize with one another to gain a friendship. Boys communicate and socialize to negotiate there place in the group. When men and women can not understand each others differences, is when a problem rises. Tension rises when a man or woman don't understand each other. They each expect for one another to know how the other feels about certain things. There is no such thing as a perfect relationship, but if women and men took the time to understand each other more it could be close to perfect.

27 Apr 2007 http://www.uta.edu/oie/handbook/shake.gif.

Chapman, Glenn. "Women outnumber men online in United States: study ." Yahoo:news. 23 Apr 2007 http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070412/tc_afp/usitinternetwomen.

Stern, Nancy. "Gender Jive: Communication Between Men and Women." Relationships911.org. 23 Apr 2007 http://relationships911.org/experts/workplace/genderjivecommbetmenandwomen.htm.

Black, Kathryn N.. "Men and Women in Interaction: Reconsidering the Difference. - book reviews." Look smart find articles. 23 Apr 2007 http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2372/is_n1_v34/ai_19345177.

Rossetti, Paolo. "Gender Differences in E-mail Communication." 25 Apr 2007 http://iteslj.org/Articles/Rossetti-GenderDif.html.

Conner, Michael G.. "Understanding the Difference Between Men and Women." 25 Apr 2007 http://www.oregoncounseling.org/ArticlesPapers/Documents/DifferencesMenWomen.htm.