The Kite Runner

The last part of the book was very interesting. It held alot of suspense in wondering if Amir jan would get to take Sohrab back to the United States. I could of almost guessed though that when he was told about Sohrab that he would feel it was his duty to take him, trying to make up for the guilt he felt from the past memories. This book holds alot of meaning to it. Not only to the story but what happens in the world around us. It is sad to get details of all the horrifying events that are going on today in everyday life. One memorable quote that I will not forget is "'For you, a thousand times over,'" (page 371). That gave me the meaning of true friendship.

The Kite Runner

The last part of The Kite Runner seemed to be something of a departure from the rest of the novel. No longer were are we watching the everyday life of Amir, but what happens when a regime takes over. Ali and Hassan killed, officials (who turn out to be Assef) taking children from orphanages.

The story ends with Amir flying a kite, and remembering how life was when he was a kid. However, with Sohrab with him, he sees an image of Hassan. "I looked down at Sohrab. One corner of his mouth had curled up just so. A smile. Lopsided. Hardly there. But there. ... I blinked and the smile was gone. But it had been there. I had seen it."... "Do you want me to run that kite for you?" ... "For you, a thousand times over." (370-71)

That smile, while not fixing all that had happened in his life, reminded him of the simpler times, when he was a child, and didn't have all the worries he has now. For that brief moment he was happy, and a kid again.♠

Dulce et Decorum Est

This whole poem brings a sense of extreme fatigue and determination. Some passages that show such feelings would be in line seven in the first stanza, Drunk with fatigue;deaf even to the hoots (Owen 7). This gives the sense of tiredness. You can picture in your mind someone stumbling around barely knowing whats going on...resembling someone drunk. It seems like in the second stanza that the reader still senses the tiredness but when the five-nines are dropped, they all have this burst of energy and determination. In the first line of the second stanza, Gas! Gas Quick, boys!- An ecstasy of fumbling (Owen 9). This whole passage shows what one will do for ones country, even if it has to haunt you in your dreams.

Dulce et Decorun Est

The poem is fitting to the thousands of soliders that are being killed in Iraq. The Author has obviously experienced war of some kind to have such a graphic image about war in his poem. I don't think the author approves of war, being that the title means sweet and fitting it is to die for one's country, and he refers to this as "The old Lie:" (27 )
When you read the title you really don't understand what the poem will be about, but as you start reading it you understand its about war, and the end ties it all together. Maybe this author experienced a war that he did not agree with. "His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin" (20) he clearly sees the war as evil, instead of feeling like he is fighting for his country.

"Dulce et Decorum Est"

"Dulce et Decorum Est"
As I was reading this essay, I kept thinking how horrible this would be to live through. Having to watch your fellow man die next to you and their is really nothing you can do for them but to watch them suffer, and then to put your friend on the back of a wagon knowing what his destiny is. What did they do to deserve this? Nothing! Except to die for their country. This essay just shows the cruelty in war and how you are fighting with all of your strength. In the lines 5 through 8 the author makes the men sound like zombies, when he says "Men marched asleep" this makes the men seem like they are programmed to just march and they don't even realize that they are loosing important things like their boots. I just cant imagine marching while being extremely tired but too scared to stop because I could be shot and be left to die. I understand dieing for your freedom and for your country if it involves freedom but to go through this and possibly watch your friend die and many other innocent people to me it seems ironic because you cant win both.

"The Man He Killed"

When I first read this story before class, I had to read this poem a few times before I understood it. The first line threw me off, “Had he and I but met…”(710). I get a sense of regret. From the title, I am able to conclude that he is feeling regret about the man that he killed. In the first four stanzas, the first lines are fragments. In the last stanza, the first line is a sentence. I think that this is because in the first four stanzas, the speaker is trying to deal with the guilt that he if feeling for killing this man and is shown through the fragmented thoughts. In the last stanza, the speaker is coming to the realization of what he has done and is the past the point of trying to rationalize it. He says, “Yes; quaint and curious was is!” (710). With the first line of the last stanza being a sentence, it is showing a shift in the poem, aka, the realization.


Another thing that I liked about this poem is that it started where it ended. It circled around and made it seem complete. In the first stanza, the speaker is talking about how he would like the sit down and have a drink in the bar with this man. In the last stanza, the speaker is once again talking about how he and the other man could meet in a bar.

The Man He Killed

As I read Thomas Hardy’s “The Man He Killed”, I viewed the speaker to be more curious about the man’s death and the idea of war altogether, alongside his regret that the death brought to him. “Had he and I but met” (M.1) describes, to me, that if he or she were given the chance to have met this man, the possibility that they could have been friends makes the person’s mind wonder. It also seems the he or she questions wither or not they would have made the same decision if they knew the man personally. “But ranged as infantry/And staring face to face/I shot at him as he at me/And killed him in his place” (M. 5-8). I agree with those members of the class who stated that this entire stanza sounds as if they are simply just engaging in these acts because it is what they are told to do. They either kill the other or they will end up killed. The third stanza attempts to explain, as the speaker searches for reasoning as to why he or she killed this man and the only response is “Because he was my foe” (M. 10). We discussed in class today that nothing, besides the dividing line of these two people, separates one from the other. ”No other reason why” (M. 16) explains that the two people have no personal rivals, but they are just doing as they are told to survive themselves. Today, war seems to get a bit ridiculous, but for some, the benefits are their only chance at survival. Though those fighting may not necessarily agree with why they are fighting, they are simply doing it because they know that later on, they will receive their portion of benefits. I, personally, have not agreed with what is continuing on today and have seen the lasting affects that leave some veterans forever traumatized, therefore, I can somewhat understand the speaker’s feelings towards his actions.

Moving Camp Too Far

Moving Camp Too Far was a very realistic poem. I've never sat and thought about Native Americans like the way she wrote about her ancestors. It's true that they can't do all of the things they once were able to do, which is sad to think about because its a part of who they are. When we discussed the layout of the poem in class today I didn't really see a pattern in it but when Jennifer pointed out that but was the shortest line the whole poem came together in a brighter light. Nila Northsun did a wonderful job of writing this poem and they way she had everything "in line". My favorite lines of the whole poem are these; "i don't know what it was to hunt buffalo or do the ghost dance"(8-10), "i can dance to indian music rock-n-roll hey-a-hey-o i can & unfortunately i do" (19-23). I think those lines of the poem alone have a great impact on the poem and they way she views things in todays society.

The Man He Killed

The Man He Killed by Thomas Hardy gave me a different thought from the title, that the poem was going to be about some guy that got shot. Some one had murdered another man. The second Stanza was the only part that had to do with shooting and was the only part that deal with someone dying. After reading and talking it over in class i realized it was more to do with a soldier that was in the war. In war you have no guarantee if you will survive or n0t, and I think this poem is trying to show that people that go into war do not know what is coming for them.

The Kite Runner

When reading "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini through pages 165-212. I couldn't believe the rollercoaster of emotions I felt. One minute I was happy, when I thought Amir and Hassan would be reunited. The next minute I was crying when Amir found out that Hassan and his wife were murdered. "No," I breathed.
"-and ordered him to kneel-"
"No. God, no."
"-and shot him in the back of the head."
"No."
"-Farzana came screaming and attcked them-"
"No."
"-shot her too. Self-defense, they clamed later-"(195).
Hassan was such a wonderful person. I couldn't imagine what would happen to his son, Sohrab. Sohrab has delt with a lot of death at such a young age, not to mention BOTH parents, and his grandmother who he just meet. Hassan at least got to renite with his mother before she died. "She looked calm, at peace, like she did not mind dying now. The loss was hard on Hassan-it always hurts more to have and lose than to not have in the first place"(188). This line sticks out a lot to me because I know exactly how it feels, because I never got the oppertunity to know my dad before he died. I think if I would have know my dad it would hurt more than I could of imagined. It's all I've ever know since I was one, is my dad was the brightest star in the sky. I could also relate with Hassan when he never knew his mother while growing up. I was very happy Hassan got to see his mother with his son. Now on a complete different note I can't believe that Amir and Hassan are 1/2 brothers! "Ali was sterile, " Rahim Khan said. (198). I couldn't believe it, if were a different setting I'm sure the truth would of came out a lot sooner. I now think that now it's Amir's way of repaying Hassan for all of the pain and sorrow he caused to him. Amir needs to find Sohrab and take him in as his own son, and not just a newphew. I know that Soraya would approve because, "The doctors said we could adopt,"(164). I can't wait to finish to find out if I'm right, it sure would be a way Amir can forgive himself for what he did to his brother.

Dulce et Decorum Est

When I looked at the title of this poem I thought that it would be confusing to read, but once I read it I found out it was very easy to follow. The last couple of lines to this poem say "The old Lie: Dulce t decorum est Pro patria mori"(27-28). This means, sweet and fitting it is to die for ones country. After you read the poem you sense that the narrator obviously does not agree with this. He capatilizes the L in Lie, which apparently tells you that he strongly disagrees with the saying. I disagree with the author, and agree with the saying.

What I picture is from all of the “Five-Nines,” a person is walking around with this gas floating in the air which is the thick green light not being able to breathe trying to find a way out of it but can’t. I later found out from our discussion in class is that the gren light is the way the people see through their mask/helmet things. This is a very strong image that I immediately think about when I see the title of this poem.

Dulce et Decorum Est

" Sweet and fitting it is to die for one's country" (887) That is the definition of the poem written by Wilfred Owen. It is somewhat ironic to read the title to this poem and know what it means and how important it was to many back when this poem was written. Back when this poem was written, many agreed that their was no greater death than to die for ones country. Today, I feel that many people's views on this may have changed a bit. While it is honorable to die for our country I believe the long war that is being fought has many people questioning " Is it worth it anymore?"
"He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning." (887) In this line of the poem I am imagining a person struggling to live. I am imagining a person that has gone to the front line to fight for their country and to fight for what they believe in. I am also imagining that this is an image that is instilled in many young soldiers minds as they fight for our country in a war that seems cannot be won.
This poem illustrates the many hardships that a soldier must endure in times of chaos and uncertainty. This is also a poem that in reality reels through a soldiers mind time and time again after having been through this type of trauma described by the author.

The Man He Killed

At first I thought this poem was about a man that was wondering why he killed this person, like he didn't understand why he was at war or what he was doing there. After discussing it in class I understand it is about a person who is regreting what he did, he is sad that he had to kill this man. "I shot him dead because-/Because he was my foe"(Hardy 9,10). I think that shows that him being a foe is the only reason he killed him. I also think the man feels bad about shooting him because he talks about the only reason he is in the military is because he was out of work and had no other option. "Was out of work-had sold his traps-/No other reason why"(Hardy 15,16). He thinks that the other man was in the same situation, was out of work and it makes him think was it worth it to join the military. Being in the military I kind of realize what the man is thinking. Like you don't have the option to think for yourself, you just do what your told without asking questions. I think the man is really feeling guilty and I think he will hesitate the next time he gets in a gun fight. Afte learning what nipperkin and half-a crown was it made sense that this poem was written in 1902.

"Moving Camp Too Far"

After discussing "Moving Camp Too Far" in class I realized that this Native American is telling of her heritage and all the things they did as part of their culture and all the things she can still do and the things she can't do. She says she "i can't speak of many moons moving camp travois I can't tell of the last great battle counting coup or taking scalps" ( 1-7), but she says "i can see and eagle almost extinct on slurpee plastic cups i can travel to powwows in campers & winnebagos" (12-16), but at the same time none of this stuff is truly the same as the olden days when her ancestors were around to experience it all. At the same time she tries to be positive and talk about the things that she can do to keep her heritage alive. "i can dance to indian music rock-n-roll hey-a-hey-o i can & unfortunately i do" (19-23). This shows that just because things aren't exactly how it was in the old days and some traditions fade there is still some traditions people can do to keep their heritage alive no matter what.

The Man He Killed

Discussing this poem gave me more detail to understand what the speaker was really feeling. My first impression was that a man would need to kill or be killed. Not knowing the life or feelings of the other he killed, he would go in a stance of thinking that it was his job, his enemy. The line "Had he and I but met," (page 710) made me believe this because he is thinking that maybe if they would of they would be friends, share interests with one another. But he can't feel this way, because he is made out to be the enemy and he has no choice. If he wanted to remain alive he were to shoot first. "Just so: my foe of course he was", (page 710) then leads me to believe he is not happy for what he has done, but confused, trying to convince himself that it is ok. Even though deep down he knows it isn't.