22. (Opinion on Romeo and Juliet Act One)

Similar to the first portion of any novel or play, the bulk of Romeo and Juliet's first act was, predictably, dedicated to character introduction.  Shakespeare needed to give the audience a clear idea of exactly who the Montagues and Capulets are, and just how powerful they are, not to mention the magnitude of their hatred for each other.  Near the end of act one, however, we witness a night that will be the precursor for all that is left to come: the Capulet party.  During the Capulet party, we are introduced to Tybalt for the second time, and learn that regardless of the social scenario, his first instinct is to kill any Montague he sees, which is brought to realization later in the book.  Also, we are first introduced to Juliet, a young woman who seemingly has no interest in men, especially the one man she is designated to marry, the noble Paris, who already has established a firm relationship with her father.  Of course, this changes in an instant when she meets Romeo, who if we really investigate, wasn't even supposed to be at the party.This ignites a love that will not be extinguished until one or both of the two lovers are dead (which may be sooner than they would hope).  In my mind, the events of this party are the most important goings-on of the entire play.  Not only do they lay the foundation for the rest of the play, they also set a tone.  This tone is beautifully put into words by Romeo who basically says that he knows if he goes to the party, it will result in one or more deaths, but he is going anyways.  This is really just because of Mercutio, who has already been established as a risk taking wild man.  Unfortunately for Romeo, his prediction may be all too correct.

21. (was Challenge Day worth it?)

In my mind, Challenge Day was definitely a success, at least among the people who went on Wednesday.  Even though it is a foregone conclusion that there will be people to whom Challenge Day meant nothing, I strill think that it did make a considerable impact overall.  The way it was set up really actually worked, and by the end of the day, I think that everyone had a better recognition of the circumstances of those around them. I believe that if there is ever bullying in our school, it often springs from a ignorance of the other person's feelings and personality.  Once people actually know each other on a real level, we are probably less likely to hurt each other.  The only people that didn't take anything away from this experience are the people who either didn't come or came wanting to not take anything away.  I think that Challenge Day was a good experience for our group, and while just like everything else we do, the effects will wear off, I think that this experience will stick in people's minds, and will probably impact our future at high school positively. 

20. (Opinion on the first quarter of Catching Fire)

So far, I have quite enjoyed Catching Fire.  Having not read the Hunger Games, I am just getting used to the universe of Katniss, and so far I think that the book is well written, as well as eventful and intense.  So far, the book has mostly been about the victory tour which, to the people, seems just like any other, but to Katniss entails so much more.  With rebellion brewing that she was undoubtedly the cause of, the Capitol has basically told her that if she does not do something to fix it, her family and friends will be in jeopardy.  After a meeting in person with president Snow, she is well aware that things could start to go downhill, and they are beginning to, considering there has been an uprising in district eight.  At this point, it is kind of hard to tell what is going to happen next.  President Snow clearly is displeased, and Peeta seems to almost want a rebellion, considering the dire circumstances they witnessed in other districts on the victory tour, as well as the ridiculous amount of luxury that the people in the Capitol have at their disposal. Pretty soon, I think Katniss is going to have to make a decision, or things are going to go from very bad to even worse still.  She has already flirted with the possibility of running away.  Considering her public marriage proposals to Peeta, it seems as though she has not considered fuelling a rebellion of her own, but I believe she is still maintaining that possibility, as she knows inside of her that things are wrong with the system.  Now it is time to figure out what to do about it.

18. (opinion on the end of Lord of the Flies)

I have mixed feelings about the conclusion to Lord of the Flies.  Of course I wanted things to work out, especially for Ralph and his boys, but I just didn't find the end to be entirely convincing.  The odds of a ship showing up at precisely that moment after not seeing one over an extended period of time are next to none.  I did think, however,  that the part leading up to the ultimate conclusion, the hunt of Ralph, was very well written and also very intense.   It was the type of thing I would expect to come after the dramatic foreshadowing in the novel, and in my mind was executed very well by the author.  It did leave him in a pretty tough situation, and I was glad to see something come along that could save him.  The one part of the end that I didn't like was that, basically, Jack won.  I would have really liked to see Ralph have some sort of ultimate triumph, instead of literally collapsing at the feet of a naval officer.  Although, this was never intended to be a cheerful story, so I guess the triumph of evil on the island is fitting.  Overall, I would say the end is satisfying in that there is an positive resolution that is achieved without losing track of the ultimate theme of the story.    

17. ("Memory of the dance that none of them had attended shook all four boys convulsively")

Within this one quote lies many important notions relevant to the progression of the story.  The loss of innocence in this story, as previously mentioned, had led the boys to a tipping point.  Now, Ralph and his gang were left to come to grips with the events of the night prior, which included most notably the killing of Simon in a "dance", which was really more of a mad killing frenzy.  The air created through this quote is one of conflicting emotions, mostly denial.  Unlike the savages, Ralph's group had sworn that they were going to stick with the morals instilled in them back at home.  Meanwhile, just the night before, they had all participated in the murder of the most innocent character in the novel.  Predictably, Piggy went with the approach of complete denial, while Ralph remained realistic.  In front of Samneric, however, who had presumably missed this ritual, he also begins to fall into a state of denial.  All of the boys present in this scene had in fact attended the "dance", and they all felt terrible about it.  The death of Simon represents a turning point in the book, and in this section, the characters who see themselves as comparatively noble and clean-cut are forced to deal with the fact that they too are capable of more than they thought.

16. (the role that the death of Simon plays in the boys' loss of innocence)

In my mind, the death of Simon represents a monumental tipping point in the boys' world.  Up to this point, there had been numerous signs that things were taking a turn for the worse.  From the circle game with Robert to the overall cruelty of the boys towards Piggy, there were inklings that the boys were not the same as they had been prior to their plane's crash on the island.  The death of Simon, however, dips into entirely new territory.  As Ralph says later in the chapter, "That was murder."  This is more of a realization in my mind than an accusation.  The fact that the boy are actually capable of killing more than just a pig could be what sends their ever so precarious society right over the edge.  At this point in the story, any innocence the boys had coming in has vanished, and the game has changed.  This death is very likely to lead to more dramatic instances, including the possibility of more deaths.  The boys have crossed a bridge, be it slightly unwillingly for some, and coming back across may not be a possibility.  This notion is reinforced by the fact that the leader of the savages' tribe is the most inclined to further violence out of all of the boys.  Jack has and has continued to show malice and increasing bloodlust throughout the story, and these qualities have only become more potent as time has worn on.  As it continues to wear on, Jack will surely become more inclined to further violence, and the pack of followers he has have already showed their willingness to kill.

15. (a retelling of chapter eight from Simon's point of veiw)

Today just took the terrible events of days past and magnified them to the point of no return.  The island is becoming less and less friendly, and the tension between Jack and Ralph has reached the point of utter and complete turmoil.  It doesn't even matter what I say anymore, because nobody will listen to me, and Jack's practically out of his mind now anyways.  Today started with tension and fear, just like all of our other days lately, as we had just returned from our hunt from the beast.  We met back with Piggy to talk about our future (although I'm starting to think our future might be in serious jeopardy).  It really is looking bleak, I'll say, and that seemed to be the general conclusion drawn by Jack and Ralph back at camp.  They were having a conversation about how we should react, knowing what we now know about the beast, when Ralph made a bit of a  rude comment about Jack's hunters.  Knowing Jack the way I do, that was the last thing Ralph wanted to do.  Predictably, Jack threw a fit, and actually stormed off into the woods to start his own band of blood-driven savages.  Don't ask me where that's gonna go, other than downhill.  After the assembly, the pressure just started to get to me, and I knew I needed to take a moment in my spot.  It's always been such a safe haven for me, you know?  Just a place to get away from it all.  Sometimes I really need it, too, and today was one of those times.  However, when I got to my spot, rather than the usual majesty of nature, I discovered a truly horrifying severed pig's head which had been driven into the ground with a double-ended spear.  I went into a state of hysteria, and I started thinking about our future, and the beast, and how we're going to recover whatever is left of our society, and then I knew I was going down.  The last thing I remember was the world just going black.