The Soloist Chapters 23-31 !

The last part of The Soloist was my favorite part. There was action and drama, yet it still had a fairy-tale like ending. Nathaniel and Steve got into an argument, which was really Nathaniel screaming at Steve and saying many mean things. He told Steve he never wanted to see him again, and yells at him that he doesn't need any of the things Steve provided him with. Lopez states that it's not the things Nathaniel said to him that hurt him, it's the fact that it was coming from someone who he now considers a close friend. I feel this is a "milestone" in the book, because Lopez finally gets to see and feel what Nathaniel's disease is like personally. Although it shocks him, I think he finally realizes just how delicate and tragic the situation really is, and realizes that although Nathaniel may never become "better", he can help him to the best of his ability.

Despite the argument, Nathaniel apologizes to Steve and the two become friends again. Nathaniel finally is able to get his studio-apartment, and the pair are still able to see concerts at the Philharmonic. At one concert, Nathaniel is even allowed to meet a fellow classmate from Julliard, Yo-Yo Ma. This meeting makes Nathaniel very happy. By the end of the book, everything seems to be going well for Nathaniel, even though his illness won't be cured. He has a nice studio apartment to live in, still has his passion for music, and a new batch of friends who are ready to help him out with anything he needs. It reminds me of a fairy tale, which normally don't happen in real life situations. It's one of those feel good stories where you're happy Nathaniel and Steve both got a happy ending; Nathaniel got a better life, and Steve made a close friend. All in all, I ended up liking The Soloist. Some parts were slow, but like any book, you have to keep reading.

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The Soloist Chapters 13-22 !

Nathaniel Anthony Ayers.
Who is Nathaniel Anthony Ayers?

Is he the mad schizophrenic everyone makes him out to be? Or is he the music-loving, honest, caring person Steve Lopez has come to see? I believe he is the second option, with just a touch of the first option in him. Although Nathaniel is clinically diagnosed with schizophrenia, I feel that he does not let that ruin what he truly feels and loves.

Nathaniel started out with a happy childhood; a mother who was her own person, and a father who was there. Then things got confusing, when his father left him and created a new family, and his mother recovered from that by marrying again. All Nathaniel wanted in his life was a father to impress, and although there were different substitutes throughout his life, they weren't exactly what, or who, Nathaniel needed. Now the schizophrenia cannot be blamed by Nathaniel's father, but I feel that that could have played a part in Nathaniel's condition. The pressure of Julliard, the feeling of abandonment from his father, and the mental illness that was possibly there from the beginning of his life, all caused Nathaniel to get to the point of homelessness in his life.

To some, that type of let down would be a terrible situation. I feel that it helped Nathaniel to become a more happy, and peaceful person. Yes, I agree Nathaniel still needs treatment, and his illness shouldn't go unfixed, but if living on the streets and doing what he loves most- playing music- is what he likes, then that is what he should be allowed to do. If Lopez, or any other professional psychiatrist, would force him to go along with their rules, Nathaniel could possibly have a break down and hurt someone, or possibly hurt himself. Nathaniel is his own person, and he knows what he wants, and he follows his own rules to get it. It may not be the smartest, or the most sensible way, but as long as Nathaniel is happy, why should anyone complain?

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The Soloist Chapters 7-12 !

When first reading The Soloist, you see Steve Lopez trying to find a possible topic to write an article about. He finds his topic in musician Nathaniel Anthony Ayers, a person who suffers from schizophrenia. Although Lopez at first just helps Nathaniel because of the article, I feel that through reading the rest of the book you see Lopez start to help Nathaniel because he has truly developed a friendship with this man. Done is Lopez just trying to find information for his "story". He now finds information to help Nathaniel into recovery, and to help him get his life back into order. He is able to get Nathaniel certain "privileges" and learns the story of the man who once was.

When starting these chapters out, Lopez decides he wants to spend a night with Nathaniel on the streets. Although obviously disgusted and nervous, Lopez wonders how Nathaniel is able to sleep out in these conditions, and realizes the world isn't always a nice peaceful place. He states that by doing this however, he feels closer to Nathaniel. Continuing the reading you see Lopez go through the process of having to worry about missing time with his family, and worrying about losing his job since the person who hired him has decided to resign. With these fears, Lopez realizes he cannot constantly worry about Nathaniel and cannot continue to help him out constantly, although he does not want to abandon his relationship with Nathaniel.

Lopez is able to get Nathaniel the chance to go see the Los Angeles Philharmonic during a rehearsal. He hopes that this will possibly help lead to Nathaniel's recovery. Although this trip doesn't completely help Nathaniel realize his troubles, Lopez is happy of the fact that Nathaniel had a good time and that he seemed to be in peace in the Disney Hall where "Beethoven might still be lingering in the shadows." I feel that Lopez has moved on from just using Nathaniel as an article, and has decided to help this man into recovery.

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The Soloist Chapters 1-6 !

The book The Soloist holds mixed opinions from me. There are some points of the story that are able to hold, or catch, my interest, but then there are times where I find the book to be boring. Overall I like the idea of the book; letting the readers see the relationship that was created between journalist, Steve Lopez and street musician, Nathaniel Anthony Ayers.

One thing about The Soloist that I like is the way Lopez tells his story of meeting and helping Nathaniel. He talks in first person, and writes in a style that isn’t necessarily blunt, but straight forward. This helps to make reading the story easier on the reader. Lopez also, in my opinion, is honest. He describes how he only first asked Nathaniel a bunch of questions in order to get a newspaper article. Once he found out Nathaniel’s story (which would be Nathaniel, the talented musician, being kicked out of Julliard for the mental disease of schizophrenia), he realized just how much he wanted to help the distraught man. And although Nathaniel is doing alright by himself on the street, Lopez feels as if he could be living a whole lot easier than the way he is.

I find the book to be boring when it drags on. I’m the type of person who wants to know all the facts and details upfront, rather than wait and find them out in due time. When you have to wait to find out information about Nathaniel, or wait to see just how the situation is going to play out, that starts to become boring. I’d rather have the author just tell the story and get to the ending, or point. Since Lopez is a journalist, I feel he uses some of that style of writing to describe what is happening. I find newspaper articles boring, which is probably why some parts of the story seem dragged on to me.

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“The Catcher in the Rye” is a story told by the main character Holden Caulfield. Holden describes many experiences and situations he went through between his last semester at Pencey Academy and the time the book ends. Some experiences would be meeting new people, such as a pair of nuns, visiting people from his past, such as past teachers and girlfriends, and living life to the fullest at that moment in time. He also kept reminiscing about his deceased brother, Allie, and a past “girlfriend”, Jane. Holden brings many of his family members into the story and his experiences, mentioning his brother D.B. who lives in Hollywood, and his sister Phoebe. These two family members, along with Allie’s memory, seem to help Holden get through many difficulties he comes to face in this time period in his life.

The book “The Catcher in the Rye” held different opinions for me. At some points I felt it confusing and a little dull, while at other times I enjoyed it and agreed with what Holden had to say. I couldn’t really identify any major themes in this story. I liked the book because it was easy to read and understand, but I felt it didn’t have an obvious point to it. I agreed with some of the things Holden said, believing that some people truly are “phonies” and I just felt that honesty in him fit his personality. I also liked that he was pessimistic and sarcastic to a lot of people and things. Although I’m usually optimistic about situations, I am a very sarcastic person. I found a lot of the things Holden said to be funny, and although some people may find it annoying or unnecessary I thought it added a nice touch to the book. What I didn’t like was that some things seemed to be dragged on and it started to make the story dull. Because some things were dragged on and some things were off topic, it started to make the story complicated, and a little hard to follow. But all in all, I liked the book “The Catcher in the Rye”, and found it very entertaining.

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Death of a Salesman- The Two Themes

After reading and watching the play “Death of a Salesman”, I noticed two themes. One theme would be that not everyone will like you, and you have to accept it in order to gain self respect. Another theme would be that if you feel that something is wrong, you should have it checked out.

The first theme of “Death of a Salesman”, is that not everyone you meet is going to like you. You have two solutions for fixing a problem like this. You can try to fix, or better, the issue with the person or group. Or you can accept the fact that not everyone is going to like you, and gain self respect in that acceptance. Although some people may view the second solution as harsh (considering the person isn’t attempting to fix the issue), I feel that this is the better solution. Why waste time trying to please a person who probably won’t like you in the end? By accepting that the person doesn’t like you, you are able to gain yourself the self respect needed in order to survive through life. I feel that in “Death of a Salesman”, Willy Loman did not have the self respect needed in order to get through life. Willy felt that he needed to have everyone like him, and if they didn’t, then it was personal. Because these “feelings” felt personal, Willy soon developed a mental illness that brought him to have failed suicide attempts. Willy felt that if people didn’t like him he was worthless, which in fact was not true. Willy never realized that by worrying about others, he was putting a major strain on his family. His family had to worry about his suicide attempts, and needed to focus their attention constantly on him in order to make him feel happier. If Willy was able to have the self respect he needed, he would have saved himself from death, and saved his family from a major life struggle.

The second theme of “Death of a Salesman” comes from two possible reasons in the play. The first reason being Willy’s mental illness, and the second being Linda Loman’s possible suspicion that Willy was cheating on her. The theme is, should you have a suspicion that something is wrong, have it checked out. If Linda, along with her sons Biff and Happy, checked Willy’s mental illness sooner, they could have stopped many problems from arising. They could have possibly been able to find a way to make Willy feel happier, or understand what was going on in his mind. Another possible reason for this theme would be Linda and the suspicion that Willy was cheating on her. If Linda would have checked this suspicion out, she would have found out the truth and things could have ended completely different. She may have either chose to leave Willy, or stand by her husband and stick out the problems they were facing at home. One good thing about checking with a problem sooner than later, is that many issues may be able to be fixed or saved, such as in Willy’s case.

Although these two themes seem different, I feel that they connect to each other. Both themes help people to realize that if you get things checked out, or give yourself self respect, you are able to stop possible “bad endings” from happening. If Willy would have given himself the respect he needed, he could have stopped himself from living a not so rich life. While if Linda would have had Willy’s mental illness checked out, she could have possibly stopped Willy’s death from happening. The two themes help you to realize that you are able to change your life, and make it turn out the way you want your life to be.

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Blog About Blogger

Has blogging been valuable to you as a student, thinker, reader, and writer?
-I do believe that blogger has been a valuable experience for me as a student. It was a fun, easy way to post our responses to the questions/assignments you asked us. Google groups was nice, but blogger is a whole lot simpler, and it's nice that we're able to comment on each other's writings. Being able to comment on someone else's writings helps them to better their writing, and it makes the posting more interactive. Because of some feedback I got on my posts, I was able to better my writing style and understand what I have to fix.

How do you feel about doing and continuing to do this kind of work?
-I personally like doing the blogs. I want to continue using this website, because it's easy and simple to use. I never have to worry about going home and not understanding how to post this weeks assignment and other troubles like that. Again, I feel it's fun that we get to comment on other's writings. Also it's great to be able to go and look at other's ideas if I get stuck on an idea.

Is this work different from other experiences that you have had in English classes?
-This work is different than other experiences that I've had in past English classes. Basically all other English classes used the idea of writing papers, printing them out, and handing them in. Some used notebooks, and others gave homework throughout the week. I liked having just the one assignment during the weekend, and being able to post made it simple to go right to the teacher.

Has doing this work changed the community within your own class or between classes (11-1 and 11-2) in any way?
-I wouldn't say it changed the community between classes, but it was nice to be able to read 11-2's work. Usually for English, or history, assignments we won't get to see the other classes work because we have no way of communicating through classes. Blogger was a nice way for us to get to communicate through the class barrier, and see what our other peers were thinking.