East of Eden

This is not something the Hamilton family expected: after the death of Una, Samuel dies. Not only does it strike the family hard, but Adam is also affected. While on a visit to Salinas for the funeral, he comes in contact with Kate, who has changed slightrly from the last time he saw her. He finally has the guts to confront her and boy does he make her angry! In this section, we also see a bit of interaction between brothers Cal and Aron. Although they have some sibling rivalry, it is clear that the brothers have a better relationship that their father and uncle.

Question: Why do you think Cal and Aron's relationship is better than Adam and Charles'?

East of Eden

in pages 252-305, things change. Samuel confronts Adam and tries to bring some sense into him, asking him to forget about the woman that ruined his life and think of his children. The book also delves more into the Hamilton family, especially the girls. When Samuel's oldest, Una, dies, his bright personality quickly diminishes and each of the family members deals with it personally. Soon, Samuel and Liza make a decision: they will move away from the farm and to Salinas. And after a brief but slightly educational conversation with Lee and Samuel, Adam decides on the names Caleb and Aaron.

Question: Why do you think it took so long for Adam to acknowledge his boys' existence?

East of Eden

So where did we leave off? oh right..... Cathy left the house, but not before shooting Adam! Now after being abandoned, Adam retreats further into his shell, shutting himself off from even his newborn children, who remained yet unnamed. Cathy has now become Kate and works as a prostitute in Faye's house. Faye quickly comes to look at Kate as the daughter she never had, so when she "mysteriously" dies, she gets all the mullah!

Question: How does Kate's personality mirror Cathy's?

East Of Eden

Pages 150-202: That arrival of the Trask babies has arrived. But what was supposed to be a simple birth turned violent. Sam Hamilton was called to help Cathy give birth to her babies, but she decides to be anything but cooperative during her labor; she refuses to talk but few words to Sam and ends up biting him on the hand. After she gave birth to twin boys, she refuses to even look at them. She ends up leaving Adam, but not before shooting him in the shoulder.

Why do you think Cathy has such a violent behavior?

East Of Eden

Their paths have crossed: Adam & Charles', Cathy's, and the Hamilton's. After narrowly escaping death, she finds herself being nursed for at the Trask home. Adam quickly took interest in her, and before long, they were married, despite Charles' suspicions of her. However, ignoring his feelings towards her, Charles and Cathy end up sleeping together (talk about back-stabbing!). Soon after that, the newlyweds move to the Salinas Valley- home of the Hamiltons- and meet jolly ol' Samuel, who helps Adam build his own Garden of Eden (i've heard that before... i just cant remember where lol).

How has this story shaped up to the biblical story of Genesis? What do you think Adam will do when he finds out about Cathy & Charles' one-night stand? and will that ultimately destroy the already fragile relationship between the two brothers?

EaSt Of EdEn

in the next 50 pages of East of Eden, we're introduced to a new character, a young girl named Catherine. From an early age, she learned to use her womanly features to gain what she wanted. After burning her parents to death, she ends up living with a Mr. Edwards. He soon finds out what kind of woman she really is: a ruthless, evil young girl; she almost ends up dead. Switching from her story, we go on to learn that Adam, the prodigal son, has returned to the family farm. All that rivalry between the boys had subsided and tension rises regarding their deceased father's money.

why do you think Cathy is like this?

~*EaSt Of EdEn*~

The relationship between Charles and Adam becomes deadly in the next 25 pages of East of Eden. An evening encounter leads to Charles confronting his brother about their father's feelings towards each other. Charles believes that their father, Cyrus, does not love him as much as he loves Adam, which causes Charles to violently beat him. Meanwhile, Samuel and Liza Hamilton's family grows with the addition of 8 children, all of whom have distinct personalities.

Question: Do you think Charles is paranoid about Adam and Cyrus' relationship?

~*eAsT oF eDeN*~

the first 25 pages of John Steinbeck's classic East of Eden details the setting and background knowledge of some of the main characters. Growing up, brothers Charles and Adam relationship begins to parallel to that of the biblical siblings Cain and Abel, from personality to outcome. Steinbeck slowly begins describing their differences: Charles wishes to join the military but won't, while Adam, the quieter one, does not wish to go, but is being forced to. Then theres the story of Samuel and Liza Hamilton, an irish immigrant couple who have contrasting personalities, one being religious and the other a free spirit.

who do you think resembles either cain or abel?

~*eT tU bRuTe?*~

William Shakespeare re-enacts the death of the famous roman dictator in the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. It describes the ambition of the roman senators and their intolerance for the ppopularity of Caesar, which led them to kill him. After secrets and fears spread throught the senate, they are finally drawn to the edge. I enjoyed this book because it tells how that tragic death could have happened.

Author's Argument: Too much power can hurt you

Question: How does this reflect today's modern politics and elections?

~*ThE tHiNgS tHeY cArRiEd*~

The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien reveals the hardships endured by soldiers, including himself, during the Vietnam war. The book qualifies as "Holding Secrets" and "More alike than different." All the soldiers had their little secrets to hide (such as a forbidden love), deadly fears and inspiring dreams. Whether they realized it or not, the soldiers were more alike that they thought; all of them wanted to go back to their families alive, and certainly none of them wanted to die in combat. I enjoyed this book because it detailed what soldiers went through at that time.

Author's Argument: Despite problems, they have one goal.

Question: Do you believe soldiers in the current war have the same or similar feelings that soldiers had back then?

~*MoRe ChUnKs*~

Well the next chunk in the book mainly talks about two things: the story of Jack Welch and the recent success of Europe. Jack Welch was once the CEO of General Electrics, unil a big blunder messed it all up: without thinking a minute about it, he bought a company that was about to be bought, for half a billion more than the competing company. That's were it all went downhill. Soon after that, there began an investigation about the monopoly-ish type of companies he ran and how he treated his employees. This soon brought instans success to Europe due in big part to Mario Monti, an Italian economics expert. Then the book goes on to talk about the recent success in Europe, socially and economically. Some of their success include making the Air-Bus and creating Red Bull.

Tone: joking

Language: simple

Rhetorical Strategies: Anecdote, Metaphor.

Question: What id the difference between how American & European economies are run?

~*ThE uNiTeD sTaTeS oF EuRoPe*~

In his book The United States of Europe, T.R. Reid describes the rise of a new world superpower: not one nation, but a group of countries joined together to form the European Union. For years, the United States has taken over and remained the most powerful nation in the world, whether it be economically or militarily. Not until the late 20th Century did these European nations come together to unify the broken continent.In the first part of the book, Reid journeys through the creation of this community and the hardships it faced. Coming together as war torn nation after WWII, 12 initial nations vowed to rise from the rubble and establish a Europe strong enough to stand head-to-head with the US. Reid also explains how the EU created the Euro, the common currency currently shared in 15 countries. The author uses eloquent language pertaining to the task, but also tries to grab the readers attention and keep one both entertained and informed.

Tone: Didactic

Language: Cultured

Rhetorical Strategies: Anecdote, Allusion

Question: How Does the rise of the EU compare the the rise of the US?

YoU'rE nOt SoRRy? ThAt'S oK

Melissa Healy’s LA Times article entitled “You’re Not Sorry? That’s OK” discusses the possible impact that forgiveness can have on one’s health. Studies have shown that the simple act of forgiving those who have wronged you can enhance cardiovascular function, treat depression, and expand life spans. They also have a lower risk of obtaining mental illnesses than those who avoid their problems and past. Those who don’t take too kindly to forgiving increase their chances of heart attacks and mental diseases. The author provides an example by describing the story of some who, because of their rough and violent history, aren’t willing to forgive. Though forgiving takes an immense effort from one, it can have its advantages.

Tone: Reflective, Sympathetic

Questions:

• Does the capacity to forgive have to do with the action commited against a person?
• Do you believe forgiving is good for one's health? What about the soul?

~*BEiJiNg’S OLyMpiC QuEsT: TuRn SmOggY SkY BLuE*~

Jim Yardley’s 2007 article for The New York Times entitled “Beijing's Olympic Quest: Turn Smoggy Sky Blue” explains the dangers and health hazards caused by pollution in the city of Beijing and how it may affect the 2008 Olympic Games, which are being hosted by the Chinese city. The citizens of Beijing have even been warned to stay indoors due to the foul air. Yet most ignore the warning, already being accustomed to that type of air. The city has already been named one of the most polluted in the world, and it plans to make sure that next year, the athletes don’t end up grasping for clean air. During the past months, scientists have been using the city as a lab, studying the weather patterns and pollution rates to solve the problem. “We are determined to ensure that the air conditions meet the necessary standards in August 2008,” states Liu Qi, president of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games. They can only hope that by august of next year, Blue Skies become permanent.

Tone: Humorous


Picture courtesy of NY Times











Questions

• Do you think they can accomplsih it by next year?


• Will we have to deal with the same problem if we host the Olympic Games in the Future?
  

~*CHiNa WoN't Be ToYeD WiTH*~

Barbara Demick’s humorous article for the Los Angeles Times entitled “China Won’t Be Toyed With” describes the confusion on the Chinese public on the fact that presidential candidate Barack Obama suggested a boycott of toy imports from China, the leading marketer of toys- producing around 80% of the world’s toys. Recently, consumers of these items- including toys and other Chinese manufactured things such as toothpaste- have expressed their concern for their health and safety. One crucial hazard is paint containing lead. The Chinese wonder what the cause of such uproar is. Some suggest jealousy from the U.S as a possible source. Chen Xeuhua, a saleswoman, declares, “Americans are only picking on us because our economy is doing well and we’re getting the Olympics.” Because of this sudden revelation by Obama, some Chinese have spoken out, saying “That [something something] won’t get elected if he tries to ban Chinese toys” and calling him “Worse than Bush!” Demick point out that while Barack Obama might be headed to possible presidential stardom, he probably won’t get the Chinese popular vote.

Picture courtesy of LA Times











Tone: Informative

Questions:

• Why does Obama want to place a ban on Chinese toys?
• If he was successful in accomplishing this, how would it affect the U.S economy?