The Rocking Donkey
“How is your little girl?” people would ask. “Is she at home or at boarding school?” “Oh, she is at home,” was what Mrs. Mitching would say. Although, people had no idea what poor Esmeralda was going through. She was simply mistreated by Mrs. Mitching. She basically had the necessities of life, but that was it. She was like a neglected pet to Mrs. Mitching, getting the same food everyday; bread, margarine, boiled fish, and prunes. In addition to this, she wore an old, brown dress and torn up shoes. Mrs. Mitching was wealthy, although she was always spending her money on organizing events and opening public places, so she had little money for Esmeralda and couldn’t afford school for her. Mrs. Mitching cared more about her work than her own daughter. Worst of all, Esmeralda had a big “playroom” but absolutely nothing to do in this irony.
This story is an irony because Mrs. Mitching is the strong, dominant force, and Esmeralda, the main character, is weak in power. It begins with Esmeralda being poor, and the conflict is very serious; she has nothing to do. She gets a rocking donkey, and falls in love with it. When Mrs. Mitching donates it to the museum, she goes insane. Esmeralda starts thinking that she sneaks into the museum, and starts talking to the donkey. She must be insane, because this part is very fictional. Then, she thinks that she gets on it, and starts flying away. This is even more unrealistic.
Esmeralda is a good, strong person in this story, for you never once hear her complain. She is badly taken care of, but she takes her problems and tries to make the best of them. To begin with, she doesn’t have her dress to wear to the rummage sale event, so she says, “I’ll have to go as I am.” Another example is when it talks about that in the past; someone had given Esmeralda a piece of twine. She was smart enough to know that she could use it to jump rope. Equally important, Esmeralda is very thankful for what she has, but wishes for more. Her wishes come true when a man gives her a shilling at the rummage sale. Esmeralda decides on a rocking donkey, which she treats like a real pet. She is heartbroken when Mrs. Mitching makes her donate the donkey to a museum. Although her friend is gone, you somehow know, at this point, that things will turn out well in the end.
Mrs. Mitching is the type of person that really enjoys her work, for she was away from home a lot. She was rich, but spent most of her money on opening things and organizing events. Sadly, she didn’t seem to care very much about Esmeralda. Mrs. Mitching didn’t seem to feel bad for Esmeralda either, because in the story there was an event that showed this. As soon as Mrs. Mitching saw that Esmeralda had the rocking donkey, she made Esmeralda scrub it clean, like she was her maid or something. Then Mrs. Mitching took it and donated it to a museum, not even bothering to think about Esmeralda. This is Mrs. Mitching’s wicked personality.
Overall, work seemed more important than Esmeralda to Mrs. Mitching. Mrs. Mitching was the mean, rich stepmother, and Esmeralda was the poor, hopeless, little girl whose only friend was taken away. Esmeralda probably went on living her neglected life. That is, if she really did go insane. Maybe she did ride off into the night on the donkey. What do you think happened to Esmeralda?
Guns for General Washington
“Yankee Doodle keep it up,
Yankee Doodle dandy,
Mind the music and the step,
And with the girls be handy!” (Reit)
The soldiers chanted songs as they trudged on their mission. They had been ordered to deliver the guns from Fort Ticonderoga to Dorchester Heights. There were many strong guns like iron and brass cannons that could majorly help the Continental Army. On the other hand, the British Army was very strong and greatly outnumbered the Patriot side. The British Army was also well equipped, whereas the Continental Army was not. General Washington thought the new weapons could change this, that is, if the soldiers got them delivered in time. The soldiers went through many hardships in this suspenseful romance.
Guns for General Washington can be characterized as a romance. This American Revolution story starts out with a conflict, which is the Continental Army lacking supplies, soldiers, weapons, and power. The soldiers bring the guns to Dorchester Heights, and fight the war with them. The new weapons startle the British and this wins the battle for the Americans. This is a new beginning for the Patriots, for they are now separated from Great Britain. It is as well the birth of a new country. In addition to this, it makes the reader escape into the story, which defines this story as a romance.
Henry Knox was a strong, brave leader, and truly believed that the Patriots had a chance in the war. This Patriotic feeling kept the train of guns and soldiers moving along during the many hardships on the journey. There were a few times that most soldiers thought that there was no chance at all of making it, but Henry Knox said, “We won’t know until we try.” (Reit) Henry was also an intelligent soldier in this novel. To begin with, the crew was trying to transport the big guns across the Mohawk River, but the ice was not holding up. It was clever Henry Knox who came up with the idea of plunging holes into the ice, so that water flooded the top of the ice. It then froze over, and was much stronger. Henry was a great role model for his younger brother, Will, during the expedition.
In addition to being a good role model for his brother, Henry was also a good one for J.P. Although J.P. was only twelve years old, he was a very brave soldier. He had asked to come along on the journey with Becker, his father. After Becker was injured, J.P. bravely took over managing the horses. Although he was courageous, J.P. was startled when they came to Bloody Pond. He screamed, “It’s the ha’nts, pa!” “Bloody Pond! The horses can see ‘em!” (Reit). It was easy to tell that he knew about the rumors of the ghosts at the pond. Even then J.P., with a little help from his father, was able to keep the snorting and bucking horses under control. This was extreme bravery and definitely something to be proud of.
The extreme challenges that the troopers went through were unbearable. There were also many injuries along the way. Overall, the soldiers knew that they were doing this for their country. They didn’t say “No I won’t help fight the war.” They just took their problems and got over them. Many people today couldn’t stand the challenges back then. What would you say if you were asked to join the militia?
Bibliography
Reit, Seymour. "Guns for General Washington." Reit, Seymour. Guns for General Washington. Orlando: Harcourt, Inc., 1990. 1-190.
The Giver
“You have been greatly honored, Jonas”…”It’s not a job, really”… “The training of you requires pain”…“There is only one Receiver” (Lowry) - These phrases kept shooting through Jonas’s mind. He had just been selected to be the Receiver of the Memories. He had no idea what it meant until later. He had been selected to be trained by a man named The Giver. The “training” was The Giver transmiting memories to Jonas by placing his hands on Jonas’s back. The memory would then be transmitted to Jonas’s brain. He would feel like he was actually in the memory, and would from then on have it with him until he transfered it to someone else. There were many happy memories, like rainbows and Christmas. Unfortunately, there were painful memories as well, such as war and extreme hunger. There must be a Reciever, for when the community needs help, the Reciever gives advice. Sometimes, Jonas feels happy about this new adventure. Other times, Jonas wants to apply for release. This is only until he finds out what “release” means. Jonas and The Giver decide to team up against the community and their strange rules in this comedy.
This story could be categorized as a comedy. To begin with, Jonas is living his normal everyday life. He has good friends and family. The conflict arises, which is that Jonas is selected for the Reciever of the Memories. He doesn’t know what it is, and is afraid because people were saying, “The training requires great pain.” (Lowry) Jonas later fully realizes the conflict, which is the painful memories that are now with him, along with realizing what “release” is. He finds out that it truly means death, and that his father releases babies. Jonas knows that the child that his father has been taking care of a boy named Gabriel who is about to be realesed. Jonas and The Giver make a plan, and this results in the resolution. Jonas and Gabriel run away to a different community on a bike. They probably then live a normal life.
Jonas is very brave in this story, for he never quits his new assignment. He truly tries to understand everything that The Giver is teaching him. He is very tough during the painful memories, and joyful during the happy ones. Jonas is very caring for The Giver. An example is when Jonas walks in for his daily training, and sees The Giver in pain. He then asks The Giver to give him the memory, so that The Giver will not be in so much pain. This shows how much he loves the Giver. The word “love” was not used in the community, so it was a new word for Jonas. There were many other things that Jonas had to get used to with the training. To begin with, no one in the community had been able to see color except for The Giver. Now Jonas was seeing things start to change, of which he could not describe. First the color of red, then more colors. Life had changed greatly for Jonas.
The Giver was once selected like Jonas was. This meant he understood how Jonas felt. He was very kind to him, and tried to teach him everything he could. The Giver was also very patient with him, for he always listened. The Giver loves Jonas like a son. For example, The Giver was telling Jonas about how he loved his daughter, and he said, ”I feel it for you too.” (Lowry) Other than talking to Jonas, The Giver mainly keeps to himself in this story. He seems very independent. Jonas and The Giver are also very honest with each other, and seem to trust one another.
Overall, Jonas tries his hardest to adjust to the new assignment. He has help from The Giver, but they decide it is no use. Something must be done about the memories. Jonas runs away with Gabriel, while suffering from terrible conditions, they reach a new communtity. That is, unless Jonas was hallucinating. Maybe they really did just die from cold and starvation. What do you think happened to them?
