Tuesday Write: The Beast

The Beast

    In the novel The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, the perception of a “beast” represents the fear and calamity the group of boys are faced with. Soon after the boys are stranded on an island, the belief of a formidable beast arrises. On of the younger boys shares his conception of a beast, “He says it was a beastie… a snake-thing. Ever so big. He saw it” (35). This demonstrates the beginning of the boys’ fear being embodied in the physical being of a beast.



 Throughout the book, sightings of the “beast” are present. Another example is when Sam and Eric take their turn encountering the beast. They declare the rest of the group, “The beast had teeth… and big black eyes” (124). Sam and Eric’s description of the beast proves a differing characterization of this evil figure. Due to the different perspectives on the beast and his physical characteristics, it helps exemplify the falsehood of an actual beast. Instead, the beast is an association of the fears of the island and the overall events the boys are going through. In the end, the beast is not a true monster in the physical world, but a monster of their imagination created by their own dread and distress.

                   

This video displays how the beast was used metaphorically throughout the Lord of the Flies.

Summerland Book Review

Elin Hilderbrand’s Summerland

Reviewed by Daniella Paradiso

On a warm night In the charming town of Nantucket, the graduating class of local high school students gather at a traditional bonfire on the beach. Little do they know that it will lead to the death of a significant figure in the town of Nantucket, diminish the opportunities of the town’s well- known athlete, and effect many people psychologically in dealing with the tragedies brought to this closely knit town.

In the novel Summerland, Elin Hilderbrand creates a captivating storyline that keeps its readers fascinated page after page. The book is based on the death of a loved member of Nantucket society, Penny Alistair, who is killed in a car crash while driving her brother and friends home from the bonfire celebration. The book is narrated through multiple points of view. First, through her mother who has to live with the death of her baby girl. Penny’s friend, Demeter, faces insecurities and alcoholism following the accident, and is also featured in the book’s narration. Her twin brother Hobby, who is left in a coma, and her boyfriend Jake, who faces family corruption also share the affects of Penny’s death. Although Demeter, Jake, and Hobby are left unhurt, they are haunted by the affairs of that night. They are also left wondering what occurred before Penny took the wheel that caused her to drive with character contrary to her own.

Although the story begins with tragedy, Hilderbrand’s writing is enchanting with beautiful language and descriptions of the town. An example of Hilderbrand’s eloquent writing is at the very beginning of the book. “Nantucket: the name of the island brought to mind the rolling surf, cobblestone streets, the brick mansions of whaling captains, a battered Jeep Wrangler with a surfboard strapped to the roll bars”(Hilderbrand 3). Elin Hilderbrand utilizes a writing style that allows visualization of the scenery and overall appeal of the town.

The characters in Summerland cause the readers to sincerely sympathize for their situations. Hilderbrand warps those reading into the story to feel the events unfold around themselves. During the funeral for Penny, many emotions are shared due to the multiple narrators of the book. Hobby is described as being, “... On a hospital gurney… Hobby was half boy, half mummy, but he had his mind back, and he cried openly in a ruined voice”(102). This description of the injured and emotionally scarred boy caused me to feel terribly for Hobby and simply want to hug him.

Perhaps one aspect of the book that could have caused confusion, was the multitude of narrators. For example, even the town of Nantucket had its own chapters, of which events were narrated by the perspective of the town. Also, the driving force behind the book, the cause of Penny’s recklessness, is slightly drawn out. Throughout the duration of the book, the secret is mentioned multiple times but not given away. Although it is interesting information to look forward to finding out, I do not believe it is motivating enough to read four- hundred pages in order to find out.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Summerland. The writing was amazing and swept me to the beautiful town of Nantucket. I was overwhelmed with emotions of the characters and sympathized for many of them. It was electrifying finding out the cause for Penny’s loss of control and death. I believe this book demonstrated the human reactions to death, and opened eyes to the modern day struggles of society that many face today.

Hilderbrand, Elin. Summerland. Reagan Arthur Books. 2012

Unconscious Influence

In the reading of the Malcolm Gladwell Chapter, it was surprising to see that Warren Harding was elected president simply because he "looked like a president." His election proved that physical characteristics affect the way a person is judged and believed to be. Harding was good looking and strong, which drew the electors to believe he would make a good president. 

Although Warren Harding looked like a mighty leader, his demeanor was deceitful. The unconscious biases of the electors towards Harding due to his physical features, caused Harding to win the election.     Although people may not be aware of their unconscious preferences towards certain people, it would be hard to change their biases if they were unaware of them in the first place. Instead of just looking for physical characteristics to determine a leader, some characteristics people should look for include:  integrity, honesty, intelligence, morality, dedication, and determination.

The IAT, is an implicit association test that detects the presence of unconscious biases that people may have. I took an IAT on racial preference over blacks and whites, association with females and males in the workforce, and preference over fat and skinny people. After taking the tests concerning the different races and gender association, the test concluded that I had little to no preference over blacks and whites, and that I had little to no difference in the association of females and males in the workforce.

          
The third test I took was on preference of fat or skinny people. I was shocked to see my results. I had a moderate preference towards skinny people over heavier people. I found this surprising because in daily life, I often disregard the weight of other people as it does not concern me. I believe that my response to the different weights of people is influenced due to our society's stress on the importance of being "skinny."