My Blobby Essay
Katie Olsen
Honors Humanities Essay
If there was ever a better way to learn historical information than reading well-written novels, I have never heard of it. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Shane, The Call of the Wild, and The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman used many historical facts to guide their stories.
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer chronicles a short period of time in young Tom Sawyer’s life. In this novel, written by Mark Twain, we read about many of Tom’s adventures, from relationship problems, to the unfairness of school, to a hunt for treasure. But, in addition to the above, this book tells about the growing population of Missouri (where Tom lived) and other Midwestern states in the 19th century. This process was called westward expansion. We did an integrated U.S. History/English project on this a few weeks ago. Many people claimed land in the Midwestern states back in the mid-1800s. Also, we learn about what kind of schooling the children in these areas received. Tom was taught in a one-room schoolhouse with many different grades in it. I remember reading about such schooling in my U.S. History book a few months back. The novel was right on target. To add on, religion also played a big role in people’s lives. Verses from the Bible were followed, or at least ideally, and Sundays were observed for resting. In conclusion, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer teaches one what life was like for early homesteaders in Missouri, as well as other states.
Shane, much like The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, gives historical information and takes place in the time where homesteading and farming were mandatory to the economy. A gunman, Shane being his name, is analyzed through a boy named Bob’s eyes. I learned from this book that it was usual for people to carry guns. This did not relate to what we have been learning in U.S. History this year, but it made me less shocked when reading about all the shooting and such that went on during the time before Revolutionary and Civil Wars. I also learned how much farming influenced the economy and welfare of the Midwestern states. Men, women, and children were up at dawn and down at dusk, working in the fields so the family could prosper. I enjoyed Shane’s depiction of the idea of homesteading and farming. I was unaware before reading this exactly how much fertile and large land was in demand. People, including Bob’s father, were very much involved in the acquiring of lands by more powerful men.
Next, we read The Call of the Wild. Through the eyes of Buck, a husky-like dog, we are led through the Alaska/Yukon Gold Rush. In U.S. History, I learned about the similar California Gold Rush. Men “rushed” to California for gold after a man named James Marshall discovered some on the banks of the American River. These courageous people traveled to California in wagons or by sea. In The Call of the Wild, the gold rushers used husky-like dogs to pull sleds through the Alaska wilderness. These dogs were not treated well at all. Buck was beaten very often and never given a warm place to sleep. I was glad to be able to learn about the other gold rush in the United States. A part of the book that affected me the most was the beating of the animals when they were extremely tired and could not move fast enough for the mushers, as they were called. All of the stress piling up on these dogs caused them to become cranky and irritable, and lash out at each other. One dog even killed another dog as a result of this sort of pressure and “who’s boss” attitude the dogs had. I think that this time in our history was very sad, mostly for the dogs, but for the mushers as well.
Lastly, we read The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman. Unlike other books, we discussed this one about midway through, and I think it helped me understand the book better. I was surprised as to how many people thought this book was non-fiction. Really, this book is written by Ernest Gaines. Gaines pretends to have interviewed a Miss Jane Pittman and recorded such an interview, then put it down on paper. I found this to be an interesting way to write a book. This book (the title is way too long to write out every time) is about a woman who has grown up with slavery and finally gets her freedom at eleven years old. A lot of the book covers her journey north, and a lot of it covers her settling down with Joe Pittman, and even more covers her working for certain people for certain kinds of payment. In U.S. History right now, we are learning about slavery. Slavery is very horrible, according to me. The way the slaves were treated on the Middle Passage (the trip over the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas) is so disgusting and evil that I simply can’t go into detail, as it would be painful to read. In all seriousness, I could not stop thinking about it for a few days afterwards. And that is not even the end! The slaves were auctioned off like a Monet landscape and brutally treated when they arrived at their new home. There was never rest for these poor people. They were looked upon as a lesser variety of human. Women (wenches, they were called) were (and I HATE to say this) frequently raped. Isn’t that awful? This book gives so much insight into how much the slaves wanted to be free and how horribly they were treated, even at Jane’s young age of ten or eleven. This book was read at a very timely time. And I have concluded that the dogs in the gold rush in The Call of the Wild were, and again in all seriousness, treated ten times better than the slaves were. And I thought that Buck was treated badly!
In conclusion, these books tied in well with what we were learning in U.S. History at the times we read them. It was helpful to be able to learn the facts and then learn what people actually felt in times of crisis and triumph. Personally, I believe that these last four books were better than the first three books. The fact is, what makes them so much better is that they were just so much more brutally honest. I enjoyed them in full.
Last Post for Anything and Everything 2004-2005 (YES!!!!!!)
The Autobiography of Miss Jane PIttman was really hard to read, I reasoned. Long and descriptive, it reiterated the events of a fictional woman's life from the Civil War to the civil rights movement. I learned a lot from it, but the path to that learning was not enjoyable. I certainly hope that this reading pays off.
I think that Jane was a very strong person to have gotten through such a difficult life. I can't belive she even survived her childhood enslavement.
I think it is very sad how Tee-Bob is shunned becuase he is half African. Its so weird...that one man, Samson I think, has made a slave of his own son!
And that one other guy, Jimmy, is a very good character for Jane to have been in contact with. He is very righteous and yet so young.
TTTTTTTTTHHHHHHHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE EEEEEEEEEEEEEEENNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Miss Jane Brown becomes Mrs. Jane Pittman
That is the absolute best thing on the planet for Jane, to, when she lost Ned, have Joe to turn to. I find it so odd how, even though they are free, they are under all these rules and regulations still, like the rule that "slaves" can't marry.
In addition, I think it would be so hard for Jane to let go of Ned. I can't believe she could hold in her tears until after he left. And I can't believe he would ever leave!
Another thing that I would have liked to touch on at the discussion but didn't get a chance to was Ned and Jane's relationship, if you will. When I am reading the book, it seems so much like Jane is Ned's mom, but really she is only three to five years older than him. They are like siblings, not like mother and son. I can't believe the strength that Jane had to raise Ned and make sure he had a chance in life. Jane was a very strong person (fictionally).
Yes, this is a fiction book. It suprises me how so many people thought that this book was non-fiction. That was the author's focus, I guess. Ernest Gaines did make it very realistic, with the introduction and everything.
TAOMJP #1
I am on page 50-something. I noticed yesterday that the way the slaves were treated is very similar to the way the dogs were treated in Call of the Wild. If you were too tired to do your work, you were beaten numerous times daily. It saddens me terribly.
It seems to me that Jane keeps meeting up with people who either show her the way to Ohio or shut down her dreams. I am so suprised that she even kept going when that one man told her that it would take her "30 years, give or take" to find Mr. Brown. I really hope someday she finds him.
By the by, this post is more than 100 words!
One...last..post...
Okay, I'm going to squeeze out the guts of this book. I don't think I should have to do this last post, as my last two posts were apparently "above and beyond the requirement". :o)
John Thornton is a kind man who knows what he's doing. Mercedes is stupid, self-centered, and doesn't know what she's doing. Hal and Charles are the "little brothers", if you will, of this book. They try to follow the "big boys'" example by beating and being extremely harsh, but they can't follow it up with sense and reason, as I'm sorry to admit, most of the mushers have done. Judge miller is a kind man who doesn't seem to have any involvement really in this book. Buck was his companion, but not his pet. His dog, but not his pet. His caretaker, but not his pet. As mentioned in the book, there wasn't love in the relationship, but Judge Miller was a good man.
Things Are Wrapped Up
It is the saddest thing that John Thornton dies. But I'm glad that Buck can be "free" with his wolf friends, and not have to be subjected to cruel torture ever again.
I'm also content with the facts mentioned in the Afterword. I learned that the man in the red sweater was called a "dog-breaker", and that it was his JOB to teach the dogs to never again disobey for fear of getting a beating they won't soon forget.
I am happy that the writer of the afterword also realized that Mecedes, Hal, and Charles had no idea of how to survive in the harsh climate of the Yukon, and the harsh occurences that appeared in the Gold Rush in Alaska. They remind me somewhat of someone trying to swim that doesn't know how to, thrashing about and making themselves look quite stupid. One gets an entirely different view of another when one sees the other in such a vulnerable, innocent state. They may be a perfectly respectable person in "real life", but when put in a situation where they are not the master of whatever situation it is, what you see of them there affects what you think of them outside of the situation.
This may be the case with Mercedes, Hal, and Charles. We, as readers, only see them in a situation where they are not the masters and do not know how to do things correctly. It's hard to believe, but I think that maybe those three are actually respectable people outside of the book. I would love to know.
Oh...this book is sooooo sad
I'm on page 90-something. It is about where John Turntable or something like that takes Buck in and saves him from DUMB, DUMB Hal and Charles and EVEN DUMBER MERCEDES. Mercedes is the stupidest person in the whole world!!! She upsets me terribly.
The Scottish half-breed was the nicest guy that had the group of dogs before John. Francois and Perrault were kind of mean at the beginning, but it was kind of touching to me when they lifted up Buck's paws to check for cuts and such. Then it was the Scottish half-breed, I think. He was really nice, and it seemed like he knew what he was doing and had been mushing for years and years and years. Mercedes, Hal, and Charles, though, were always fighting and stuff and it seemed to me that they had no idea what to do. Hal's beating Buck was the most un-understandable thing in the whole book, it seemed. Buck was too tired to go on, so he was laying down, and, to make him get UP, Hal (or maybe it was Charles) BEAT him numerous times with first an ax, then a CLUB! Oh yeah, that'll sure make it EASIER for him to get up and run as hard as he can (not to mention with all of Mercedes dumb clothes and stuff on the sled).
But I am enjoying this part of the book. Buck even hints that his life with John is even better thatn his life with Judge Miller because there was actually love there, not just friendship/companionship. John is soooo kind. And, when I read a little bit of the foreword, I think it was, it said that Jack London actually experienced the Gold Rush and was involved with it. I hope he didn't beat his doggies. He couldn't have, though, because in his book he regards it with what seems to be disgust. And he must know what it feels like to the dog, so he CAN'T have. I hope he didn't.
The Call of the Sad
Buck's life was so good before he was taken away!!! He had a nice house and fun places to roam, he had good food, kind masters, etc. It is soooooo sad how someone who he trusted took him away from his family. Buck does not know what is going on. His only friend that he knew is dead, killed by another mean, mean dog, and everyone gets clubbed on the head or beat regularly!!!! I simply can't stand animal abuse. It is really hard to read stuff like that. I hope (against hope) that this didn't really happen, but I know it did.
I really wish that Judge Miller (I think his name is) notices what happened to Buck and tries to find him. I hope (again, probably against hope) that he wasn't in on the deal. Buck really was a good dog.
And I like how this book is mostly written in the point of view of the dog, or at least like what everything feels like to the dog and what he thinks, even though it isn't written in first person. (You guys know what I mean.)
By the way, I am on page thirty at the moment.
