Journal Entry #1

1. Which of the three books did you enjoy the most and why?

I (surprisingly) enjoyed all of the books but the one that i found the most intriguing was The Stranger. I found myself able to follow the story line and able to understand what the author was trying show.  I like how Meursault was characterized as a "I don't care about anything" person, and how he interacted with others around him.  Meursaults relationship with Maria was sad but interesting.  Sad because Meursault didn't really care about her while she loved him, and interesting because of how Maria put up with his lack of emotion and caring.  I also liked how events in the begining of the book (Mothers funeral) came back into play later in the story durring Meursaults trial.  I also found this easy to understand because i was able to connect concepts i had learned in my IB Psychology class to explain why Meursault acted the way he did.

2. Which of the three books did you enjoy least and why?

The book that i enjoyed the least amount was There Eyes Were Watching God.  I found this book a bit more confusing that the other two.  It was also extremely hard for me to get used to the writing style the author used.  I found myself having to spend more time than i should on one sentence just to decipher what was being said.  As i read through the book i did get used to the language the characters used and i believe that re-reading the book would help me understand it better.  I also did really care for the ending of the book after Tea Cups death.  It didn't have that resolution or ending feel to it and it left me a bit confused.

3. If you were to write an essay on the third novel (the book not addressed in the previous two questions) what element or elements would you focus on in that essay and why do think they are important?

If i were to write an essay on the third novel , 1984, my main focus would be the totalitarian style of government used.  I think that the book provides a very accurate vision of a totalitarian government and that it would be extremely easy to contrast this with our current society. This would possibly get us thinking about how lucky to have the government we do now rather than one similar Oceania. I would also focus on the actions Winston took to try to rebel against his oppresive government and the end result of it.  I think that it plays a key role in supporting the totalitarian idea, that the government controls your life and you can't resist it.