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Post by Mr. Thomas on Dec 9, 2013 8:27:36 GMT -5
A reflective piece by Stephen King.
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Post by hankmichels on Dec 9, 2013 16:52:20 GMT -5
B. What the heck is going on? This took me forever to read and im still confused by the plot. All I got from it was some that there was some pervert dude who keeps finding things in his apartment that belonged to former colleagues of his. I, mean I know somewhat what is going on, but it still a confusing story because its like the narrator assumes we know what is going on already. But something that I think I can conclude is how his friends died. “But I hadn’t been caught. Not then, not on 9/11”. I think he somehow survived 9/11, but his friends all died. Their company, what ever it was called must have been located in the world trade center. But I had to think about that. Books should not make you have to try and figure out what is happening. You should be fully engrossed during the story, with everything being told to you, and then after words, you can think about it.
E. I think Scott Staley, our protagonist, might be crazy. We already know he has made frequent visits to a physiatrist and that he might be suffering from survivors guilt, but it might be more. Several times he has mentioned being really “giddy” which is kind of strange. If anything, he is suffering from bipolar’s. He seems to be “giddy” half the time, and the other half he is and emotional wreck, ready to scream.
G. “My sister Peg was currently living in Clevland, where she had embraced Mary Kay Cosmetics, the Indians, and fundelmentalist Christianity, in no particular order.” I don’t know why, but I find that line pretty funny.
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Post by bakerm16 on Dec 9, 2013 18:13:03 GMT -5
I. I agree with Hank this was a confusing text to read. This reminds me of the Odyssey where we start in the middle. Of the story. But at least we have somewhere to start out with the Odyssey. In this we start in the middle of the story and throughout the story I constantly had trouble trying to put pieces together and make sense of the story. I can only say a few facts from this story which is there is a guy who finds other peoples stuff in his apart. I feel as if he had a crazy night and this is the aftermath of him figuring out what happened.
C. I was kind of confused as to how his friends died. There was mention of 9/11 but I did not make the assumption that they died in 9/11. However based on the info given I think in fact that they did die in 9/11 and that hey was also in it.
E. I think Scott is suffering from some post traumatic disorder of some sort after 9/11. This is very understandable because 9/11 was traumatic to all of us but being in it must make the trauma after 100 times worse. He probably feels very shovlked that he is still alive but everyone he worked with had died. But why him? Why is he alive instead of everyone else?
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Post by youssefj16 on Dec 9, 2013 18:25:16 GMT -5
I. I agree with hank. I just didn't understand what the heck is going on. I feel like there isn't a plot at all. I didn't understand where the items in his apartment kept coming from and what they had to do with the plot in general. I also was getting confused with all the characters that were being mentioned. i just got very last and had no idea what the point of this was. E. I think Scott is a bit freaky, and weird. He masturbates naked on his sofa with his sister underpants wrapped around his junk. Thats just wrong man......cMoN!!! He also think he needs a doctor, which he obviously does, but I didnt fully understand why he needed one. They mentioned 9/11 but I didnt understand how he had to do with it. G. On pg 18, bottom of 1st paragraph, it says "but theyre dead of course" In reference to his friends....I was confused at this because I didnt understand how they dies. i also thought it was funny because I imagined him saying it in some crazy happy voice...freaky!
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Post by alis16 on Dec 9, 2013 19:11:08 GMT -5
Stephen Ali English 10 Homework Mr. Thomas December 9, 2013 I. I am not really sure what is exactly sure what is going on in the story all that I understand was that this man helps a women fix her air conditioner and that he finds stuff that has been placed in his room that belonged to previous classmates. I also know that this guy who I am guessing is the main character seems very weird. I am not sure if it is me or that this guy just does stuff that makes no sense half of the time. E. My reactions are to the scene at the start of the story were the women Paula Robeson with the air conditioner. When he was coming in to the lobby and she was sitting there all said , I could just imagine it as if it were one of Stephen King’s movie where it starts off nice and peaceful , but later everything becomes a mystery or who did what . I could picture this women sitting down while the main character wakes in and she is about to cry and then the man helps her with the air conditioner. With the way King was describing this scene I thought that the women probably lost her job or a loved one not knowing that her air –conditioner was not working. C I am not sure were all these objects are coming from and think he is just having a bad dream or even a nightmare which seems more likely since the story is written by Stephen King .
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Post by rozzayhill007 on Dec 9, 2013 19:15:52 GMT -5
Jackson Hill
C. One thing that I am confused about is some of the things that Stephen King says, basically some of the language that is used. Some particular lines that confused me were, "And I remembered smiling at what she asked me: Are you safe? It reminded me of that movie, not Lolita (thinking about Lolita, sometimes at two in the morning, came later) but the one where Laurence Oliver does the impromptu dental work on Dustin Hoffman, asking him over and over again, Is it safe?" I don't really understand the meaning of these lines and what they haver to do with the story.
D. A line that I liked is on page 28. It said, " Or they talked about Frisbees sailing under the sky while dogs chased them. Sometimes they discussed children puddling along the wet sand with the seats of their shorts and their bathing suits sagging." I liked these lines because I can really imagine this scene in my head like it's a hot summer day. It reminds me of my summer and how much fun it was.
I. I agree with what Baker said in his E response talking about 9/11 and it being a horrible time and a traumatic time as well.
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Post by richteri16 on Dec 9, 2013 20:03:36 GMT -5
C. What kind of job is Scott working? He is doing research of some sort. It clearly pays enough because he has enough money for an apartment and four $800 dollar psychiatrist sessions. It mentions that he is doing work for someone on the topic of Polaroid cameras. He is researching the history of them and compiling it in 40 pages. That’s a lot of pages on the history of Polaroid cameras! Also, why is he using zip disks? Those things are really outdated. Even though the story takes place in 2002 I think there were better options of storing data by then like CDs and an actual hard drive. Besides the zip drives only held a miniscule amount of data. Maybe this is all just before my time… I don’t know but the bottom line is that there are better alternatives. E. While reading I have come across a conclusion on what happened to Scott and his co-workers. They were killed in 9/11 and Scott somehow saved himself. At first I though that Scott was a serial killer and took one memento from each of his victims but that was eventually ruled out. The story often mentions 9/11 so that was a good hint. It also mentions one of his coworkers diving off the side of the World Trace Center. I suppose that these items associated with these people must have appeared by magic. They would have been destroyed in the tower’s collapse otherwise. I. I agree with bakerm16 on option E. I definitely think that Scott suffers from severe PTSD. If he had gone to work he would have died. His friends died too so that doesn’t help.
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Post by idelfonsoe16 on Dec 9, 2013 20:37:27 GMT -5
I. I have to start with an I response, this story is a little bit too much for me. I don’t want to be considered a “follower”, but I agree with Hank’s B response. WHAT IS GOING ON??? All I can take out of this story is how Scott barely escaped getting caught playing with his Johnson! That is literally what he references almost everything in this story! Where’s the imagination? Where is the plot of this story? What is the purpose of us reading it if there is nothing interesting or amusing going on at all? C. Why is Scott so attached to what happened on 9/11? I understand it was a tragic event, and many have died from it, but he should at least be over it by now. “The day the sky fell” is everywhere. Nothing interesting about that. Also, why is Scott continuously talking about his wanking incident, and also the sexual activities located on the internet? He seems very demented and perverted. Does he do this as a hobby or something? E. I think after 9/11, Scott wishes that he died with his friends on that day, so he just wastes his life doing the dirty things and act like a creeper. The event literally destroyed his mentality at such a young age! He won’t make it to elderhood if he acts the way he is acting currently. His character traits are very boring and dull. Usually, we are supposed to feel sympathetic for a person who suffered so much, but THIS GUY is mentally disabled for the wrong reasons.
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Post by michaelgenco on Dec 9, 2013 21:44:21 GMT -5
E. It feels as if I am apart of this story. After reading this first few pages I immediately got pulled into this story. The small dialogue really makes me interested and imagine the characters of what they look like and how they talk. For example, “ Hi, howya doin’, the way you do to other folks who share your building. To me that description really makes me, the reader, relate to it.
C. “I’m safe, I said. Haven’t attacked a woman in over a year. I used to attack two or three a week, but the meetings are helping.” So many questions come up after reading that. Why did he attack woman? Is he a murderer? Why isn’ this lady running away when she has the chance? I am confused with what import-export means. This reading seems to me that he jumps from section to section, which can get really confusing. Why does he spell ‘baseball’ ‘besbol’? Why is this guy so open with this type of stuff. I kind of makes me feel uncomfortable. Are these stories true about himself, or are they completely fictional?
B. “I reasoned that if you don’t have a friend you can talk to, the next-best thing would be to rent one. I could certainly afford a little therapy, and it seemed to me that a few sessions on some psychiatrist’s couch would be enough for me to explain what happened and to articulate how it made me feel. I thought that this was very important to the story because it shows how people need someone to talk to, even if you have to pay them.
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Post by petergiglio on Dec 9, 2013 21:44:43 GMT -5
C. i am pretty much confused about the whole thing really. this is pretty difficult read and i never really feel comfortable reading it. I dont know if thats a good thing or a bad thing but i didnt like it and also where he says his friends die is kind of unclear i mean i know he mentioned 9/11 but im still not sure if they died in 9/11 or he is just mentioning it for some other reason.
E. okay scott is just a freaking weirdo. he thinks he needs doctor and he clearly does... he has so many messed up things wrong with him such as masturbating naked on his sofa with his sisters underwear. idc how hot he thought she was thats just unacceptable and wrong. plus why does he keep mentioning 9/11 i mean it was sad i know but i dont really know how it connects to the plot at all. maybe im just lost.
I. i agree with hank that i dont really have a clue as to what is going on i mean what the hell the plot is all over the place at leas thats how i see it
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Post by hessd16 on Dec 9, 2013 22:19:50 GMT -5
(Dakota Hess) i. I agree with hank and most of the other students “B. What the heck is going on? This took me forever to read and im still confused by the plot. All I got from it was some that there was some pervert dude who keeps finding things in his apartment that belonged to former colleagues of his. I, mean I know somewhat what is going on, but it still a confusing story because its like the narrator assumes we know what is going on already. But something that I think I can conclude is how his friends died. “But I hadn’t been caught. Not then, not on 9/11”. I think he somehow survived 9/11, but his friends all died. Their company, what ever it was called must have been located in the world trade center. But I had to think about that. Books should not make you have to try and figure out what is happening. You should be fully engrossed during the story, with everything being told to you, and then after words, you can think about it”
C. I was very confused as to how the other workers died, I realize it had to do with 9/11 and as hank was saying that he somehow survived this, but it was not clear. It also took me a while to read, going back and trying to decipher Mr. King’s vivid writing.
A. the beginning stories of this book were easy to relate to as the adrenaline rush that you get as you are about to be caught doing something wrong. Not necessarily the same exact situation he described which was a bit too descriptive in my opinion. ( the part about the pictures and his sister’s underwear on his bed).
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Post by Cameron Smith on Dec 9, 2013 22:31:14 GMT -5
E. I think Scott is suffering from some post traumatic disorder of some sort after 9/11. This is very understandable because 9/11 was traumatic to all of us but being in it must make the trauma after makes it much worse. He probably feels very sad that everyone he worked with had died, yet being grateful that he is still alive. But why him, why is he alive instead of everyone else? G. “My sister Peg was currently living in Cleveland, where she had embraced Mary Kay Cosmetics, the Indians, and fundamentalist Christianity, in no particular order.” I don’t know why, but I found that line really funny. I. I agree with Hank this was a confusing text to read. This reminds me of the Odyssey where we start in the middle of the story, en media res. But at least we had somewhere to start with the Odyssey. In this we start en media res and throughout the story I constantly had trouble trying to put pieces together and make sense of the story. I can only make sense of a few facts from this story which is there is a guy who finds other people’s things. I feel as if he had a crazy night and this is the day after with him trying to piece the puzzle together.
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Post by nvanible on Dec 10, 2013 6:09:36 GMT -5
D. On page six during the scene of the situations, “Two related but distinct emotional waves struck me. The first was that sense of horrified shame you feel when you know you’re about to be caught in some act you will never be able to explain,” I loved how well this scene was described solely because of how realistic and truthful this line was. In reality, several actual situations tend to play out like that, with the person being accused finding themselves loss for words. That in itself intrigues me as I find myself in situations like that at home, despite not doing the “crime” that I have supposedly caused.
E. On page eighteen, the first line of the second paragraph caused me to laugh, “I reasoned that if you don’t have a friend you can talk to, the next-best thing would be to rent one,” I simply chuckled at this statement. Although this is totally for pure laughs and giggles, and found myself enjoying this sentence as these type of sayings/ideas makes me want to think about the character’s actions and how that could entirely affect his interactions with others as a whole.
I. When Cameron Smith talked about Scott and how he could be suffering from a common disorder from something tragic and or traumatizing, I agree as well. To be traumatized is a horrible and dreadful feeling and can lead to self-doubt, as well as other risky behaviors that could ultimately change a person's life forever.
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Post by vazquezm16 on Dec 10, 2013 7:10:07 GMT -5
C. I was very confused by this reading. The way that the narrator is telling the story is interesting but is not good for the audience because it seems like we are missing a large amount of information. From what I can understand so far the coworkers of the narrator died on September 11 and these items keep reappearing and messing with his head. I do not know how much we can rely on this information because as we saw he was going to see a psychiatrist about his problems. I think this could be evidence that he has others problems and this situation could be something going on in his head. D. One quote if found that was interesting was when he was talking about possible hiring a psychiatrist. “I reasoned that if you don’t have a friend you can talk to, the next best thing would be to rent one. I could certainly afford a little therapy, and it seemed to me that a few sessions on some psychiatrist couch (four might do the trick) would be enough for me to explain what had happened for me and to articulate how it made me feel.” I found this quote sort of depressing as it shows that he has no friends and is willing to go to a psychiatrist just to have someone to talk to. I think this along with the fact that the items keep reappearing at his house might hint that he has some sort of mental illness or is crazy. I. I agree with Cameron. He must be suffering from PTSD which is messing with his mind now. 9/11 affected a lot of people but his reactions are different and show that he could have PTSD.
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Post by jotirmoykundu on Dec 10, 2013 23:27:01 GMT -5
C. What I didn’t understand from these lines were “I’m safe, I said. Haven’t attacked a woman in over a year. I used to attack two or three a week, but the meetings are helping.” So many questions come up after reading that. Why did he attack woman? Is he a murderer? Why isn’ this lady running away when she has the chance? I am confused with what import-export means. This reading seems to me that he jumps from section to section, which can get really confusing. Why does he spell ‘baseball’ ‘besbol’? I don’t understand why he is so open with this type of stuff to the point where it starts making me feel uncomfortable. These are hard to believe this actually happened.
D. The quote I found interesting in this part of the book is “I reasoned that if you don’t have a friend you can talk to, the next best thing would be to rent one. I could certainly afford a little therapy, and it seemed to me that a few sessions on some psychiatrist couch (four might do the trick) would be enough for me to explain what had happened for me and to articulate how it made me feel.” This is sort of dark humor in the sense that I find funny that the only way he has someone to talk to is he has to pay them
I. I agree with Cameron. He probably has a case of PSTD, which messes with his mind a lot.
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