Les Misérables Preface

So long as there shall exist, by virtue of law and custom, decrees of damnation pronounced by society, artificially creating hells amid the civilization of earth, and adding the element of human fate to divine destiny; so long as the three great problems of the century—the degradation of man through pauperism, the corruption of woman through hunger, the crippling of children through lack of light—are unsolved; so long as social asphyxia is possible in any part of the world;—in other words, and with a still wider significance, so long as ignorance and poverty exist on earth, books of the nature of Les Misérables cannot fail to be of use.

I think it is very interesting that all these problems-crippling of children, corruption of woman, and degradation of man- are all because of the laws and customs made by society. The laws and customs are creating ignorance and poverty. All those problems would be fixed if the society fixed the laws and customs.

So long as there shall exist, by the want for independence, children growing up too fast, creating teens having sex, and adding to cyber bullying; so long as the three main issues of today’s children—the committing of suicide, the need of fitting-in, the want of drugs/alcohol—are unsolved; so long as childhood becomes shorter; —in other words, and still with a wider significance, so long as children stay children, parents taking time to enjoy their child’s childhood cannot fail to be of use.

List at least two symbols that the author uses. Provide a passage that includes a great example of how the writer uses symbolism in the novel. In at least one well-developed paragraph, write about the importance of this symbol in the book.

            Symbolism is used in the novel  And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie a few times. The main one was the storm that goes on for the majority of the story. Another symbol was the poem titled Ten Little Indians that hung in each bedroom.

Agatha Christine uses the storm to symbolize the disorder of the visitors on Indian Island. The beginning of the novel it is a hot and humid summer day, which causes a physical discomfort that is already felt internally by each of the novel’s characters. As the murders begin, the weather gradually gets worse until a storm breaks out as General Macarthur’s body is found. “The storm broke just as the old man’s body was borne in through the door. The others were standing in the hall. There was a sudden hiss and roar as the rain came down” (chapter 9). The fierce storm cuts the island off from the outside world.

Ten Little Indians is a nursery rhyme that was posted in all ten of the guest’s rooms. The poem is symbolic because it shows how the crazy murderer followed strictly to the nursery rhyme to carry out the murders. The murderer wanted to make the murders resemble the poem as closely as possible.

Dense Question: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind

Text- Why is William so passionate about getting an education?

Other Literature- How is Equality’s passion for getting an education similar and/or different from William’s?

Reader- Do you think someone’s passion towards getting an education can be affected by others? Does the person’s relationship with someone else make a difference? Why or why not?

In both Anthem and The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, Equality and William had a passion for learning, more specifically a passion for electricity. They both wanted to learn as much as they could.

At the age of 14 William had to drop out of school because his family couldn’t afford to go, but William didn’t give up. He had to walk to the village library to get an education to help his family and he wanted to make a difference in his village. Education was a huge part of his life without it he wouldn’t have made the windmill.

Equality has a hard time getting an education just like William. Equality wants to learn and discover unknown things and to find answers to hard questions, but his society limits education. His society only tells them what they want them to know. Both William and Equality had to work to get books. Although it was easier for William to get them, all he had to do was walk to the village library. For Equality he didn’t get access to books until the discovered the house with The Golden One. They both put their education to use with their inventions.

I definitely think a person’s passion for education or anything else can be affected by others, and the relationship the two people have also affects their passion. I have a strong passion for working with the FBI when I’m older, but I am unsure about going to college worried about the cost burden. I then decided to discuss this with my dad, who I have a really close relationship with.  He said that I shouldn’t let that stand in the way from pursuing an education.  I also approached my friend’s mom, who I don’t know that well, with the same question.  She said the same thing.  I would be more likely to change my mind because of my dad’s comments because we are closer plus he would help pay the cost.

Education affects everyone in either a positive or negative way. Others can influence a person’s passion for wanting to get a good education. Education impacts the whole world.