Found poem from William Golding's Lord of the Flies

Found on pages 64- 119

Power

Alone
no one else
just you
Only you
to care about
to talk to
to comfort
when it gets
dark
and scary
as it so often
does
Only you

Sanity
what is sanity?
Is it
to be normal?
What is
normal?
What is
the purpose
of sanity?
Is anyone
anywhere
completely
sane?

Peace
It is something
we can
only find
within us
When you
accept
and handle
it all
Peace will be
within you

Hope
Always hope
The light
in long
dark
nights


Hope inside
of you
will keep you
going
until
the end

Happy
When all
you want
is to be
happy
A strong
word
A strong
feeling
What
do we
need
to be

happy?

Power
On the top
of a cliff
So much
power
Yet such
a great
loss
Alone
Only you
Only you
will know

Reflection 02.26.2013

I have now finished part 1 of the book (yes, I know I am a slow reader). In the end of this part you can read a lot about Robert being in the military and about his family back in Toronto. I have realized that Robert's family loves him unconditionally, like every family should. I didn't quite know how much he meant to them before he was sent to participate in the war. His mother is devastated, and I guess it kind of came as a surprise because she handled Rowena's death so well. He loves his family too, but he doesn't appear to be missing them as much as they miss him.
I have also seen an interesting development in Robert's character. He seems to have gotten remarkably more mature and calm. He acts more experienced and wise. I think the military often does that to young men, it forces them to realize that they are adults and that they should act like mature men. Robert wasn't immature before, but he seemed a bit more insecure.
If you can see it on the picture below, there is a line there that confuses me. I think it is based upon a thought Mrs. Ross is having when she has to say goodbye to Robert. It simply says "this is the wars" and I made me wonder; are they referring to the actual war going on, or are they talking about the inner pain and conflict the friends and family of the young men killed in the war?

Reflection 02.21.2013

I have thought of many questions about Robert Ross as a character. I don't quite understand him, what is it about him that makes him different from everyone else? There are no certain characteristics I have found about him that makes him strange, but he is different from the others his age (that he meets in the military). He tries to fit in, he does what the others do, but he is still different. When you think about the way he acted with his first girlfriend, he seems very nervous and not romantic at all. He doesn't seem to be attracted to any girls, and the only one we know for sure that he has ever really cared about is his sister.

The descriptions of world war 1 and 2 in this book are very good, and I wonder how Timothy Findley has gotten such a clear image of the wars? Has he talked to old veterans or has he been in a war himself? I checked his date of birth, and he is born in Ontario in 1930. Growing up during the second world war must have affected him, but how close was he actually to it when he lived in Canada? The fights weren't going on here, they were all located in Europe. So my guess is that he has talked to many people involved in the war.

Reflection 02.20.2013

Today I have read about the whores of Lousetown. This is the scene where Robert discovers that Taffler, a well respected captain, is homosexual. Robert has a surprised and aggressive reaction.
I discussed with Helen if Timothy Findley is a good author or not. We both agreed that he writes well and uses good, percice descriptions. It is a hard story to tell and he has done a good job. It' s not that easy to make it big as a Canadian author, but Findley shows us his good writing skills in this book. Helen is also a bit confused, because none of us are used to reading books in this perspective. I think that the book is different from what we have read earlier, and it might be directed towards older, more mature agegroups.

Reflection 02.19.2013

Robert Ross has now joined the army. I wonder if he is the kind of person that will enjoy it. He doesn't seem to be bothered by having to take orders from others. But what I think would bother him is killing a person. He was disturbed by the thought of killing a rabbit, so could he kill on comand in the war? I don't think so.
I am enjoying this books imagery, the descriptions are what I like the best about it so far. Findley seems experienced and talented, and he gives you a good, clear image of the situation. He uses variation and different writing techniques. This makes the book more interesting. What I haven't found as interesting is the plot. I have trouble getting engaged and wanting to read more. I guess the urge to continue reading will come when I have read a little more and it gets more exciting.
One thing I have thought of is that the character of Robert Ross and the character of his mother are quite fascinating. Findleys character descriptions are creative and a bit different, but he doesn't overdo it either so that's good. He makes the people special and you develop a kind of personal relationship with them in your head when you get to know them.

Reflection 02.16.2013

Now that we have had our presentation and thought of different inquiry questions I have started to think about Robert Ross' sister, Rowena. She was born hydrophalic and spent her entire life in a wheelchair. Robert loved her so much, and it seemed like he was even closer to her than their parents. Robert did a lot of things for his sister because he loved her, and I think he thought that she should have the opportunity to do many things and enjoy life as much as she could. I think this is a good attitude to have, I also believe that people who are restricted to a wheelchair or crutches also should be given the opportunity to do as many things as they can.

Robert is thinking about joining the army now that his sister passed away. He sees a soldier after Rowena's funeral and thinks that this soldier has something to do, something to keep his hands full. I guess that is what Robert thinks he needs, something to occupy his thoughts and something that will make him feel less useless. It makes sense because now that his sister no longer needs him to take care of her, he has an urge to feel needed. The situation will be very different, because taking care of Rowena was out of love for a person. Joining the army will be out of love for his nation.

Reflection 02.12.2013

Now I have read more of the book, and I have many new questions. First of all I wanna say that the book seems to be well written, the author uses a good language and interesting writing techniques. But I am very confused by the perspective from which the book is written. The plot doesn't follow one person, it jumps back and forth and looks at different people at different times. I am confused, but also curious. I hope this is just a way to catch the interest of the reader, and that it slows down and we get to see more of one person at a time.
Something that made me really curious was the transcript of the conversation with Marian Turner. She repeatedly talks about "what he did", referring to Robert Ross. I wonder what he has done. She also talks about what he did to the horse, and how horrible it was. I wonder what he did to the horse, was it the one he rides on when he is all bloody and beaten up? The shiny black horse with the dog by its side? I also don't quite understand when all of the stories are from. When talking about the pictures, I think the plot is set many years after the incidents we also read about. Honestly this book is making me very confused.

02.07.2013

We are about three days into the independent novel study, and I have finally bought the book. I started reading it and I had expected the start to be a bit boring, but I actually found it quite interesting. The language was not as hard and old-fashioned as I had feared, and I like that Findley uses short sentences when he writes. I think it makes the texts more exciting and easier to understand.

I also like the descriptions of characters and animals in the book. They are simple and not too obvious or revealing, but they still give you a good picture of the person or animal. The setting is also well described in short, but very appropriate descriptions. A good atmosphere is created, and it feels like you know how the situation is affecting the characters.

Some questions I have in mind are mostly about the time and perspective the book is written in. Sometimes it refers to the main character as "I", but sometimes it just refers to "you" doing things and asking things. I also think the entire novel is a story told about something that happened in the past, but some times there comes a description of something happening in the present. This sometimes confuses me.

Independent novel study, 02.05.2013

Reflection:

I will be reading the book The Wars by Timothy Findley. Honestly, the reason I chose this novel is that my friends put me in their group because I was away the day they chose which books we were reading. But I am happy they put me in their group, because The Wars seems like an interesting book.

The novel is a story about world war 1 from the perspective of a young Canadian man. I like the setting because I find war stories interesting, and I like history. It is a very serious setting,which can   result in a solid, good novel, but it can also result in a kind of dull, boring story. I'm hoping it is well written and fun to read. I also hope the author has added a little bit of comic relief, because if there is non the book can get a bit too depressing and serious.

A question that comes to my mind is what style the author uses when writing, and what kind of language is used. My English is not the strongest, so if there is a very complicated language it can make it quite hard for me to keep up and it will take me a lot longer to read it. I also automatically wonder if it is a tragedy or a happy ending story, but I guess I'll just have to see when I get there in the book. 

I usually don't mind reading, so I'm hoping this is a good novel that I will enjoy!