Essay #10

The Good That Comes From Challenges:

An Essay About A Tale Of Two Cities And Why I’m Glad I Read It

Ninth Grade English

Pine Point School

April 18, 2012

By Schyler Davis

Have you ever been hesitant to read a long, difficult novel, but after you were grateful you read it? That’s how I felt about A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I have learned so much about the French Revolution, and I even improved my reading skills. There were times when I wanted to stop reading, but I took the book one page at a time, which helped me in the long run.

A Tale of Two Cities is  a difficult novel that is rarely read by young scholars, but I am thankful that I read it because I’ve learned from it.  I knew about the French Revolution, but I was ignorant about the events and people during the Revolution. I never knew that women were a huge part of it, and in the novel, Madame Defarge shows how women were involved, coming up with plans and plots, knitting secret messages, and being tough and ready to fight. Also, I learned that people met in secret during the French Revolution, going by the name of Jacque. Another way that A Tale of Two Cities enhanced my knowledge about the time of the French Revolution was how people spoke, a way that was more formal than ours today and in my opinion, more elegant. Now a days, we talk over cell phones or internet and use a lot of slang, but back then, people didn’t have much technology, making them talk to others in person and being more grammatically correct. I like how people use to speak to each other in a proper and profound way. A Tale of Two Cities was probably the most challenging book I’ve read, but I feel that it was a worthwhile trade off  because of all that I’ve learned, and I’m now more prepared to read challenging books in the future.

A Tale of Two Cities has improved my knowledge of the French Revolution, but it has also improved my skill at reading and comprehension. At times I wanted to give up and would wonder why we were even reading the novel, but I soon realized how much I was learning. Everyone knows that it’s a challenging book, but I worked through the novel, taking many notes, rereading parts that were confusing to me, and going slow and steady like in the story of The Tortoise and the Hare. I may have not been as fast as the hare when I read A Tale of Two Cities, but I won because I took my time to understand the book. Also, I can now tell people I read A Tale of Two Cities, a difficult novel that’s impressive to show off. I feel proud of myself for completing such a challenging novel and for taking detailed notes. I will keep this book forever, and when I’m bored someday, I will take it out and look at all my notes, being glad I took my time like the tortoise and didn’t race through it like the hare. This book has made me appreciate worthy writing and has made me eager to read more challenging novels.

As you can see, there are many benefits from reading a challenging novel that’s barely read. I learned how women were a part of the French Revolution and now I’m prepared to read more challenging books in the future.For now on,  I’ll read every difficult novel at a slow and steady pace because I know that’s how I’ll win the race of knowledge.

Essay 9

  

 A Love, A Distance, A Return:

An Essay About The Poem “Letter Home” And How It Relates To My Life

Pine Point School

Ninth Grade English

February 8, 2012

By Schyler Davis  

Have you ever been away from someone who you love, who you can’t live without, who is the meaning of your life? In the poem, “Letter Home”, by Ellen Steinbaum, she writes about a man in the military, who has an unstoppable love for his wife and child. I can relate to this poem because I was away from my parents over the summer. You can’t stop love, contain love, or forget about love.

The poem, “Letter Home”, is about a love that is so strong, a love where distance doesn’t matter, a love that will last forever. The poem is gripping because you can the fathers passion. I like how the child can sense how her or his mother feels and can see the pain that she has to go through since her husband is in the military. Having this poem being told from a child’s point of view, shows me how the child also misses her or his father.  When her husband comes home “ they will pick up their interrupted lives,” and continue their life from before. To me, it’s amazing how distance didn’t change the way they love each other, didn’t change the way they live their life, didn’t cause any awkwardness to form. Their love seems like the love everybody wants; the kind of love where writing love letters is natural, thinking sweetly of each other is enjoyable, and being able to stay together through distance is possible. In my opinion, this poem tells a love story about two people that will never let distance stop them from loving each other, and about a child who adore her or his parents.

I can relate to the poem, “A Letter Home”, and how I visited Virginia for a week during the summer without my parents. Although,my longing to be with my parents was not as strong as the soldier’s to be with his family, I still missed them. Calling them everyday, chatting my dad on Facebook, and looking through family pictures on my camera helped me feel close to them though. I was only away from my mom and dad for a week, which isn’t even close to how long the husband in the poem was away from his wife and child. I enjoyed all the time I spent in Virginia with my aunt, uncle, and my cousin, but by the end of the week I was ready to go home. I was nervous though-- nervous to go on a train and nervous to talk to people I didn't know on the train--but when I finally got to my stop, the nervousness vanished. “My mother waits” and my father waits, and my sister waits; I couldn't wait to run up to my mom, dad, and sister to give them all a huge hug. The love I have for my family is unbreakable, just like the love in the poem.

Love comes in many shapes and sizes; you could have love for your partner or for family. In ,“Letter Home”, the man has a love for his wife and child that will never change, and in my life I have a love for my family that will last forever. You should never let distance stop your love; you should never let time stop your love, and you should never let anything get in the way of your love.

Exam Essay

A Bond That Will Never Be Broken:

An Essay About How The Poem “Shoulders” Relates To A Tale Of Two Cities

And My Life

Pine Point School

Ninth Grade English

January 19, 2012

By Schyler Davis

Have you ever tried to fully understand a poem, and relate it to a book and to your own life? It may be challenging, but it can be done. Naomi Shihab Nye’s poem, “Shoulders” relates to Miss Manette and her father in A Tale Of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, and it relates to the relationship I have with my sister, Ella. You need to handle people with care, handle the fragile life you have with care, handle the world with care.

In A Tale Of Two Cities, Miss Manette has a strong bond with her father, who she thought was dead for eighteen years. As soon as Miss Manette sees her father, she goes up to him and puts her head on his shoulder. Like the poem, I think “his ear fills up with breathing,” and he knows that she is his little girl, a beautiful girl, who has blossomed into a lovely young lady.  He knows he has to handle her with care and to never let her go again. I think her father would do anything for her, just like in the poem. The man in the poem is so careful, watching the cars go by, making sure he doesn’t get splashed by a car, while he “carries the world’s most sensitive cargo.” I can picture Miss Manette’s father doing that for her, trying to protect her, trying to make sure she is pleased, trying to make up for the lost time. In my opinion, that is how we should treat other  people because “we’re not going to be able to live in this world if we’re not willing to do what he’s doing with one another.”

The poem, “Shoulder” relates to the relationship I have with my sister, the love we have for each other, and the unbreakable bond that we share.  Although my sister and I argue, and we don’t always get along, we love each other. Like the man in the poem, I would do anything for her. When she is having trouble with putting clothes on her dolls, or playing a game, I usually help her. Ella is fragile like an icicle, a beautiful piece of ice that can reflect light in the darkness of winter, but if you tap it the wrong way it can shatter. She is so energetic and lively, but when I make snide remarks to her, or when someone laughs at her, she falls apart; she gets shattered. I try to be as caring towards her as I can because she is only five and wants to be just like me, pretending to text on her fake phone, cutting her hair the same length as mine, telling people she is on the jump rope team, and saying she is turning fifteen on her birthday. She is my mini me, she is my friend, but most importantly she is my sister, who I love with all my heart.

If you can be kind to people, you can make a difference in their life, and if you can make a difference in their life, you can change the world. The poem, “Shoulders”, has taught me that you need to treat people with compassion and love, or the world will not be worth living in. In A Tale Of Two Cities , Miss Manette and her father have a relationship like the man in the poem has with his son, and Ella and I have a bond that could never be broken.  “The road will only be wide. The rain will never stop falling,” but you need to handle people with care because everyone is fragile.

Periodic Sentence

If we can stay focused every night , and we can concentrate on our work every night, and we can make ourselves study every night, then we will not fail our exams next week; we will succeed.

Essay #7

 The Sacrifices That Come With Joy:

An Essay About How I Sacrificed My Time To Teach Kids Jump Rope Over Winter Break

Pine Point School

Ninth Grade English

January 5, 2012

By Schyler Davis

           Have you ever sacrificed time to teach somebody, help somebody, inspire somebody?  Over Winter break I went to the BP Learn Center in New London to teach kids how to jump rope. I sacrificed some time over break, but I think it was worth it.
           I was once a little fourth grader, who was inspired by the sport of jump rope, amazed at all the tricks that were done in the ropes, and over break I had the opportunity to inspire others kids by teaching them how to jump rope. My mom and I donated some jump ropes to the BP Learn Center, which is an after school program, and we set up a time we could come back and teach kids how to jump rope. When we went back, all the kids remembered who we were because the jump rope team did a performance there a couple weeks before. It was wonderful to see and hear about how they were motivated by our performance, trying to teach themselves how to jump rope, practicing on their own, and wanting to learn more. I taught about 20 lower school kids, girls and boys, different single rope and double-dutch tricks, and it was a great success. Some of them would get frustrated because they couldn’t do the tricks or jump rope, but I told them not to get discouraged and to keep practicing because I was once a beginner jumper myself. They all were so inspired by the sport of jump rope and by what my mom and I taught them that they decided to start a club.  I sacrificed my time to teach them, I sacrificed other activities I could have been doing that morning, but I wouldn’t change what I did. I know it meant a lot to them for me to help them learn how to jump, and I will never forget when I was in the grocery store with my dad, and a little girl pointed at me and said, “You’re a jump roper! You taught me at my after school program.”  I was so proud of the sacrifice I made, and I want to go back again.
           I made a sacrifice, but to me, it didn’t seem like a sacrifice. It seemed like a choice to motivate and inspire someone who looks up to me. I am glad I went and taught kids how to jump rope at the BP Learn Center of winter break because I helped them and they helped me become a better person.

Essay #6

Let The Light Shine On:

An Essay About How Light Is A Motif In A Tale Of Two Cities And In My Life

Pine Point School

Ninth Grade English

December 6, 2011

By Schyler Davis

Have you ever walked down a street that is lit up at night or notice the light that shines through the windows? You can find light from stars, the sun, nightlights, lamps, certain rooms, and many other places, and it can represent love, hope, and freedom in your own life. In A Tale Of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, he uses light as a motif, and I have noticed that the street lamps on my street are a symbol in my life. Next time you see a light, try to see if it is a symbol in your life, a symbol of love, a symbol of hope, a symbol of freedom.

           In A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens uses light as a motif, as a positive symbol, a symbol of freedom, popularity, and hope. Monsieur Defarge, Mr. Lorry, and Miss Mannette found a shoemaker, Miss Mannette’s father, in a dark room, and Monsieur Defarge opened the door “to let in a little more light.”  I think the light that shined through the door into the small, dark, dusty room could stand for freedom. Mr. Manette was locked away for 18 years making shoes, and then he was reunited with his daughter, and when she hugged him, her radiant hair mixed with his white hair, “which warmed and lighted it as though it were the light of freedom shining on him.” Also, In A Tale Of Two Cities, Tellson’s Bank “wanted no light.” To me, the light represents popularity, and Tellson’s didn’t need to be popular. The bank was elite, and the costumers knew it was best. Another example of light was when the mist “was dense enough to shut out everything from the light of the coach-lamps.” I believe that the light symbolizes hope, but that darkness can still block out the light because sometimes, as much as you hope something will work, it won’t, and there is nothing you can do to change that. Hope is very powerful, but not always as potent as you wish it could be. Charles Dickens used light in A Tale Of Two Cities as a wonderful motif to help you think a little deeper about the characters, about the story, about life.

In my life, the lamps on my street are a symbol of light, a light that makes my days shine brighter. When it becomes dark outside, the lights turn on, and when the lights turn on, they bring the night to life. I can see all the houses lined up on my street, the cats quietly walking, the leaves blowing through the air. I am suddenly aware of what it outside, and I feel secure. I like being able to see all that is out there because doing so makes me feel safe. Also, the lamp posts get decorated during Winter with dark red ribbon and reeves, and in Summer they are decorated with flower baskets of many colors, pink, red, purple,blue, and that makes me feel more festive. When the lamp posts are adorned, I really get in the spirit of the different  holidays and seasons. I love how the decorations make my street look like a postcard, a postcard with a picture of a small, historical street that has brick sidewalks and lamp posts lined up along the side. Finally, I love to look out my bedroom window at night, to see the light shining. Staring at the light makes me go into another world, a world where all is possible, a place I love to imagine. The light lets me just think and make up little scenarios in my head of what I wish would happen in real life. In my life, light is a positive motif that brings out the joy, the love, the hope that all will be okay, and it surprises me that  I haven’t thought about it until now.

Let the light shine bright in your life, let it bring out the joy, let it bring out the beauty. In A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens uses light as a motif, and in my life I have discovered the street lamps on my street are a symbol in my life. Next time you see any type of light from stars, the sun, nightlights, lamps, certain rooms, and many more places, try to relate them to your life, try to figure out what it could symbolize, try to make the light shine.

Essay #5

 Fade The Darkness; Bring The Light:

An Essay About How The Song , “Here Comes The Sun”, Relates To A Quote By Charles Dickens And To My Life

Pine Point School

Ninth Grade English

November 18, 2011

By Schyler Davis

Have you ever noticed how light appears in your life, pushing out the darkness, making it all seem okay? “Here Comes The Sun”, by The Beatles, relates to the famous quote by Charles Dickens, “ It was the season of darkness, it was the season of light,” and it also relates to how my amazing friends bring light into my life. I want you to remember a dark time in your life and how a powerful force, friendship, love, family, sports, made the darkness fade, bringing light.

Have you ever wondered how times in life can be happy and joyful, but sad and somber at the same time? The song, “Here Comes The Sun”, relates to the quote, “It was the season of darkness, it was the season of light,” because even when life isn’t going as planned, you can still find light. I believe that you need to think about all the positive aspects of your life and not focus on the negatives. If you can do so, you will find that you are more peaceful. Also, sometimes it seems like everything is going wrong, going down hill, going the complete opposite way than you wanted, but  you need to try to work through it. Instead of thinking about all that has taken a turn for the worse, think about what has gone right; think about all the joy in your life; think about how lucky you are. If you try this, you may find light in the darkest of times. You need to remember that after every tough, bitter time you face that it is followed by a smooth, sweet time. You may need to just pull through bitterness in order to taste the sweet victory on the other side. Try to focus on the beauty of your life, and the darkness will start to slowly fade. Try to make the light in your life shine brighter than the sun.

“Here Comes The Sun” relates how my friends bring light into my life, a light that is like a sunrise, peaking up from the horizon, growing brighter and brighter. For example, I can always count on Eliza’s gregarious personality to make me laugh. If it is when she starts talking to strangers and thanking them or telling me about her dreams, I can always depend on her to put an everlasting smile on my face. I can’t picture my life without Eliza because she shines light onto my life and makes it “all right.” Also, Simone can brighten up my days by giving me excellent advice. Whenever I need her opinion on a matter, she tells me what she honestly thinks, what she thinks would be the best, and what she knows about the situation. I am thankful that Simone is my friend because whenever darkness tries to creep into my life, she is the sun that fights it off. Finally,  I feel that it is almost impossible to have any darkness in my life when the girls in my class are always making me laugh and smile. We have all become close this year and have shared priceless memories together-- memories that pick me up when I am down, make me laugh when I am sad, and make me glad I have such fantastic friends. When “it seems like years since its been clear,” Kiona, Kara, and Cassie make the sun shine down on my life-- a life that I am thankful for, a life that I wouldn’t change for anything. I’m lucky to have hilarious, loving, and caring friends that can make a rainbow after a rainy day.

    If you can think positive, you will live a wonderful life filled with joy. If you can find the light, you will fade the darkness in your life, so you should try to find your sun and never let it go. The song, “Here Comes The Sun”, relates to Charles Dickens famous quote in A Tale Of Two Cities, and it relates to how all my caring, loving, funny friends bring an everlasting light to my life. I hope that everyone can find their special light that keeps them going and laughing and happy and living.