An Essay on Ben Mikaelsen’s Countdown
Countdown is a book written by Ben Mikaelsen and was first published in 1996. It has a total of 248 pages and published by the Hyperion Books for Children company. This book is mainly about sending the first teenager in space. And it is also about finding how a young coward becomes a village warrior.
This story takes place in Big Timber, Montana and in Kenya, Africa. The setting starts off in winter and fourteen-year-old Elliott Schroeder is busy working around his family farm. On the news, NASA announces the first Junior Astronaut program and youth all around the country will get a chance to become the first teen in space.
Meanwhile, in Kenya, Africa, a young fourteen year old Masai, Vincent Ole Tome returns from tending to his family farm also. Vincent was no ordinary boy either, his father had sent him to the “wood school” which is similar to regular school in America. With the education he had received, many boys disliked him and named him a coward for not working as hard in the family farms.
Getting back to Elliott, many things occurred since the announcement of the Junior Astronaut program. Elliott is chosen to become to first teenager in space and begins his nine month training along with his alternate, Mandy Jane Harris. This was it, the only chance that Elliott Andrew Schroeder was going to become a national hero and the only thing in his way was Mandy. Because of that he developed a disliking towards her which almost costed them their privilege to go to space. Then Elliott realized that his disliking had to reasonable justification and they became the best of friends for the last four months of training. Then the day came, when Elliott was really going to become the first teen in space and his only duty was to speak to anyone on earth throughout NASA’s space mission.
While all of this was happening in America, in Kenya, Africa, Vincent is now being tested by the elders of his village along with all other young Masai boys to find who is the bravest of them to become a warrior. Leboo, a not so close friend of Vincent, tries to tear Vincent’s spirits down by naming him a coward.
Some rhetorical devices that were used by Malcom in his article “Dangerous Minds” include different stories and the use of stereotyping. Some different stories include the story of F.P. which was a serial bomber- small homemade bombs, but bombs nevertheless and B.T.K. which stands for “Bind, Torture, Kill.”
George Orwell’s novel, 1984, is a dystopian literary text that illuminates the tenets of totalitarian and authoritarian governance in most areas where the leaders seek total loyalty and near hero worship. It was published in 1949, but has since remained relevant because its details promoted authoritarian political constructs and the political leadership concepts that evolved in the globe over time. Set at Oceania province in Airstrip One, formerly known as Great Britain, the book displays an omnipresent government that institutes constant state surveillance on the people that it suspects to be a threat to its regime and agitators of rebellion. It infringes on human rights
When they arrived they saw a weird thing on the moon. Bob thought it was an alien but John thought it was a space trooper and he also thought he was upset. So they went to help him and the nice space trooper was so excited that they came. The boys also gave him a new skateboard and they got all of the rocks out of the skateboarding area. The energetic space trooper felt better and he showed his skateboarding tricks to the boys. They were friends and John and Bob had to leave. So they said bye and they left. They went home safely and the trooper was upset because they couldn’t stay for that long and the boys were proud that they could meet a space trooper in
John Knowles’ novel, A Separate Peace, reveals the many dangers and hardships of adolescence. The main characters, Gene, and Finny, spend their summer together at a boarding school called Devon. The two boys, do everything together, until Gene, the main character, develops a resentful hatred toward his friend Finny. Gene becomes extremely jealous and envious of Finny, which fuels this resentment, and eventually turns deadly. Knowles presents a look at the darker side of adolescence, showing jealousy’s disastrous effects. Gene’s envious thoughts and jealous nature, create an internal enemy, that he must fight. A liberal humanistic critique reveals that Knowles’ novel, A Separate Peace, has a self contained meaning, expresses the enhancement of life, and reveals that human nature does not change.
Ever since the age of nine, Chris Hadfield was determined to fulfill his dream of becoming an astronaut. Hadfield enrolled in programs that would enhance his knowledge and skills in materials that would contribute to an astronaut. Regardless of the amount of homework he had, Hadfield found time to stay in shape and take care of his health to make sure he was allowed to participate in space missions. As an astronaut, Hadfield was introduced to work with different cultures and gain new friendships with people who had the same interest as him. Chris Hadfield is an accomplished astronaut who has taught readers that dreams come with dedication. Chris Hadfield found his career as a way to bring meaning into his life. Chris Hadfield encourages readers to find something enjoyable and use it as a source to achieve dreams. Then readers can grow their cognitive, physical, and social development through something that they are strongly passionate
In A Separate Peace, Gene’s cluelessness leads to an imagined mutual competition with Finny, resembling the war in the setting of the novel, and teaching the reader about ignorance in human nature as a moral to the story. Little knowledge about one’s surroundings, combined with a misconception about one’s own identity, leads to the creation of unnecessary conflicts, actions, and goals. Like characters in great literature, people “see” their enemies in the world around them and engage themselves in a war, ultimately straying them from their natural path. In life, the gain of experience and avoidance of assumptions about the world based on one’s lack of knowledge will lead one to avoid these unavailing engagement with the creations of our own mind, and to realize one’s individuality, and the choices one truly wants to make.
Geoffrey Canada’s characters in Fist Stick Knife Gun use violence to increase their status and honor, and to make themselves stand out from the rest of their group as being more powerful. Canada’s violence is necessary to his characters as it is their only way to distinguish different people’s power. Canada’s characters also use violence to save their lives, as the adults in their life cannot protect the children. Canada writes: “status was a major issue for boys on the block” (Canada 18), a very blunt yet compelling statement that describes the importance of “status” for the boys on the block. “On the block,” respect and power means everything, as social order is decided by these qualities. Canada argues that in the South Bronx this “status” and social order could only be decided ...
The Blast Off was lined with photos of rockets charging into space. George settled into the bar stool, took a drink and put the glass down. Joe recognized this as the preparations prior to the start of a story and hoped he had heard it only a few times before.
Knowles deliberately juxtaposes Gene’s social awkwardness to Finny’s natural athleticism and charisma to suggest an imbalance of power between the two boys. Set in Devon School, described as “very athletic” (Knowles 13), Finny, “an extraordinary athlete…the best athlete in the school,” (16) establishes himself to be popular, tilting the balance of power. Stating there is no one “in this school – in this world – whom [he] could trust” (53), Knowles introduces Gene as a distrustful individual. Gene’s hesitant nature lets the animated Finny take charge of their relationship. To create power imbalance, the author purposefully creates Gene and Finny with wildly different personalities.
Miller went through college with many failed and unpublished plays. Still, he never gave up hope. Finally he hit one success which kept him on the Broadway stage for several decades to come. Arthur Miller is a New York born American playwright who developed a reputation by dealing with political and moral issues through his plays. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg with it comes to the story of Arthur Miller.
In Song of Achilles the only gods that are really interacting with the humans are Thetis, Chiron and Apollo. One thing that today’s audience has in common with Homer’s is the belief that god or gods play a big part in our lives. Miller defers from the original material by making Thetis a more prominent and different character than we see in The Iliad. “She leaned closer still, looming over me. Her mouth was a gash of read, like the torn-open stomach of a sacrifice, bloody and oracular. Behind it her teeth shone sharp and white as bone” (pg.54). In The Iliad Thetis is seen as a beautiful immortal goddess and loving mother, but in Miller’s version she is cruel and distant and that makes Achilles seem more like a victim. Thetis also reminds us of an overbearing mother who disapproves of her son’s choices and relationships.
now uses My Father’s Name as an inspirational seminar, for anybody who would like to
The Romanticism period is marked by changes in societal beliefs as a rejection of the values and scientific thought pursued during the Age of Enlightenment. During this period, art, music, and literature are seen as high achievement, rather than the science and logic previously held in esteem. Nature is a profound subject in the art and literature and is viewed as a powerful force. Searching for the meaning of self becomes a noble quest to undertake. In the dramatic tragedy of “Faust” by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, we find a masterpiece of Romanticism writing that includes the concepts that man is essentially good, the snare of pride, and dealing with the supernatural.
Education was not common in this village and most of its citizens, adult and children the same, were illiterate. Although it was difficult to get educated while in his vil...
Inspector Solomon Makaye; also known as ‘Fats’ Makaye is a police officer to which this essay will be centered around (revised from A Night on the Town: chapter twelve). Inspector Makaye is the oldest man in his unit (situated in Ivory Park) as well as the senior leader in his team (Altbeker 2005, p. 201-202). His general attitude towards his work and his role as a policeman is th...