All I asking for is my body 1st response

     Makot is a teenager living in Hawaii with his parents who are wealthy or have a good amount of money. He seems slightly weird or different which isn't bad he just seems like a loner even though he has people around him a lot. I kinda feel bad for him because it seems like he tries to win people over with money and material things instead of genuinely making friends.
     He acts immature and this might be the lack of real friends or lack of interactions with his parents. I think this left a bad taste in his mouth because it felt like he was holding somewhat of a grudge against his parents. The apple did not fall to far from the tree. The family over all seemed kinda odd but I think we will find out why.

Rules for Writers Chapter 8

     Writing with active verbs can help bring your writing to life and have more impact on your reader. It will help emphasize action words in a story maybe a narrative or descriptive essay. You would want to use active verbs when writing about a main character or actor. Its good to "make the actor the subject of the sentence" (pg 81) and you do this by using active verbs.

     Using passive verbs works as well but in different situations. For example when writing a research paper or a scientific paper passive verbs sometimes work best. Passive verbs or passive writing can be more wordy than active ones so using active can make your writing more effective but simple at the same time.

     I plan to use this information to help clarify my writing. I think in my writings in the past I would jump from active to passive within one paragraph but maybe it would be better to stick with one. I will try in our next relevant writing assignment and see how it reads.

Smoke Signals

What role does forgiveness play?


Had trouble with this assignment maybe writers block. Essay's where you have to analyze information are harder for me so as much feedback as possible would help. Thank you so much for your time.

Brian Friedfel

English

Professor Servias

April 20, 2011

Forgiveness in Smoke Signals

            In the film Smoke Signals the theme of forgiveness has a role throughout it. The majority of relationships whether they were blood related or just friends required different levels of forgiveness in order for the film to reach resolution. Forgiveness played a huge role in Smoke Signals so the plot could have more substance and reach the audience and teach that to forgive and forget is the right thing to do.

            The first relationship I will look at is between Victor and Thomas. During the film Victor shows little positive emotion especially towards Thomas but he continues to live with his heart on his sleeve and a good attitude which means he was constantly forgiving Victor because he loved him like a brother and looked up to him. At one point Victor beat up Thomas because he crossed the line when he spoke about Victor’s father abandoning his family but Thomas almost instantly forgave him or so it seemed. At the end of the film it was Victor’s turn to forgive Thomas because that night the fire had happened Thomas was the one saved by Arnold (Victor’s dad) and Victor was always jealous and mad. He realized Arnold was like both of their father because Arnold was responsible for the fire he forgave Thomas by giving him some of his dads ashes which is a very special point of forgiveness.

            Another important part of the movie that showed a great deal of forgiveness was when Victor had to forgive his father which was very hard for him. He did this by traveling to his father’s trailer to go through his belongings and see where he was living to get some closure. His father abandoned him and his mother when he was a young boy so to let go and forgive his father he had to let the resentment and hate leave his heart. This process was aided and expedited by traveling with Thomas which was somewhat of a little struggle and tuff times can create good character in someone or open their eyes because of the experience. Forgiving his father was the peak of forgiveness in Smoke signals making the moral of the film forgiving is the correct path.

            One other aspect of forgiveness that popped up was that Victor’s mother had to forgive as well. She had to forgive Arnold for leaving them behind and she also had to forgive Victor for being angry young boy who was acting out but was sad inside so mother forgave him.

            I believe forgiveness was one of the main roles of the film. If one cannot or refuses to forgive it lays heavy on the heart and can make you bitter and angry. You can lash out on loved ones and even become depressed which is how Victor’s character was portrayed. This film was about Victor growing up and learning to forgive close people in his life in physical and spirit form. The plot came to a final forgiving moment when he gave Thomas some of the Ashes this showed that Victor had learned to forgive and in the process had become a man by learning on his own and not being taught by his dad. There were other themes in Smoke Signals but forgiveness and growth was the most prevalent. 

This is what it means to say Phoenix, Arizona

     I was more impressed with the story. The movie changed some things that I thought would be good in the movie. I dont make movies but maybe they changed some things for a reason. I liked Victor and Thomas's relationship better in the story. Victor didn't seem quite as bitter or resentful. Like the fight in the movie was because Thomas upset Victor by talking about his father but in the story they fought because Victor was drunk this makes for a better movie to me.
     A couple other parts that I would of liked to have seen in the movie. One part was when Victor was interacting with the council trying to allocate funds and the other part was when Thomas thought he could fly and jumped off the school roof flapping his arms. The story seemed kind of of rushed or for maybe a younger crowd than  the movie but overall the story was more impressive and I'm basing this decision primarily on Victor and Thomas's relationship. I would like to see an exact depiction of the written story on film.

Rules for Writers Chapter 52

     You must form a tentative thesis by researching both of the issue you are writing about. This will make your thesis solid. A professional opinion will give your argument or issue much more weight but don't rely on other to make your opinion for you. Do a lot of research and cite them when appropriate. You can use opposite opinions to contrast your own to help show key points on your own issue backing you up even more.
     Once you reached a point in your research its a good idea to organize in a simple but bold fashion making your own research more available when it comes time to write your thesis and paper. Treat every reader like they have no knowledge of your issue. Providing background information by using facts or statistics will make your writing very strong same with quoting and paraphrasing as long as you cite.
     The way i would use this information will be in every essay hereafter. Hopefully it will help me write my solid informed thesis. Once again it seems like more repetition from Ms. Hacker but that means we will remember it more.
    
    

Smoke Signals

     Victor and Thomas had a relationship like brothers. They loved each other but they showed it in different ways. Thomas showed his love by wanting to be with Victor all the time and he loved telling him stories and reminiscing about old times. Thomas loved his Native American brother and made it obvious through sharing time together. Victor was different he also loved Thomas like a brother but showed it in a strange way but its also a common way brothers care for each other. Victor resented Thomas and that became apparent when Victor said "My father saved you not me". After he had said this I believe Victor started feeling better after he got that off his chest in conjunction with saying goodbye to his father and getting some closure. Victor showed Thomas tough love.
     They were not blood brothers but this doesn't always matter. The relationship between these two was a common relationship or I would say a stereotypical one. One brother was like a little shadow (Thomas) always following the bigger one (Victor) around. Then the bigger brother loved his little brother very much but at times acted like he wanted nothing to do with him but if Thomas wasn't around Victor would miss him. You never realize what you really have till its gone.