Northstar

Focus on Bomb Suspect Brings Tears and a Plea

Barbara Jewell (mom) says Richards life has changed since he was named suspect of bombing Centennial Olympic
Park (was guard there). Hes been a prisoner at home. Cant live a normal life, doesnt have privacy. At first he was a
hero for discovering the bomb and helping to clear people from area. He was later cleared of all suspicion, but his life
was never the same.
Technology and the News
Development of new technology (sat comunic and Internet) allowed people in 21 cent to be better informed about the
worlds events. No more waiting, people can get updates of news as soon as they happen. Always informed. News
coverage are no longer limited by distance.
News in Society
People in the US have many sources of news (some available 24 hs a day). Some Americans have become addicte4d to
the news. Recent survey: 65% spend to 2 hs/day, and 20% pay attention +2 hs/day watching, listening to, or reading
the news.
Sources of news: printed sources, tv, radio, internet. Critics are concerned that the media ignores the most important
social, political and economic issues that we face, because they focus on everything at once. Become distracted of what
its important by reading about whats not.
To deal with this, people should look for info in news sources that have more in-depth analysis of the news, such as
monthly magazines.
The Miracle
Hellen Keller, 2 years old, had a fever. She became blinded and soon after, deaf. Couldnt communicate and that made
her furious. Her achievement was to prove how language could liberate the blind and the deaf. She struggled to master
language. With language she proved she could communicate even though she could not see or hear. She later wrote a
book about her life.
Writer, born prematurely, and because she got too much oxygen in the incubator she lost her sight. She was ispired by
Hellen Keller.
Theres a school Escuela N 1 in Mendoza named after her. In Corrientes and Crdoba there are special schools for
deaf and blind people with her name.
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
This ADA became law in the US in 1990. The law protects people with disabilities from employment discrimination.
Employers must give disabled people an equal chance to be hired and promoted, and a person cant be fired because
they have a disability. Employers must provide reasonable accommodations to help employees with disabilities perform
their jobs: getting special equipment, allowing flexible work schedules, making work place accessible to people with
disabilities. Most of these accommodations are low cost and easy to make. If the accommodation is to expensive or
difficult to make, the employer is not required to provide it.
Frank McCourt
Born in NY in 1930. Parents had moved to NY from Ireland in search of a better life, they had a difficult time in NY.
His father could not earn enough money to support them. They returned to Ireland hoping their life would improve. Life
there was as hard as in NY. Eventually, after 3 of Franks siblings died as babies, his father abandoned his family.
Childhood filled with misery. There was never enough food, the house was small, dirty, cold.
He loved to read, even though he had no electricity in his house he would read. Humor was the McCourts defense
against their problems.
He became a teacher and writer and won a Pulitzer Prize.
Norman Cousins Laugh Therapy
Its about a therapy was developed by Norman Cousins. He was a writer and editor who was diagnosedwith a fatal
disease. Doctors told him that he was going to die (only 1 in 500 survived).Cousins read about the effects of stress and
negative attitudes in the body. He started to think of the possible effects of positive attitudes in the body. He
concentrated on positive emotions as a remedy to heal his illness, in addition to his medical treatment. Laugh Therapy
became part of his treatment. His pain began to decrease and his condition improved. In a few years he was completely
recovered. Cousins believes his recovery is the result of a mysterious mind-body interaction.
Late-Night Study Centre
Its about a Late-Night Study Centre that will open next semester on the first floor of the library to provide a safe and
quiet study space for students who wish to study after normal library hours end.
Sleep Deprivation Causes Medical Error
Its about the serious problem of medical errors caused by staff who are suffering from sleep deprivation. Interns work
10 hours per day 6 or 8 days in a row. They spend hours in the operating rooms and checking patients without moments
to rest in between.
Hospitals are considering limiting the hours a doctor or nurse can work per week, and are instituting rules, such as
prohibiting staff from gibing medication if they have been on duty for more than 12 hs to reduce the number of errors
made by staff members.
Monologue of Isabel Watching It Rain In Macondo Gabriel Garca Mrquez
Its about a family (narrator, her father and stepmother) who are sitting in their house watching the rain. It had been
raining all day. It was cold and windy and the rain was ruining everything. It had also ruined the narrators stepmothers
mood, she no longer smiled. They remembered August, which was hot and long and had silent nights. They felt
depressed and sad with the rain.
Tornadoes
Tornadoes are violent storms formed over land during thunderstorms. Also called Twisters, Tornadoes can be
destructive, with winds reaching 300 miles per hour and lasting up to an hour. They can damage buildings, lift cars,
uproot trees.
Tornadoes are unpredictable; they form quickly with little or no warning. There is usually little time for people to
evacuate once a tornado has formed. The US has the highest number of tornadoes in the world each year. They occur
most often in spring and early summer, especially during the afternoon and early evening.
Interview with a Medicine Priest
Its an interview with a Cherokee medicine priest, David Winston. The interview is about Cherokee beliefs regarding the
environment and conservation. Cherokees believe that there are 3 great Laws of Nature, which tell them how they have
to live inn relationship with everything else. 1. Dont take any life without a real reason (food, medicine, protection). 2.
Everything that they do should serve the Great Life. Theres a spirit that fills all things (humans, plants, rocks the sum
of all these is the GL. Is very important that what they do does not harm other parts of the GL. 3. Dont pollute where
they live.
Ecocities
Its about cities that are built to be environmentally friendly. There will be no need for people to own cars (theyll travel
by bus), the city will be connected by bicycle and pedestrian paths. Ecocities energy will be from solar and wind power.
They will have green spaces (parks, forests, community gardens). Buildings will be constructed using ecological
materials. These cities are being designed in order to start restoring our environment so there is something left for our
grandchildren.
Some Take the Time Gladly
Its about a volunteer program at Bowie High School. Students do volunteer work, such as helping in Nursing Centers,
helping animals. They like doing volunteer work for themselves, not for the requirement. Some people wont donthe
service unless is mandatory.
Charitable Giving
Its about giving money to charity. Some people give money in an unselfish desire to help other people and make the
world a better place (giving money to religious institutions, colleges, universities, hospitals, medical research
organizations). Other people make donations for reasons involving personal interest (in the US tax law, an individual
does not have to pay income tax on money that is donated to charity, also they receive favorable publicity for making
donations).
Philanthropists
Its about the types of philanthropists there are. Individual philanthropists, who give money or volunteer their time to
support causes important to them. Foundation phil, organizations started by very wealthy individuals (the business is not
to make a profit but to give money away to not-for-profit org.). Private corporations phil, corporations that use a portion
of their profits to make donations.
Emotional Intelligence
Its about Emotional Intelligence that is the ability to apply knowledge about emotions to life. It consists of an awareness
of and an ability to manage ones emotions and self-motivation. People who are able to monitor their feelings as they
arise are less likely to be ruled by them and are able to manage their emotions (this doesnt mean suppressing them). Its
goal is balance and every feeling has value and significance. If we understand the meaning of our emotions (assign our
emotions a meaning) we are more likely to manage them. Self-motivation is strong emotional self-control, which
enables a person to pursue their goals, persist at tasks and resist the temptation to act on impulse. Resisting impulsive
behavior is the root of all emotional self-control. The ability to postpone immediate gratification and to persist in
working toward some greater future gain is most closely related to success.
Motivation
Its about motivation and things that motivates people to do things. Behavior can be explained by motives (needs or
desires that direct behavior toward a goal). Motives can arise from an internal source (activities are pursued as ends
themselves, because they are enjoyable or satisfying), intrinsic motivation; or from outside sources (external incentive
influences us to act), extrinsic motivation.
Slow Food Movement Aims at Restoring the Joy of Eating
Its about a movement (born in Italy) to preserve and restore the traditional joy of the table (eating at the table), its
about kinship and companionship. They are trying to eradicate microwave food, they organize wine tastings cooking
classes. Slow Food is about savoring and appreciating the pleasures of good food and drink.
Changes Planned for Food Service on Campus
Its about a university that wants to change the food-service system on campus. They want to improve the service,
quality and choice. They have many different providers but they all offer similar food, so they want to find 1 or 2
providers. Not everyone is happy with this change, some students, staff and professors formed a group to oppose the
plan.
Fast Food at the Student Centre
Its about a new fast-food restaurant at a Student Center, which will serve hamburgers, cheeseburgers, french fries,
salad. Some oppose because fast food is unhealthy food, they say that they should encourage students to eat healthy
food.
Coming to America
Its about immigration to America which created the most diverse nation on earth. There were 2 main streams of
immigration in 300 years. From 1607 to 1820 English people arrived at America (Virginia) looking for job or escaping
religious persecution, nearly half of them went as servants. During this time Africans were forcibly taken to the US as
slaves. Most immigrants were welcomed with open arms, except Quakers and Jews and Scottish and Catholics. In
general the colonies sought immigrants; they were desperate for the basic resource without which they could not
survive: people.
In the mid-19th century, immigration began to soar. English were outnumbered by Germans (work in farmlands in
Midwest) and Irish (settled in Boston and NY as laborers) who arrived at the US escaping hunger (a disease had wiped
out potato crops). On the West Coast, Chinese became the first non-Europeans immigrants, drawn by tales of gold, but
they ended up working on the railroads. At first the new immigrants were welcomed, but then the nativists English
became resentful and there were problems. Chinese were treated as inferior to the other races and were barred from
entering the US.
Culture Shock
Is a feeling people experience when they face a new culture (having to cope with new and unfamiliar situations and
traditions). It has 4 stages: 1. Honey Moon: everything is interesting, exciting and attractive. 2. Distress Stage: person
starts feeling uncomfortable, cranky and homesick 3. Recovery Stage: person starts feeling better. 4. Stability Stage:
person feels at easy, happy again, starts enjoying things.
US immigrants
Some cities in the US are ethnically diverse due to the fact that immigrants from all over the world have always been
attracted to it. Many of the newcomers are teenagers, therefore teachers and school administrators face the complex task
of helping these students find a place in the US. There are programs to help them develop academic and cultural skills
necessary for success in high school, college and beyond.
Thoreaus Home (Thoreau)
The text is about a man who built his own house, which only cost him $28, in the woods near a pond. In the passage the
man tells how he built his house.
The Road Ahead (Bill Gates)
Its about Bill Gates opinion of the future with the internet. He says that even though homes will become such cozy
entertainment providers that we will never want to leave them, we are will not become isolated. We are social animals.
The network will help us find new companions.
Unit 1 MEDIA
Focus on Bomb Suspect Brings Tears and a Plea
The article is about how a bomb suspects mother, Barbara Jewell, feel towards the media stalking her son, Richard
Jewell. She believes that reporters are hurting him since they follow her and her son constantly and also have taken away
their privacy.
Technology and the News
The article deals with how people in the 21st century are much better informed about world events thanks to
technological developments such as satellite communication and the Internet.
News and Society
Its about how people are provided with so much detailed information that the media sometimes put aside those
economical, political and social relevant issues. This article also gives information about the different solutions.
Unit 2 OVERCOMING OBSTACLES
The Miracle
The article is a comparison of the authors life and Helen Kellers life. In the article the author shows that she was
inspired by Helen Kellers achievements. Although Keller became blind and deaf at the age of two, she could overcome
the situation and learnt how to write and speak. This meant great inspiration for Diane, who was blind, to go from the
state school for the blind to regular public school.
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
Its about a law that protects disabled people from employment discrimination. This law establishes that an employer
must give equal opportunities to disabled people and provide reasonable accommodation to help them perform their job.
Unit 3 MEDICINE
Norman Cousinss Laugh Therapy
The article is about a therapy that was developed by Norman Cousins, a writer and editor who was diagnosed with a
fatal disease. The therapy consists of doing activities that bring positive emotions such as laughter, love, hope, faith and
confidence to heal the symptoms of any particular disease.
Recount of Norman Cousinss Laugh Therapy
In 1964 a well known writer and editor Norman Cousins was diagnosed with a very serious and destructive form of
arthritis. He was told that he had 1 out of 500 possibilities of survival. Despite the diagnosis, Cousins was determined to
overcome the disease and survive. Since he had red a book about how negative emotions can damage health and the
body, he thought that positive emotions would produce positive effects on him. He began doing activities that would
bring laughter and positive emotions. After 8 days he began to feel better. In a few months time he was able to return to
work and after a few years he was completely recovered.
Sleep Deprivation Causes Medical Error
The article is about the consequences sleep deprivation has on hospital staffs and which measures have been taken to
reduce the number of medical errors.
Unit 4 NATURAL DISASTERS
Monologue of Isabel Watching it Rain in Macondo
The passage by Gabriel Garca Mrquez, describes how Isabel and her familys feelings and mood are affected by the
rain. They feel depressed and overwhelmed by sadness.
Tornadoes
Tornadoes are natures most violent storms which are formed over land during thunderstorms. They can be extremely
destructive, with winds reaching 480 km/h and lasting up to an hour. To predict a tornado is difficult because they form
very quickly with little or no warning. Tornadoes usually occur in the Midwest and Southern states of USA and are also
common in Australia and Bangladesh.
Unit 5 CONSERVATION
Interview with a Medicine Priest
In this interview, Barbara Cassin, the interviewer, talks with David Winston, a Cherokee medicine priest about the
Cherokee beliefs regarding the environment and conservation. He explains the three great Laws of Nature which tell
Cherokees how they have to live in relationship to everything else. The three laws are: you dont take any life without a
real reason; everything you do should serve the Great Life, one spirit that fills all things; and you dont pollute where
you live, i.e. the Earth.
Ecocities
The article is about cities that are being designed and built to be environmentally friendly. After incorporating some
features like sustainable energy and ecological building materials, urban planners believe we will be able to start
restoring the environment.
 Unit 6 PHILANTHROPY
Some Take the Time Gladly
The article from the Washington Times is about a volunteer program at Bowie High School. Students are required to
perform community service jobs and they can work for a variety of different organizations. Although many students
enjoy their volunteer work, they find it frustrating to write essays about their work.
Charitable Giving
The article explains the two reasons people donate money to charity. One of the reasons is altruism; in this case people
donate because they have an unselfish desire to help others. The other reason is personal interest; in this case the
donators receive tax benefits and favourable publicity.
Philanthropists
The article describes the three types of philanthropist: individuals who donate money or volunteer their time to causes
that are important to them; foundations which are started by wealthy individuals and give money away to non-profit
organizations and private corporations which donate money and products or services free of charge.
Unit 7 EDUCATION
Emotional Intelligence
The article describes emotional intelligence as the ability to apply knowledge about emotions to everyday life.
Emotional intelligence involves awareness of emotions, ability to manage those emotions, and self-motivation. The first
two consist in recognizing feelings as they happen and managing these feelings by expressing them in an appropriate
manner. Self-motivation refers to strong emotional self-control which enables a person to get moving and pursue worthy
goals.
Motivation
The article describes intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation refers to motives that arise from an internal
source because the activities are enjoyable or satisfying without any external reward attached. External motivation refers
to motives from outside sources and make us act in order to gain some external reward or avoid some undesirable
consequence.
Unit 8 FOOD
Slow Food Movement Aims at Restoring the Joy of Eating
The article is about a movement that started in the late 1990s (Italy, Rome.) This movement is committed to educating
people about the pleasures of the table and also to help traditional food artisans survive by sustaining the demand for
their products. Slow Food is strong in Italy and has many organizations in more than 15 countries. Even though this
movement is new in the USA, slow foodists say that the USA is ripe for Slow Food. According to them, 10 years ago,
Americans didnt have any interest in food or drinks but nowadays this has changed dramatically since people now care
about what theyre eating and why theyre eating it. (more art)
Unit 9 IMMIGRATION
Coming to America
The article describes the immigration process during two periods in the USA. During the first period (1607 - 1820)
people from Europe, mainly from England arrived in America. While most of them went looking for work, others were
escaping religious persecution. African people, who were taken as slaves also arrived during this period. Most
immigrants were welcomed, except Quakers, Jews, Scot-Irish and Catholics. During the second period (1821 - 1890)
immigration increased. Germans and Irish arrived in America looking for work and escaping from famine in their
countries. The Chinese were the first non-Europeans immigrants; they were drown by tales of gold but ended up doing
back-breaking labour on the railroads.
What is culture shock?
The article defines culture shock as a feeling of discomfort experienced as a person adjusts to a new culture. It also
explains the four stages of culture shock. The first one is the honeymoon stage, it is the time when a person first enters a
new culture and finds everything interesting and exciting. The second stage is called distress stage. During this stage the
person starts to feel uncomfortable, unhappy, and homesick and may want to return home. The third stage is the
recovery stage in which the person starts adjusting to the new culture, feeling more comfortable and is able to interact
with others. Finally the stability stage is the one in which the person begins to feel at home in the new culture.
Unit 10 TECHNOLOGY
Passage from The Road Ahead
The passage from The Road Ahead by Bill Gates is about peoples fear of how the increased Internet usage would
reduce the time people spend socializing. According to Gates such a thing is not going to happen because humans are
social animals. He adds that the use of the highway will not only make it easier to keep up with distant friends, but also
enable us to find new companions.
Booklet - Articles
Mother Teresa
Narrator talks about how he feels about a Roman Catholic nun who grew up in Yugoslavia, even though she was
Albanian (Mother Teresa). He disagrees with her, they have different opinions.
Mother Teresa, servant of the poor, sick and dying, had received the Nobel Peace Prize.
Its not really that he hates her.
Footbinding
Its about a Chinese custom that consisted on binding young Chinese girls feet. Western China. At the age of seven the
process of footbinding began (they didnt wait longer so that their feet wouldnt harden). Their mothers told them that if
they didnt bind their feet everyone would laugh at them and feel ashamed of them. Bound feet was a sign of beauty.
First soak the feet in a pan of hot water. Then massage repeatedly the feet in the direction of the plantar. Then press doen
the four smaller toes in the direction of the plantar, and bound them, passing the binding from the heel to the front
surface and then to the plantar. Then, with the new shoes on, they had to walk. Weekly task, each time done more
tightly. After one year the foot became more pointed. At the age of nine the narrator was betrothed to a neighbor, Chao,
and she was sent there to serve as a daughter-in-law. Her mother-in-law bound her feet more tightly than her mother.
Very painful.
Girls denied education
Egypt. In a very poor town its easy for girls to get stuck, held down, mostly by ignorance. Nadia was barred from
attending school by her father. 73 million school age girls are denied education. The government started a system of all-
girl schools. Nongovernmental organizations have searched for ways to reach out to girls and get them into the
classroom. Theyve come across beliefs that girls belong in the home.
Different organizations have put a priority on educating the girl child in countries of Asia and Africa. The campaign is to
educate more girls in several poor countries.
Ana Maria gets a Scholarship
Ana Maria from Amazona wanted a scholarship to travel to the US. Her English was poor but the people in charge of the
program told her it was ok. They never told her where she was going until she was in Miami and she still didnt feel
confident after the intensive English program. Host family: Mr and Mrs. Smith. They were kind but she felt they were
too pushy. She had problems to communicate with them. She couldnt call her family (they didnt have phone). Had
problems with the language. Went back to Amazona.
Hosts POV. She didnt understand when they talked to her. She wasnt wearing appropriate clothes. They heard her
crying. They tried to help her. She should have tried a little and cope with the situation.
Raul Dominguez Pov. She was selected because she was an excellent student, well liked among friends and teachers,
and was anxious to visit the US. He thought she was prepared to go to the US due to the workshop she did.
Thanksgiving Day
The text is about the origin of the celebration of Thanksgiving Day. A group of people known as the Pilgrims left
England escaping from religious persecution. They first sailed to The Netherlands, but due to the differences in their
way of life, the Pilgrims went to America. They set ground at Plymouth in the 17th cent. They had to learn how to
survive by themselves in the new land. The first year was devastating, and even though they were helped by the natives,
a lot of Pilgrims died.
On the second year, due to a good harvest, the Pilgrims decided to make a celebration to thank God. This was carried on
for several years.
Later on, a lot of Presidents tried to establish a date for Thanksgiving Day (changing the date). Finally, Roosevelt
established the next-to-last Thursday of November the date of Thanksgiving celebration to create a longer Christmas
shopping season.
Gettysburg Address Abraham Lincoln
Its a speech delivered by Lincoln in Gettysburg for the opening of the Gettysburg cemetery. People were
commemorating the battle in between Yankees and the Confederates. They met to honor the land were many died so the
nation could live. Lincoln says that they have to continue with what the people who died were fighting for, so that their
death was not in vain. They must fight for equality and a nation conceived in Liberty.
Relation to Luther Kings speech I Have a Dream. They both make reference to equality. They both fight for a nation
where everybodys treated as an equal. In spite of Lincolns speech in 1863, in 1963 (100 years later), when Luther King
delivered his speech, there was still no equality among the people.
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
Sarmiento, also known as the teacher-President of Arg, was an Argentinean educational reformer who introduced great
changes as regards education in Arg.
Sarmiento was born in a humble family in San Juan, Arg. and was self-educated. He liked to read Benjamin Franklin. He
had clear objectives; Sarmiento was determined to make a place for himself in South American Literature and Politics.
After being an exile in Chile, he travelled to Europe to investigate foreign educational systems. But he was disenchanted
with the European model of education. There he discovered Horace Manns job. Fascinated with Manns work,
Sarmiento travelled to the US to meet him. He was amazed with the country and its people, the way they lived, their
educational system and the way this country had taken advantage of the resources they possessed. He was convinced
that Argentina could become a prosperous nation.
As a president, he had to overcome many obstacles, but he was able to establish the foundations of one of the best
educational systems in South America (even the world).
Blizzard Warning
Its a recount of the events occurred during a blizzard storm in Nebraska. Its told by a boy who was 15 years old. It
describes how the boy and his 2 brothers struggled to beat the cold storm and got home safely. The snow blinded them,
the wind blew them. Blinding storm.
The Struggle to Beat the Cold
Its an article about how 3 members of the Transpolar Expedition (Martin, Mitchell and Johnson) had to struggle to beat
the cold after during their 1400-mile walk across the North Pole.
They were overcome by exhaustion, cold and impossible travel conditions. Strong wind, low temperature, frozen breath
or perspiration, water. Impossible temperatures. Frostbite.
Short Stories
The Angel
Miss Barrys Chinese night watchman said he had seen a ghost during the night. He was now an old man, who had done
very faithfully when he was young, but now he couldnt help but sleep once or twice in the night. He curled in a dark
corner of Miss Barrys garden. She had wondered often what dog lay in her ferns and spoiled them. According to him
the angel had approached him noiselessly over the grass, its long white hair floating and it wore long loose robes. He
had known it was an angel because of he had been baptized many years ago and he was a good Christian. Then the angel
had screamed Hallelujah, peace on earth. The angel went across the grass, opened the gate without noise and went
away.
Miss Barry was an old American lady. With the years she became impatient. Liked seeing things done right. Racist.
Perfectionist.
Mr. Jones, Barrys neighbor, didnt trust in the watchmans declaration.
Miss Barry was missing. She had left a letter to her sister in her house where she explained how she felt (tired, inpatient,
hopeless). She was found down a cliff, someone saw her running to the river where there is a cliff. She was the angel the
watchmen saw.
The Last Night of the World
Describes a couple that is talking about the end of the world. They know the world is coming to an end, its a feeling that
they have, but they are not frightened. The knowledge came to them in a dream. Lots of people had had the same dream
where someone told them that things would stop on Earth. The world is ending because things didnt work out.
Santa Ana Wind
LA. Tension, unnatural stillness, hot wind from northeast, sandstorms. People feel when it comes. Heat, sky turns
yellow. People wont come out of their houses. Gets on peoples nerves. Wind starts as cold mass, it is warmed as it
comes down the mountain and appears as hot and dry. It causes nausea, headaches, allergies, depression. It usually last 3
or 4 days. It also happens in Austria, Switzerland and Israel.
Zero Hour
Its about an alien invasion leaded by the children from all over the world. It shows how adults dont take seriously what
their children say. In the story children all over the world are playing a game called Invasion, in which aliens are using
children to invaded planet earth. Mink, a 7 year old girl from New York, tells her mother Mrs. Morris about this new
game. Mrs. Morris pretends to believe her daughter and for some reason feels fear inside of her. At 5 oclock or zero
hour Mrs. Morris realizes that Invasion was not a game, but at that point there is nothing to be done.
The Other Foot
Its about the grudge black people still hold against white people because of the way wp treated bp. The black people
have been living in Mars for 20 years. After they left the Earth, the Third World War, an atom war, broke. Now that
everything is destroyed and millions of people have been killed on Earth, a white man went in a rocket to Mars to ask for
help. At first the black people thought of getting revenge, but after the man told them that everything was destroyed, that
nothing was left, the black people realized there was no need for revenge. Now they were equals.
The Necklace vanity, ambition, resentment, selfishness, pride
The story is about a vain young Frenchwoman who pays a tragic price for one night of social triumph. Mathilde Loisel
has always dreamed of beign part of high society but ends up married with a clerk. She feels that she was born for
something else, that she doesnt belong where she is. One day, M. Loisel gets an invitation to a party from the Minister
of Education. At first she refuses to go because she has no dress, but after her husband gives her the money he had been
saving so she could buy a dress, she decides to go. She then borrows a diamond necklace from a friend. When they get
home from the party, after being the sensation of the event, Mathilde realizes that she has lost the necklace. After
looking for it with no result, they decide they have to buy her friend a new diamond necklace. In order to afford it, they
get into debts and spend all their funds. Ten years later, and after a lot of sacrifice on their parts to pay the debts,
Mathilde comes across her friend, Mme Forrestier. Mathilde decides to tell her the truth and learns that her friends
necklace, the one she had lost, wasnt indeed a real diamond, but just paste.
The Gift of the Magi love, generosity O. HENRY
Is a story about the unconditional love between a couple, Della and Jim. Theyre poor. In order to make the other one
happy they sacrifice their most valuable treasure to buy a Christmas present for the other (hair and golden watch).
Unconditional love and generosity are strongly present in this story.
Witches Loaves O. HENRY
Its about the mistakes people can make by prejudging people and meddling in someones life. Miss Martha, a 40 year
old woman, was the owner of a bakery. 2 or 3 times a week a German man, who Martha thought was a poor artist, would
go in her shop and by 2 loaves (the cheapest bread). She took great interest in him. One day she decided to help this
poor artist and put butter inside the loaves. That same day the German man, furious, went back to the bakery shop with
another man following him. He started telling her things, insulting her. The other man explained to Miss Martha that the
German was an architect and that she had ruined a project he had been working on for a competition. The loaves were
used as crumbs to erase pencil.
The Tell-Tale Heart Edgar Allan Poe
Its about madness. The story is narrated in first person by a man. This man, who admits being really nervous but is in
fact completely mad, tells the whole story about a murder he has committed. He has carefully planned the death of the
man living with him. For 7 nights, at midnight, he had gone to the old mans room to watch him. The old mans eye
made him crazy, bothered him. He successfully kills, he dismembers the corpse and hides it under the floorboards, the
man but the neighbors heard a scream. The police go to the house to ask if he heard something. The police men believe
him that nothing has happened and they sit above the floorboards were the old mans corpse is. The mad man starts
hearing a sound, he thinks that it is the old mans heart beating and completely crazy admits committing the crime.
Starts slowly with lots of details and then is fast with no details.
The Fun they Had
Its about the future. There are 2 kids Margie and Tommy (11 and 13). Tommy discovers a real book about school in the
past, it belonged to his great-great grandfather. Margie, after analyzing thing, decides that school in the past must have
been more fun than in her time. Kids went to learn to a building and they learnt all the same thing and could help each
other with the homework. Plus the teacher was a person. Whereas in her time, the teacher was a machine and she was
the only pupil. She went to schoolin a room next to her bedroom.
All I Really Need to Know Giants, Wizards, and Dwarfs
Its about people that are different, about those who not fit the norm. ?
Harry Potter is about confronting fears, finding inner strength and doing what is right in the face of adversity. Twilight is
about how important it is to have a boyfriend.