An Ember in the Ashes Informational Text

An Ember in the Ashes Glossary

Mask- The term Mask refers to the highly trained soldiers of the Empire.  At the age of six, children are chosen to begin training to become masks.  They are mostly male, but there is one female once in a generation.  The Masks get their name from a mask that they wear over their face.  This comes from the mask that Typhus I wore when he began the Empire.  These masks eventually bind to the faces of these soldiers so that they can never run away with out being seen.

Augre- These guys are nuts.  They are the religious figures of this story.  So far, we know that they have been around for something like one thousand years.  They also have the ability to read minds and have visions into the future.

Scholars- The Scholars are a group of people who have been conquered and oppressed by the Martials.  The point of view character Laia is a Scholar.  Before the Empire took over, the Scholars were a group of people who valued knowledge over anything else.  They were not prepared for war when the Empire invaded.

Martials- This is the members of the Empire.  They are equivalent to the members of the Roman Empire.  They are the invaders.

Resistance- These are a group of Scholars that live in the Catacombs and are trying to subvert the Empire.

An Ember in the Ashes

Which storyline is more interesting? Laia or Elias?

I was trying to find the best way to make an argument about this book when I realized that the most obvious thing people will probably talk about is which storyline they like the most.  I know that eventually this probably won't matter because I'm sure they come together, but for now, I'm going to think about it.  To me, the most interesting storyline in this book is Elias'.  While both characters are in a position where their lives are at stake, Elias is putting himself in this position by choice.  Laia was forced into running for her life, which while interesting, is not quite as interesting as Elias because we get to slowly learn his reasons for leaving.  We have read three chapters from each character, and up to this point, there aren't too many characters around Laia.  She had a family, but they are all gone, and she just ran into the rebels at the end of our reading.  With Elias we get the slow leak of information about his mother, father, and about the weird religious stuff going on with the Masks.  Laia's positon is changing too frequently, and Elias' is developing over time.

Son of the Mob Again

Discuss what you would do differently from one of the characters in the book.

There were parts of this book that were frustrating to me because I would not have gotten into this situation in the first place.  If I were Vinnie, or even Kendra, knowing what my dad does, I would know that there is no good way that this relationship could end.  Sure they might be having a good time and like each other, but in the end, her dad is an FBI agent investigating his dad.  I also think that if I were Vince it would be hard to not become involved in the family business.  His dad follows his own moral code and is honest when he does business, but sometimes he just needs to send a message to people in a less than legal way.  I think that if I were in Vince's position I would be trying to get involved with the family.  I mean, Vince was brought up in this environment and I don't really understand how he has managed to be able to not let it influence him.  That being said, if I were in the position of trying to distance myself from the family business, I would not have used the leverage of my father to impress a girl.  Maybe I am just too cynical of the world, but I have a hard time viewing a teenage relationship as something important enough to go through all this trouble for.

Son of the Mob

What would happen if....?

What would happen if Benny the Zit had not been able to create a distraction in time and the cops had opened the trunk to find Jimmy Rat.  I keep trying to think of the amount of trouble that Vince would get into.  I mean, he is only like sixteen and I'm sure there isn't any evidence against him other than him driving the car.  I also don't know what happens if you get caught with somebody in the trunk of your car that is just unconscious and not dead.  Would Benny need to press charges for Vince to get into trouble, or would he find his way into court anyway.  I also think that Vince's dad probably has some police officers paid off so that he will be able to get out out of jail on some sort of technicality.  Worst case scenario, Vince has to get taken down to the police station and wait on his father to come bail him out.  I can't imagine a scenario that justifies Benny having to wreck a car because I cannot see why anyone would go into a courtroom and testify against the son of a mob boss.  To answer the question what would happen if..., I don't think anything too devastating would come out of this situation.

BNW Chapter 4

Does this text make you think of another text, song, TV show, or literary work? What is it and what connection is there between the two pieces?

The literary work that this reminds me of is Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson.  There is a character in Mistborn named Vin who is from a lower class and is dressed up to infiltrate the upper class.  The boy that Vin falls in love with is a radical that is within the upper class by birth, but is separated from the other aristocrats.  He is from the biggest family in the capitol, but instead of going to parties and meeting women he is studying books and appears genuinely concerned for the lower classes.  There is one scene in particular that has this boy meeting with one of his other aristocratic friends in a library during one of the parties and they are basically talking about things that would get them arrested if anyone had heard about them.  The conversation coming to an end at the end of chapter four of Brave New World was reminiscent of this because Bernard freaks out when he thinks he hears someone coming.  This idea that there is something going on in the lower class that makes them want to rise up, but this cannot be achieved until there is a dissident in the upper class that gives them a way into some sort of weakness.  In Mistborn this is achieved through Vin infiltrating, but in BNW, Bernard is already prepared to take down the structure of society.

BNW Chapter 3

What character was your favorite? Why?

We're only three chapters in, but so far my favorite character is Lenina Crowne.  She seems like she is set up to go through the most change in the story.  While Bernard does look like he is going to be the main character of the story, he is already firmly defiant in his thoughts.  It is just a matter of when he will decide to go against the structure.  Lenina on the other hand is slightly going against norms by only being with one man, and deciding to choose to accept Bernard's invitation.  I like Lenina because she is going against society in a more subtle way because she is doing what she wants based on how she feels.  Bernard is going against society based on thought.  While I am a fan of rationality, there is something charming about Lenina's self awareness.

BNW Post 1

Describe what the author does to "paint a picture" of the setting.

Aldous Huxley paints a picture of the setting almost as if it were a movie.  He starts out on the exterior of the building by describing the color and size.  He then moves into a smaller detail, the words over the door.  The 'camera' now enters into the front doors and describes the ground floor.  He also describes what is in the room by using temperature and light.  He follows the path of the light to the shiny metal in the room.  Now we are onto people.  They are hunched over microscopes working.  Then the camera pans to the director and we begin hearing dialogue.  Huxley paints a picture by taking us on a walk from the outside of the building into the workroom.  He does this by making us a part of the story.  We are being taken on a tour, and then the action starts.

The Declaration RR

What would you do if you were in the position of one of the characters?

Anna is in a situation where she has been indoctrinated to believe that she is a burden on society and that she is the product of her parents committing a crime.  While this is technically true, there is the question of whether the law is morally sound.  I think that if I were in her position I would be indignant and believe that my parents were not in the wrong.  At the same time, I think that it would be hard to pull away from what the people at Grange Hall have led me to believe. I'm sure that the outcome would not be much different, as I am assuming that Anna is going to eventually rebel.  It wouldn't be much of a story if she didn't.  I probably wouldn't rebel, but I would not be one of the good kids that gets put into a good home as a house keeper.

Boot Camp Journal 2

 Sometimes works leave you with a feeling that there is more to tell. Did this work do this? What do you think might happen?

Strasser's Boot Camp left me with the feeling that there is more to tell because it ends so abruptly.  It ends with Garrett's parents picking him up and telling a man in a top coat that he was beaten.  I think that it is clear that there is going to be some form of legal action taken against Lake Harmony, and that it will be shut down.  I am more concerned about what is going to happen to Garrett after this ordeal.  He is traumatized and most likely suffering from PTSD.  Pauly explained it best when he said that the things Garrett's parents sent him there for are not things that can be changed.  There was no hope for Garrett, but now he has been beaten and tortured to the point of believing that he deserved it.  I want to know what kind of treatment Garrett is going to go through and if his parents will face any consequences for sending him there.  

Boot Camp Journal 1

Discuss what confuses you about the book

I am confused about the motives of this kid’s parents.  This kid is being taken prisoner essentially.  I understand that these boot camps are a common way to get kids to behave, but he has already been handcuffed so tight that his hands are numb, and he has been forced to strip in front of three dudes.  I’m wondering what he could have done to have this sort of punishment put on him.  If a kid is fully conscious and not in some sort of dangerous mental capacity I don’t see a reason for parents to authorize other people to restrain them.  I also want to know how other people are going to react when they see that this kid basically disappears.  Does the school know where he has gone? If I were in the position of one of his friends, I would be freaking out when he wasn’t responding to any of my phone calls or texts the next day.  I would assume he had gotten into a car accident and was stuck in a ditch somewhere.  This is the kind of thing that you would think his parents would have discussed with him before having him kidnapped in the middle of the night.