Here is the discussion of the seemingly morbid short novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane. Students must discuss here twice the week of February the 3rd. There most be a total of 6 entries by the time the class finishes the book. This allegory may raise strong feelings, share them here!
Brandon A.
2/3/2014 08:23:42 am
I believe this allegory has a morbid feel to it, I would like to see if it turns out to have a happy or sad meaning in the end.
Savanna Guertin
2/6/2014 11:31:25 pm
Brandon, I feel that it starts us off making it seem like the book will be very sad but I have a feeling the Lettie Hempstock will make his life a lot happier later in the story.
Mack Rhine
2/5/2014 11:34:43 am
So far it feels like there is a good possibility that the Hempstocks do have some super natural capabilities. They might have more to that, though. My idea kinda seems "out there", but what if the Hempstocks are already dead, and they can communicate to the living. They can comfort them, or push them over the edge (like Lettie handing the note to the guy, we didn't know who, but it could be the Opal Miner, and she was telling him to end his life). Maybe the pond was a representation of the beings they've met or even the beings in the world. So when the fish died, it was because of a coin stuck in it's gut. like how the miner died cause of his gambling. We don't really know what's going on so far, but we'll surely find answers.
Alexis Diaz
2/5/2014 12:13:42 pm
I agree with Mack’s interpretation of a supernatural phenomenon as I too find it strange that they seem to be claiming to read the suicide note, nudging minds, and knowing the future. I find it interesting that a farm in the time of the 9th century is intact in history and process. Finally, what strikes me a truly weird is how an eleven-year old girl, Letty would think that an antique six-pence (not even equivalent to a penny) would be valid, let alone let him buy something as expensive as sherberts. Then again; these pieces of evidence may be the author’s work of guiding us to come up with our own conclusions such as supernatural.
Rachael Schock
2/6/2014 06:41:26 am
I too find it odd that she thinks a sixpence is still valid. this could be linked back to Mack's theory of them being already dead. definitely makes the story interesting.
Elyas Chopan
2/7/2014 11:24:48 pm
I agree with Mack. I think the hempstocks have a supernatural ability. Especially the little girl Lettie.
Ryan D.
2/5/2014 11:44:54 am
...I'm confused.
Alexis Diaz
2/5/2014 12:13:16 pm
The tone of the book is far too starkly morbid to be blatant with the reality; however the author succeeds in silver-lining the experiences and often times drifting the attention to another topic. We can identify with this when the opal miner dies, the author never says he’s dead on account of suicide, but rather subtly guides the reader to their own conclusion. Many would conclude the boy has a demeanor of despair, of no worth; this tone is set followed by his travesties and also the fact that we are already skimming the 3rd chapter without even given a name to this poor boy.
Ryan D.
2/5/2014 12:20:27 pm
As in confused I mean that I think that girl and her mother killed the opal miner. It just seems REALLY OBVIOUS that they killed that guy and put the note in his pocket. Like really. Suspicious. 100%. Isn't anybody else suspicious?
Darby McMahon
2/6/2014 06:41:43 am
I have to disagree with you on that Ryan. I think that the girls have some sort of telepathy powers that's how they know about everything, even when the boys dad is wondering were he is.
Megan Moxley
2/6/2014 10:19:27 am
I agree with Darby because the girls obviously have something up with them. I think this is a foreshadow but I don't know what it is foreshadowing.
Mae Sandhu
2/7/2014 02:25:16 am
I am agreeing with Darby also.. These girls mist have some super powers because of everything that they know. It just seems odd the way that they talk..its abnormal
Rachael Schock
2/6/2014 06:45:29 am
very good observation Ryan! I hadn't thought of that until now as you brought it up but it is definitely a possibility. although most signs so far point to some sort of super natural phenomenon, you may be correct as well.
Sophia Shyam
2/12/2014 08:58:31 am
I don't know, I sort of feel like he is right, maybe they did put the note in his pocket..... but then I don't agree because we went over in class that he killed himself
Brandon A.
2/6/2014 09:42:45 am
I have to say the weird thing about this book is that the Author is able to get you so quickly attached to things such as Fluffy, yet he can easily kill them off in the plot.
Jenna Hunter
2/6/2014 12:13:49 pm
Fluffy was only in two paragraphs. It was the first good thing that happened to this character. The book is defiantly can go from a slow pace that feels boring to a fast pace that can make you feel like, "What just happened?"
Jason Evans
2/6/2014 12:29:27 pm
I agree, Jenna, Fluffy was a symbol of love, friendship, and hope. The author had a cruel way of killing him. The reader had just gotten attached to the little furball and then Fluffy got hit by a car!
Camille Maraj
2/13/2014 10:19:36 am
I feel like Fluffy could be and indicator of X's life. He gets a companion, a friend to love and it is brutally stripped from him. This could be foreshadowing to Lettie, I think they are going to become friends and then some event separates them.
Darby McMahon
2/6/2014 12:32:42 pm
I felt horrible when Fluffy died. I already felt bad when no one came to his birthday party and I thought Fluffy would be a brand new start for him and the book would not be as depressing, but then two paragraphs later he gets run over. That's just cruel.
Mae Sandhu
2/7/2014 02:29:20 am
All of these things, when Fluffy died, when no one showed up to his birthday party, when his aunt died shortly after she took him to see a musical, are all factors in why he wasn't very sad when the opal miner died. He was already used to sadness and the fact that he already didn't like the miner also played in as well.
Megan Moxley
2/6/2014 10:16:14 am
I'm still trying to figure out the meaning of this allegory, but the book is starting to get better. It was depressing but it is starting to be interesting because of the Hempstocks.
Brandon A
2/13/2014 09:20:24 am
I think we will find out what it means by the end of the book
Jenna Hunter
2/6/2014 12:08:33 pm
I am really enjoying this book so far. The book keeps you thinking and influences predictions. I like the way the author wrights. Every little thing symbolizes something else. Not a single detail can go unnoticed.
Jason Evans
2/6/2014 12:19:52 pm
I like "The Ocean at the End of the Lane" is turning out to be a very well written and interesting book. I sympathize for the poor boy because his parents show him no affection and do not care what happens to him. For example, when nobody showed up to his birthday party, his mother cared more about the activities she had planned than her son and his feelings.
Isaiah Adams
2/6/2014 10:44:37 pm
I agree with you Jason and this book seems to be quite depressing and full.
Isaiah Adams
2/6/2014 10:46:22 pm
This author really describes the situation that the character is in and it seems as if I could make a picture in my head of the scene.
Joseph DiGeronimo
2/6/2014 11:38:57 pm
I agree, this author has been great at describing the scene
Savanna Guertin
2/6/2014 11:33:39 pm
I really like this book so far because I feel that if it is extremely sad in the beginning it will most likely get better because since it is very gloomy now there has to be a rise in the story or this book would be extremely boring throughout the rest.
Joseph DiGeronimo
2/6/2014 11:45:53 pm
I really like this book so far because of how diferent it is. This is not a book I would normally read but am enjoying the different feel it gives
Madi Faulk
2/7/2014 04:43:06 am
At th beginning of the book I felt bad for the little boy because he had no friends at his party and his cat died. Now I think the story will get better because he meet the hemstocks.
Madi Faulk
2/7/2014 04:44:12 am
I agree with joseph the author has really painted a picture in my mind of what it looks like
Camille Maraj
2/7/2014 04:45:58 am
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a book that is relatable to for people who read a lot when they were kids. Personally, I relate to the boy when he is alone or reading. People feel bad for him when he is alone and reading but personally I can attest that is a reader's paradise. I can tell this book a certain audience group.
Camille Maraj
2/7/2014 04:46:42 am
*appeals to a certain audience
Camille Maraj
2/7/2014 04:47:52 am
I have a feeling this book will be similar to the book Stargirl.
Sophia Shyam
2/7/2014 10:53:27 am
This book has a lot of sadness, I think that if we took a look at his previous years, maybe we would understand him more, If this boy was always put down as a child, maybe this is why he does not like people, and thinks everything is going bad for him.
Sophia Shyam
2/7/2014 10:56:51 am
I feel like this book, also had a lot of imagery, the way he described the fish in the pond became so real to me after all of the great adjectives that were used to describe it!!
Gabriel campos
2/7/2014 11:11:30 am
I agree with Sophia it has a lot of rich vocabulary and has lots of imagery.
Natahaniel Nun3z
2/10/2014 10:45:33 am
Sophia, I do agree that this book had lots of imagery. I could actually visualize the fish that swallowed the six pence. This book also had lots of symbolism.
Gabriel campos
2/7/2014 11:09:39 am
i feel like this book was very sad. but as we kept reading it , it got better and better.
Elyas Chopan
2/7/2014 11:22:39 pm
I feel really bad for the little kid that we are reading about. His life has been terrible and he's a little kid. I'm pretty sure he is still affected by his young years.
Brandon A
2/13/2014 09:19:48 am
I think so too, because things like his marriage have deteriorated
Nathaniel Nun3z
2/10/2014 10:43:21 am
When I first started reading the book The Ocean at the end of the Lane, so many bad and horrible things where happening to the narrator like his family member died and his cat being ran over. It made me want to put down the book and stop reading.
Sophia Shyam
2/12/2014 08:56:10 am
I agree Nate, It made me want to stop reading too, but now that we read on, I feel like everything is turning out at least decent for him. I think that lettie will take good care of "x" I am not sure how long it will take "x" to figure out that lettie's family maybe are not as normal as they seem.
Sophia Shyam
2/12/2014 09:03:27 am
I think that this boy we are reading about is similar to lakshmi, because lakshmi had no love, neither does this boy, and finds pleasure in the simplest things like telling gran hempstock to put the daffodils in a certain place. that made him feel so important for the first time in forever. I guess with lettie he just chose that he can trust her and her family and learned to let it go.. Let go all of the pain of the outside world and just learn to live in the moment.
Megan Moxley
2/13/2014 10:12:30 am
I agree with Sophia because i also believe he uses the Hempstock's as a release from not being shown love at home. I think that he created them in his mind to save himself.
Megan Moxley
2/13/2014 10:08:40 am
The story is really starting to get weird. Instead of being depressing and full of death, there is all this spiritual and paranormal activity going on because of the Hempstocks. Now we know for sure that they are not normal, but i also kind of have a feeling that they arent real. I think the nameless main character has a very vivid imagination or skizophrenia because these people cannot be real.
Ian Balogh
2/13/2014 11:54:20 am
I agree its seems like John Nash but, as a child
Camille Maraj
2/13/2014 10:25:33 am
I think we feel sad for X more than he does. He seems used to the sadness that is his life and is okay with it. I also think we underestimate how strong he is. I think he is a very strong character because he can go through so much without freaking out or being depressed.
Nathaniel Nun3z
2/13/2014 11:40:44 am
Camille, I also agree with you that the main character "X" is more emotionally stronger than we think he is. X proves this to us when know came to his birthday party and when he sees the deceased opal miner.
Ian Balogh
2/13/2014 11:53:02 am
The book seems to almost be the imagination of a child or a mental disorder. It seems to me the main character has an overactive imagination or a mental disorder like schizophrenia. The manta wolf the fire from the hazel wand and the Hempstocks themselves does not make any sense.
Paolo De Los Santos
2/13/2014 03:32:54 pm
I actually think this is a good concept of the book Ian. Maybe he was so traumatized from his friends not showing up to his party that he started to imagine friends of his own or he might have the schizophrenia idea you thought of.
Nathaniel Nun3z
2/13/2014 12:06:31 pm
As I am reading the book I start to wonder, is our main character imagining these friends. Is X making up these friends to comfort him in his struggles. Right now I do not think he is but I still have my doubts.
Mateen Shekaib
2/13/2014 12:38:30 pm
I thought this book was going to be sad at first when we first started reading it. Honestly, I still feel bad about his life right now. How he needs to go to another family to find the love he needs, and has been needing. Although I do feel happy that lettie's family is filling the gap for x. He never had a mother emotionally attached to him so I think this is a really good thing for him psychologically and physically. Physically because he is getting out of the house and exploring things and making himself feel distracted from the outside world.
Elyas Chopan
2/14/2014 10:38:55 pm
I totally agree with you Matt. I Thought this book was going to be completely sad but I mean it's getting a little but more happy for him.
Sophia Shyam
2/15/2014 03:28:40 am
I also agree with matt. I think that the author did a very good job in tricking us into thinking that there was going to be all sadness, the author twisted it in a way that he brought himself out of his sadness and depression. Well done.
Paolo De Los Santos
2/13/2014 03:29:45 pm
When reading the book I had multiple feelings about the book. I was bored, sad and laughing at some parts. Overall the book is pretty good and its starting to kick off when he met a new girl named Lettie Nempstock.
Savanna Guertin
2/14/2014 03:00:41 am
I agree with you paolo that this book is really good at twisting with the readers emotions.
Isaiah A
2/13/2014 11:43:43 pm
A lot has happened in these past few chapters and it is kinda confusing.
Isaiah A
2/13/2014 11:45:00 pm
Out of all the things that have happened to the character it seems like he has not had a good life.
Madi Faulk
2/14/2014 02:58:39 am
I feel the ragged tent creature they saw was imaginary and that they just bu ed that they saw it
Madi Faulk
2/14/2014 03:01:08 am
I agree with Ian that the boy might be imagining everything he sees and he might have a mental illness
Mae Samdhu
2/16/2014 07:13:57 am
Madi I really don't think that he has a mental illness because even his father had met the Hempstocks. But then again, he was very lonely and needed some friends, and Lettie could be his 'imaginary friend'.
Mae Sandhu
2/16/2014 07:15:10 am
oops I spelled my last name wrong^^^ -_- sorry
Savanna Guertin
2/14/2014 03:02:01 am
I feel that everything in the book may be connected in some way and that it may all be a dream or a hallucination or something really mysterious is happening.
Jenna Hunter
2/14/2014 10:03:50 am
I wonder if there is something wrong with the boy. After he let go of letty's hand he felt a stab if plain in his foot. Maybe he will become ill or have supernatural abilities.
Jenna Hunter
2/14/2014 10:07:14 am
Letty's family seem to have the ability to push thoughts on other people. I wonder if they have pushed the boys thoughts at all. Did the push the boy to come back after he chocked on the coin? They seem to not worry about how often they use their abilities. I wouldn't be surprised if the mess with the boy's life as time goes on.
Elyas Chopan
2/14/2014 10:37:26 pm
I feel like the article we read this week is similar to the nameless character. The nameless character is not okay in my opinion. I think everything he sees is imaginary. Their are supernatural animals and supernatural people with magical people. Their could be a possibility that there Is a figment of imagination that created a sub world just to make himself feel better. Their is a possibility that maybe he is just reading a book and imagines himself with the hemp stocks.
Sophia Shyam
2/15/2014 03:25:24 am
Elyas, I very much agree with you, I think that maybe he is just reading a book and is just imagining himself with that family in order to keep himself sane
Sophia Shyam
2/15/2014 03:32:17 am
I am not totally sure this book is going to end in a sad way..... I think the beginning sort of foreshadowed and spoiled what was going to happen to lettie hempstock later on in the book, I thought it would have been a better idea to hide the beginning...... But it was used for the course of the storyline
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