Three.

(http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/holocaust/photoessay.htm)

This picture is of the main entrance to Auschwitz where there is a gate sporting it's motto "Arbeit macht frei" or "Work makes one free." This makes me remember when Elie and his father arrived at this camp and the irony of another sign saying "Danger of death." I think of the irony that these things had. They were always in danger of death and were most certainly not free. Many people died in this camp and these signs were almost ridiculing their lives there.

Two.

(http://trcs.wikispaces.com/Survivors09)

There are three boys in this picture, each with a bowl of soup. While it doesn't remind me of a specific scene in the novel, it does make me think of how children were treated during the Holocaust. Perhaps if one of these boys had been a little bit younger, they would have been killed along with many other children upon arrival to the camps. This does make me wonder how they got through the Holocaust and how they felt about it for the rest of their lives.

One.

(http://www.deeptruths.com/letters/holocaust.html)

In this picture, you can see a line of Jewish men and a guard. They vary in age and dress, but all seem to be doing as they are told. The guard has his gun pointed to the ground, but it is easy to see he is in control. This photograph is memorable to me because the men have their hands in the air in an "I give up" fashion. This picture shows the men seeming somewhat submissive to the guards. This can represent how the Jews were treated as a lower form of life than other people.

Wow, really?!

"Everybody tells you from time to time,

to never give up like a phrase from a movie.

They tell you to stand up for yourself,

as if it was always that easy.

Gather a handful of courage in my heart

to go on and survive another day.

And I'll never take it for granted. Let's go!"

--- from Inoue Joe's Closer - English version (2010)

When did I stop listening to Inoue Joe? I don't know either, but it was definitely before that! *points up*

An official English version of my favorite Joe song? REALLY? He's going back on my awesome people list...

I also just attempted to navigate a Japanese website to find those lyrics. That proved to be impossible VERY SCARY. I don't even think it was on there. D=

This post used to be relevant to class, until I realized that I had some people mixed up and don't remember the name of the actual person I was thinking of. Therefore, I guess it is a good thing that the education-oriented thing wasn't set in stone. ,__, hmmm... This is strange...

Sooo.... This leaves me with half of a topic? I don't think this is going anywhere now, so bye!

HEY GUESS WHAT?! WHAT?!

I'm answering my own guess what. This is strange...
So I get to have a blog in Novels class! This is so exciting! The Writing Ninja lives!!

The only difference is, it has to be education-oriented. Now I have to figure out exactly what that means. The rules say I can't talk about out of school plans or even people without their permission. This might be problematic. I hope the rest of my blog isn't illegal now.

Would it be considered education oriented if I start talking about cello? I don't play cello in school, but it is a part of my musical education... What would happen if I started talking about how amazing the Mandarin language is? I think that might be considered an educational topic... It is, after all, something I want to study in college.

The biggest problem I can see this whole education-oriented thing causing is the fact that I can't talk about how much I love Wednesdays anymore, or my evil plan- making. This is terrible! However will I survive?!

Also, my koi pond was blocked from the school servers. This is a sad day. D=