Thrown into a situation of unprecedented circumstances, Cody is a flickering light in a sea of darkness in Gayle Forman’s novel, I Was Here. After losing her best friend, Meg, to suicide, Cody struggles throughout the novel. But she still shines through with her protective nature, her stubbornness, and even her depression.
From the get-go, Cody tries to protect Meg’s family, the Garcias, from any more unnecessary pain. This is seen multiple times throughout the book. “No, I haven’t told them about any of this. The secret feels larger than before, almost tumorous. There is no way I can tell the Garcias now. It would devastate them.” (I Was Here, Forman, 121). As seen by this quote, the burden of All_BS, and the Final Solution boards, seem to lie on Cody’s shoulders, but she has no doubt in her mind that she should protect the Garcias. Cody gives her all to protect the Garcias from the excess burden that she is carrying, and that shows how protective she is.
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It propels the book forward, and shows that Cody is a force to be reckoned with. “’You took math all the way through that because you wanted to go to college. My point is, you never quit on dance, on math, on anything, and maybe you had more reason to. You had a pile of rocks and you cleaned them up pretty, and made a necklace.’”(??) It is made clear by this quote that Cody has been a stubborn, strong-willed child for the majority of her life, and has made something of herself. This quality of Cody’s contrasts well with the mood of the novel, and really shines through, since the peservance of Cody really battles with the depression nature of the
She understands that extracurricular activities for children are very important, and she verifies this point by telling her childhood story of how art and school saved her from her broken life at home.
From the beginning of the whole excerpt, she starts off with a hateful or dissatisfied tone about always being locked away. As it progresses, until paragraph four, her tone and perception changes. For example, in paragraph four, her tone was more understanding and calmer, she is also is speaking about why she kind of appreciates being locked away because it keeps her from the other nightmarish things she sees outside through the small hole she found. This shows the audience that the little girl, in a way, is mature and has experienced a lot. The audience perceives her tone in the beginning, as disdain, dissatisfaction, or a hateful tone to show her unhappiness with her situation, to show that she really wants to travel outside and view the world freely, although, her change in tone shows that she sometimes appreciates being able to only stay in one place because she is hidden or away from the cruel things that happen outside.
He shows how interested she is in how life was before and how mature she is for being 16.
The theme of the novel also really helps show the messages of bullying and harassment. An example is when Chris gets his letterman jacket this shows how he overcame the bullying
From the beginning she pulls the readers attention, she uses a metaphor “Eventually being perfect day after day, year after year, became like always carrying a backpack filled with bricks on my back”(Quindlen, 296). This metaphor is the most significant part of her speech as she continues to refer to this metaphor throughout the speech. She uses this for the purpose of appealing to the audience in a meaningful, and personal way, creating a connection between her and the audience as most students, not only college students, can probably relate to the feeling of being heavily put down by something , not necessarily what she is talking about. Her use of pathos is what makes the speech so appealing and interesting, because she makes it so relatable and easy to understand.
An alternative reason as to why this section of the book is useful is the understatement of one’s own creativity. At the end of the section, Barry states, “to be able to stand not knowing long enough to let something alive take shape! Without the two questions so much is possible. To all the kids who quit drawing…Come back!” (135). Barry understanding that creativity is limitless is when she can finally let go of the two questions that had plagued her mind for years. This new understanding has given her back that sense of fulfillment of drawing without
Rose first explains how the educational system classifies a child’s class. He then proceeds to elaborate on how the vocational class works for those who do not do as well in school. He uses pathos so the reader feels emotional for the less fortunate student in the vocational class. Rose conveys his beliefs by using personal examples. He learns true qualities of people and shares the stories of Dave Snyder, Ted Richard, and Ken Harvey. Sharing the personal indications of what puts the students in the vocational class, gives the reader the notion that they have strengths that do not apply doing well in school. Rose ties the examples together in the end to confirm his opinion that one should never settle being defined as average.
Without the person Katniss thought would have her back, she is now left with the harsh reality that she can’t trust anyone at all. Even though Katniss is blindsided, she is quick to recover and carry on. This composition fits this scene because it talks about taking back what’s left of themselves. It creates a sense of empowerment that shows the audience that Katniss is able to overcome the challenges that have begun to make their way into her path. It also shows that the obstacles are making her stronger and more
She finally was in a place where that she felt that she personally could make a change. The sight of the first grade children running around would’ve drove some to insanity, but it was quite the opposite. She describes the scene as a swirling pool of entropy (disorganization). There was chaos and an absolute mess in every direction that you looked. Now who would sign up for hours of relentless screaming, yelling, and fighting? She saw the mess as an opportunity to shape the minds of the kids. Each and every one of those kids had the potential to something great. Those first graders were our future doctors and engineers. Only no one could see it behind the screaming and
This is a very important part of the book because it shows the reader that the
First, Jolly is celebrated for how she saved Jilly’s life. “And there was a picture of her and Jilly in the school paper, it said STUDENT SAVES OWN CHILD. And in smaller letters it said, Credits Moms Up CPR Class for Skills” (198). Earlier, Jolly saved Jilly’s life, and that was a good decision, but it also changed Jilly’s life, not just changed it, but Jolly saved it. She’s credited for those choices and how she changed the life of Jilly for the better. Secondly, LaVaughn is teaching Jeremy numbers, and LaVaughn wont give up because Jeremy won't know how to count otherwise. “This Mr. Jeremy, he’s imagining things [. . .] I continue with Jeremy’s numbers [. . .] He pretends he’s a lost cause” (175-176). Jeremy needs to know how to count before he goes to school because otherwise he will be behind, and LaVaughn is determined to get it done and change his life because numbers are a crucial life skill that are needed. Finally, LaVaughn is overwhelmed with all of the classes she needs. “And then there’s me. I’m supposed to take all those different classes: that financial aid one, that Leadership one, and Grammar Build-Up, and I can go to college to be a teacher. Really? Yeah. Me” (181). LaVaughn is filled with responsibilities that she needs to do to change her life. She’s doing a lot of things to change her life, like how she’s babysitting for the money, and how she’s taking all of these classes. She’s trying to change her and her mother’s life because LaVaughn wants to go to college and get a good job so they can move to a better neighborhood and change their lives. These reasons show that the character’s determination from school largely shapes their choices to change other’s
“He loves the theatre apparently. A great enthusiast when he gets going. He has his down periods like a lot of people, but he’s your support, your natural energiser.” Justin to Lewis about Roy P3
I Was Here is a literary work of art that deals with the aftermath of a suicide, which, to be honest, has been overdone in books, but there is no doubt that it is an incredibly important topic. As expected, this is yet another Gayle Forman work, so there was no doubt that this would have high standards to compete with. Cody and Meg have always been inseparable, best friends for life. They did everything together. Until they didn’t. Cody and Meg had their lives planned out- they would leave their dead end town in Washington and escape to Tacoma, go to college together, be roommates, and live happily. But that changed when Meg was granted a scholarship and Cody didn’t. Meg up and left, deserting Cody, leaving the only communication to be e-mail.
I remember the day just like it was yesterday, the pale color and coldness of her skin. The sky was clear blue, soft, with a touch of red, and the trees seemed stiff in their bright green shade. The wind was blowing with its humid dry air. And All I could do was stand silently in disbelief, caught up in my own thoughts and calm as I ever been. Wondering what I could have done differently to change the course of time, life had taken us upon. Since that very day a chunk of my heart was ripped away, and broken into pieces… “Oh how I miss her so much.”
Secondly, Loss of something important can teach people about denial, acceptance, and remembrance. To start, the experience of loss can teach people about denial, this is exhibited early in the novel when Daniel is on the phone with his mom talking about Jed and he states that “She calls because she wants to speak about Jed, but none of us in the family are able. We kind of erased